The Schusterman Center is dedicated to supporting and growing the academic field of Israel studies.
We created a guide for scholars, educators, students, and anyone wanting to learn more about Israel. With expert-recommended resources and tips for effective research, this is a one-stop shop for Israel Studies queries, needs, and information.
We sponsor publications that seek to enlighten both a scholarly and non-scholarly audience with the latest research on the modern State of Israel.
Our Summer Institute for Israel Studies equips higher-education faculty with the resources they need in order to take a rigorously academic approach to teaching about modern Israel on college campuses.
The IAIS 2024-25 fellows.
We are pleased to announce the theme for the 2025-2026 Institute for Advanced Israel Studies (IAIS): Diversifying the Israeli Diaspora. This hybrid fellowship will feature a virtual workshop series throughout the year, and an in-person conference at Brandeis university.
Learn more and apply
Like the best Israel studies centers, the Schusterman Center is dedicated to advancing knowledge and understanding of Israeli history, politics, culture and society. But its mission goes far beyond scholarship itself. The center is committed to creating and disseminating knowledge about the modern state of Israel, not just at Brandeis, but to a global audience.
The center is shaping and safeguarding the future of Israel studies by training the next generation of scholars in the field. Through innovative research and teaching programs, lectures, conferences, grants, publications, films and art exhibitions, complemented by a unique online resource site, the center is nurturing a worldwide community of people who are knowledgeable about Israel.
Check out "Wikipedia and the Politics of Knowledge," the May 12 episode of the Tel Aviv Review podcast. It features Institute for Advanced Israel Studies 2024-25 fellows, scientist Rona Aviram and journalist Omer Benjakob, discussing Wikipedia’s bumpy road towards becoming the go-to source of knowledge online. This episode is part of a special series collaboration between the Tel Aviv Review and the Schusterman Center's Institute for Advanced Israel Studies. It is the second episode resulting from our 2025 conference on Digital Humanities in Israel Studies. (Image courtesy of Tel Aviv Review.)
Our 2024/25 newsletter features the accolades and accomplishments of our fellows, faculty and alumni, addresses the historical and cultural ramifications of ongoing conflicts and tragedies, profiles our Summer Institute for Israel Studies and the Institute for Advanced Israel Studies initiatives and showcases upcoming events. Read it now.
Did you miss an event you had hoped to attend? Looking for a resource to support your lesson plan or to offer as an extra credit assignment? Visit our YouTube channel to access recordings of select Schusterman Center events, including lectures, panel discussions and seminars on a wide array of topics in Israel studies. Subscribe to be notified when new videos are available. Consider sharing this resource with others you know who want to learn more about Israel. (Photo: clockwise from top right, Neta Elkayam, Caron Tabb, Dr. Shayna Weiss, and Prof. Yuval Evri.)
Looking to learn, research, or teach about Israel? Explore our Research Guide to Israel Studies, a one-stop shop for Israel Studies queries, needs, and information. This free guide contains resources for researchers of every kind. From the high schooler writing a class report, to a journalist looking for reliable information, to a senior academic with thirty years' experience, everyone - especially those now working from home - will find it invaluable. Produced with the Israel Studies faculty at Brandeis University, in conjunction with other leading scholars, and edited by our associate director, Dr. Shayna Weiss, this is the most comprehensive guide of its kind available. Explore the Research Guide to Israel Studies.