Call for MENA Salon Leaders 2018-2019

The CMES seeks qualified UC Berkeley graduate students to run the weekly MENA Salon, an informal guided discussion of current events in the Middle East and North Africa taking place at the CMES most Fridays during the semester. The Salon leaders will formulate a topic for each week’s meeting, scour the news media for high-quality articles, and send the topic and reading list to CMES staff to circulate. The leaders will then facilitate a productive and convivial discussion with attendees, who are typically students and members of the broader Berkeley community. Note that the level of these conversations should be informed, but not academic.

The Salon leaders must have strong organizational, time-management, and diplomacy skills, remaining sensitive to participants’ viewpoints while keeping the conversation on track and maintaining a cordial atmosphere. Leaders receive a $1,000 stipend per semester, weekly refreshments, and the opportunity to take ownership of a popular program that has attracted the attention of other centers and universities. The weekly time commitment is roughly three hours—one hour for the Salon itself and two hours for preparation—approximately nine weeks per semester.

Interested parties should send a CV and cover letter addressed to Prof. Emily Gottreich, CMES Chair, as a single PDF to cmes@berkeley.edu by May 31, 2018.