Academic CV
Education
2020-2026
Ph.D., Near Eastern Languages and Cultures, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA
Advisor: Dr. Peter Cowe
Advancement to Candidacy: December 15, 2023
2016-2019
M.A., Anthropology, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, CA
Advisor: Dr. Martha Lincoln (Cultural Anthropology)
Thesis: ‘“Nation as Family’ and Gender-Based Violence in Modern Armenia”
2017-2018
2010-2014
B.A., University of San Francisco, San Francisco, CA
Majors: Spanish and Latin American Studies
2013
Universidad Católica de Argentina, Buenos Aires, Argentina
A 5-month semester-long study abroad
RESEARCH EXPERIENCE
2022
Armenian Diaspora Survey, Los Angeles, CA
Qualitative Researcher
Organized and conduct 20 in-depth interviews with Armenian community
members in LA, completed interview summary templates for each individual
interview, submitted a 10-page summary report about the interviews
2019
Armenian Women’s Media Portrayal Project, Hollywood, CA
Head Researcher
Worked with Dr. Alina Dorian [UCLA Fielding School of Public Health]
alongside 11 th and 12 th grade students from Rose & Alex Pilibos Armenian School
to conduct a hybrid qualitative and quantitative study on Armenian women’s
portrayal in modern Armenian soap operas
*This project was curtailed after three months due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
2018
“Downwind: Environmental Precarity & Community Preparedness in Richmond, CA”, San Francisco, CA
Research Assistant
San Francisco State University, Supervisor: Dr. Martha Lincoln
Read and annotated relevant articles, attended and took notes on community
meetings in Richmond, CA, conducted internet research, attended bi-monthly
team meetings
2018
San Francisco Day Labor Program (SFDLP) & Women’s Collective
Market Research Analyst
Conducted a full labor market analysis on San Francisco doulas, gathered
information from over 30 local doulas on hours, pricing, and minimum skills
required to become either a birth doula or a post-partum doula in San Francisco,
created a comprehensive study of average cost, requirements and
recommendations for Women’s Collective
RESEARCH GRANTS & FELLOWSHIPS
2024-25
Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowship for 2024-25 academic year for Ph.D. study
at UCLA, $20,000 stipend + tuition and fees
2024
2024
2024
2023-24
ASEEES Summer Dissertation Writing Grant, $6,000
ARISC Short Term Research Fellowship, $8,400
National Association for Armenian Studies and Research (NAASR) Grant, $2,500
Graduate Research Mentorship (GRM) Award for 2023-24 academic year for
Ph.D. study at UCLA, $20,000 stipend + tuition and fees
2023-24
2022-23
Mangasar Mangasarian Award for 2022-23 and 2023-24 academic years for Ph.D.
study at UCLA, $15,000Ph.D. study at UCLA, $20,000 stipend + tuition and fees
2023-24
Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures Award for 2023-24
academic year for Ph.D. study at UCLA, $10,000 stipend
2024-25
2023-24
Kaspar and Siroon Hovannisian Fellowship, $2,300
2023
2023
2022
2022
2021
2020-21
UCLA Center for Study of Women (CSW) Fall Travel Grant, $500
UCLA Center for Near Eastern Studies Publication Award, $500
National Association for Armenian Studies and Research (NAASR) Grant, $2,500
Society for Armenian Studies (SAS) Travel Grant, $700
Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowship (Russian), $7,500
The Promise Armenian Institute Inaugural Graduate Fellowship, award for the
2020-2021 academic year for Ph.D. study at UCLA + tuition and fees, $23,000
2020
2018, 2017
Society for Armenian Studies (SAS) Grant on Race, $1,000
Title VIII Fellowship, for the study of Advanced Eastern Armenian
(2018) and 2 nd Year Eastern Armenian (2017) through the Arizona State University Critical Languages Institute, $9,650, $8,500
2017
Title VIII Fellowship, for the study of Advanced Eastern ArmenianJay Young Award for Excellence, Department of Anthropology
San Francisco State University, $500
SCHOLARSHIPS & AWARDS
2024
2020
2020
2020, 2018, 2017
2020, 2017, 2016, 2013, 2012
2019
2019
2017, 2016, 2012, 2011
2017, 2016
2014
2013
2013
2013, 2012
2012
2012
2011
Society for Armenian Studies (SAS) Best Student Conference Paper Award 2021-2023, $1,000
Armenian Professional Society, $2,500
Vahan Adjemian Scholarship Fund of Tibrevank Alumni, Inc., $1,000
AGBU US Graduate Scholarship, $5,000, $2,500, $1,500
Armenian-American Citizens' League Scholarship, $1,200, $2,000 annually
SFSU College of Liberal & Creative Arts Graduate Hood Honoree
SFSU Anthropology Department Distinguished Graduate Student
Union of Marash Scholarship, $500 annually
Armenian Relief Society Lazarian Graduate Scholarship, $500 annually
USF Father John P. Schlegel, S.J. Award
Winner of Latin American Studies Paper Prize
Feature in the USF "Be the Change" Campaign
Armenian Relief Society Scholarship, Garin Chapter, $500 annually
Greg Arnoff Study Abroad Scholarship, $1,000
North Bay Regional Scholarship, $1,000
USF Emerging Leadership Award
CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS
2023
“The Trajectory from Armenia’s Domestic Violence Law to the 2018 Velvet
Revolution,” National Women's Studies Association Meeting, Baltimore, MD
2022
2022
“Gender and the Creation of the Armenian Nation” Queer in the Middle East, Queering the Middle East Conference, Program in Comparative Literature &
Department of Middle Eastern Studies, UT Austin (virtual)
“From Anti-Genderism to Law: An Analysis of Domestic Violence in Post-Soviet Armenia” Society for Applied Anthropology (SfAA) Annual Meeting, Salt Lake City, UT (virtual)
2021
“Contestations of Gender: Public Perceptions of the 2017 Domestic Violence Law in Armenia” American Anthropological Association 2021 Annual Meeting, Baltimore, MD (virtual)
2021
“Decolonial Reparations: A Case for the Armenian Genocide,”
International Association of Genocide Scholars, Barcelona, Spain (virtual)
2021
“The Modern Armenian Kinship System and the Perceived Levels of Women's
‘Armenianness,’” Society for Applied Anthropology (SfAA) Annual Meeting, Norfolk, VA (virtual)
2021
“Armenia’s Domestic Violence Law: A Reflection of a Nation’s Patriarchal
Values,” UCLA Annual International Graduate Colloquium in Armenian Studies, Los Angeles, CA (virtual)
2019
“From ‘Rape as a Weapon of War’ to Analyzing Patriarchal Values: Wartime
Sexual Violence Through Anthropology,” Society for Applied Anthropology (SfAA) Annual Meeting, Portland, OR
2018
“The Armenian Genocide: Treatment of Women and Modern Implications”
Sacramento State University 5th International Conference on Genocide, Sacramento, CA
2018
“Literature Review: Understanding Wartime Sexual Violence Through
Anthropology” American Anthropological Association 117 th Annual Meeting, San Jose, CA
POSTER PRESENTATIONS
2019
‘“Nation as Family’ and the Causes of Gender-Based Violence in Modern
Armenia,” San Francisco State University Graduate Research and Creative Works Showcase, San Francisco, CA
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
2021-
Present
UCLA, Near Eastern Languages & Cultures Department, Los Angeles, CA
Teacher’s Assistant
Courses: Women & Power in the Ancient World
Gender and Sexuality in Arts and Literatures of Iran and Middle East
Achaemenid Civilization and the Empire of Alexander
Making and Studying the Modern Middle East
Write and perform weekly lesson plans, mentor students on writing and research
skills, maintain class website, grade weekly assignments and research papers,
attend weekly course lecture
2018
2016
2016
San Francisco State University, Anthropology Department, San Francisco, CA
Teacher’s Assistant
Course: Introduction to Cultural Anthropology
Wrote and graded quizzes and exams, mentored students on exam materials,
wrote and presented a guest lecture on social groups and social stratification
Society Without Violence NGO, Yerevan, Armenia
Teaching Intern
Wrote curriculum for and taught the Business English and Empowerment Course
for Women to 5 students ages 35 – 55 over a 6-week period
Peace Dialogue NGO, Vanadzor, Armenia
Teaching Intern
Wrote and planned a day-long beginner’s Gender Equality Training Curriculum,
conducted the Gender Equality Training Curriculum to a group of 8 local youth
2014-2022
Private Spanish Tutor, San Rafael, CA
Individually tutor up to 5 high school students in Spanish in a one-on-one setting
once a week, review Spanish grammar and vocabulary
2014-2022
Private Spanish Tutor, San Rafael, CA
Individually tutor up to 5 high school students in Spanish in a one-on-one setting
once a week, review Spanish grammar and vocabulary
2014
Private Spanish Tutor, San Rafael, CA
Spanish Conversation Tutor, University of San Francisco, CA
Planned and implemented weekly conversation activities for two sessions of
students enrolled in Second Semester Spanish during the spring semester, graded
students on weekly participation and ability to speak conversational Spanishonce a week, review Spanish grammar and vocabulary
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
2024
Director, UCLA Annual Graduate Student Colloquium in Armenian Studies
Westwood, CA
Plan and organize the annual Colloquium
2023
Test of Oral Proficiency (TOP) Rater, UCLA, Westwood, CA
Rate UCLA international graduate students during a test designed to assess their
oral English ability of in the context of normal TA duties
2020
Copyeditor, Houshamadyan, Berlin, Germany
Copy-edited the English translations of all six articles in the second volume of
Houshamadyan’s book entitled Ottoman Armenians. Life, Culture, Society.
2020
Research Specialist, Isaacson, Miller, San Francisco, CA
Worked as part of the executive search teams to lead initial research strategy
discussions and provided targeted research to aid in the successful completion of
the search, including carrying out discrete research tasks, support multiple search
teams and searches simultaneously at various stages of the search
2016-2108
2016
Administrative Assistant, Nepal Youth Foundation, Sausalito, CA
Processed all incoming check and credit card donations into financial database,
generated thank-you letters, compiled and sent all large mailings to donors
Program Coordinator, Advokids, Corte Madera, CACoordinated logistics for attorney trainings, processed all check and credit card donations made to the organization, designed and edited new pro bono attorney
and general marketing materials
2015
Executive Assistant, Advokids, Corte Madera, CA
Answered calls on hotline offering legal support to foster children, created
Salesforce cases, made quarterly reports for Board of Directors & Advisory Board
2014
Associate Project Director, Amigos de las Américas, Cotopaxi, Ecuador
[3-month project] Managed the project budget of over $25,000, mentored Project
Supervisors in the work area, cultivated professional relationships with host
country officials at the national and regional levels, monitored medical and
emergency procedures system to safeguard the well-being of all project members
LANGUAGES
English
Armenian (Western, Eastern, and Classical)
Spanish
Russian – Intermediate
French – Intermediate
REFERENCES
Dr. Peter Cowe | cowe@humnet.ucla.edu
Ph.D. Thesis Advisor
Narekatsi Professor of Armenian Studies at UCLA Department of Near Eastern Languages & Cultures
Dr. Hagop Kouloujian | koulou@humnet.ucla.edu
Lecturer, Western Armenian at UCLA Department of Near Eastern Languages & Cultures
Dr. Sherene Razack | sherenerazack@ucla.edu
Distinguished Professor and Penny Kanner Endowed Chair in Women’s Studies