Jaafar Aksikas

Jaafar Aksikas, PhD, is Acting Director of the Cultural Studies Program and Associate Professor of Cultural Studies in the Department of Humanities, History, and Social Sciences at Columbia College Chicago, where he teaches a number of core Cultural Studies and Middle Eastern/North African studies courses.

Dr. Aksikas holds a PhD in Cultural Studies from George Mason University (2005); an MA in the Humanities and Comparative Cultural Studies from Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane, Morocco (1999); and a BA (with highest honors) in English from Chouaib Doukkali University in Morocco (1997). Prior to his appointment at Columbia, Dr. Aksikas taught at George Mason University (2002-2005); was co-founder and Academic Director of the International Institute of Casablanca, Morocco from (2000-2002); and ESL Instructor at the American Language Center of Casablanca, Morocco from (1998-2002).

Dr. Aksikas pursues research in the following areas: Cultural Studies and contemporary cultural theory; North African and Middle Eastern cultures, media, and politics; postcolonial studies; (post) modernity and globalization; Marxism and culture; and the Frankfurt School. His publications include his new book Arab Modernities, (Peter Lang Publishing, 2009); The Sirah of Antar: An Islamic Interpretation of Arab and Islamic History (AUI Press/Imprimerie Najah El Jadida, 2002); and his fieldwork project "De attitude van Marokkaanse TV-kijkers op de reklame van de twee Marokkaanse kanalen” (Translated into Dutch by Antoine Gailly; Cultuur en Migratie, 1999). His most recent articles include "Could/Should Cultural Studies be ‘Born Again’?" (forthcoming) and "Prisoners of Globalization: Marginality, Community, and the New Informal Economy” (Mediterranean Politics, 2007). Dr. Aksikas has also delivered numerous papers at conferences both nationally and internationally.

Dr. Aksikas has received numerous awards, including the GMU VISION Award for Academic Excellence (2003) and the Moroccan Ministry of Higher Education Merit Scholarship (1997-1999). In 2005, he was installed as a member of Phi Beta Delta, Honor Society for International Scholars. Dr. Aksikas also serves on the Executive Board of the Cultural Studies Association, USA (CSA) and on the Editorial Board of Cultural Studies: An International Journal. He is also the Founding and General Editor of Cultural Landscapes: A Journal of Cultural Studies, the Founding Coordinator for Columbia’s Cultural Studies Colloquium Series, and serves as a member of the Illinois Network on Islam and Muslim Societies. He is also the founder of Illinois Consultants and Interpreters, a community organization that provides freelance translation and cultural/political consulting services to the Middle Eastern and North African communities of Chicago.    
 
Contact Dr. Aksikas:

Mail:
Dr. Jaafar Aksikas
Columbia College Chicago
Department of HHSS
600 S. Michigan Ave.
Chicago, IL
60605