Faculty Experts
Below are topic areas where UM-Dearborn faculty have particular expertise.
To connect with these or other UM-Dearborn experts, contact them directly or contact Communications Director Kristin Palm, [email protected], 313-593-5542.
Find more experts in UM-Dearborn’s Faculty Experts Portal.
Sally Howell, Professor of History, past director, Center for Arab American Studies
Research Areas: Arab American Studies, Detroit, Muslim American History
Available to comment on a range of issues impacting Arab American communities in Detroit and nationally, including Arab American and Muslim American voting in the 2024 election, Dearborn's Arab American community, and the cultural impact of SE Michigan's rapidly growing Muslim communities.
Contact: [email protected]
Reem Abou-Samra, Lecturer, Political Science
Available to speak on:
- Arab American and Muslim American voters
- Patriotism and Muslim Americans
- American politics and cultural identity
- Arab/MENA politics
Contact: [email protected]
Amny Shuraydi, Assistant Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice; Associate Faculty, Center for Arab American Studies
Research Areas: Criminology, Arab American issues, drug use, hate crimes, white collar crime, media and crime, social justice
Available to speak on:
- Arab American/Muslim American voters, voting sentiment and protests
- Arab American issues dealing with mental health, drug use, and identity
- White-collar crime
- Criminological theories
- Social justice issues
Contact: [email protected]
Wessam Elmeligi, Director, Center for Arab American Studies; Associate Professor of Arabic Studies
Research Areas: Arab Cinema, Classical and Modern Arabic Art and Literature, Comparative Literature, Gender Studies, Immigration Narratives, Literary Psychoanalysis, Narratology, SWANA Cultures, The Graphic Novel, Visual Media
Available to speak on a range of issues related to arts, culture and the Arab American experience, with a particular interest in immigration narratives, comics, science fiction, speculative fiction and Arab women’s literature, as well as Islamic culture and civilization.
Hafiz Malik, Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering
Research Areas: Deepfakes, Generative AI, Automotive Cybersecurity, Cyber-Physical System Security, Information Security, Digital and Multimedia Forensics, Intelligent Systems, Pattern Recognition
Prof. Malik is a nationally known expert on deepfakes, with a focus on political deepfakes. He has been featured in The New York Times, Associated Press, CNBC, LA Times, The Hill, NewsGuard and elsewhere. He is available to speak on:
- Deepfakes/political deepfakes
- Artificial intelligence
- Cybersecurity
- Biometric security
- Ransomware and facial recognition
Contact: [email protected]
Birhanu Eshete, Associate Professor, Computer and Information Science
Research Areas: Cybersecurity, Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence
Available to speak on:
- Cybersecurity
- Nation-state attacks
- Trustworthy AI (security, privacy, fairness, explainability, ethics)
- AI and public policy
Contact: [email protected]
Samir Rawashdeh, Associate Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Director, Dearborn Artificial Intelligence Research Center
Research Areas: Robotics, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Vision and Perception, Smart Health
Prof. Rawashdeh has widely discussed AI’s black box problem. He is available to speak on:
- AI: Deep learning, explainability (how AI makes decisions), the “black box problem”
- Robotics, machine vision
- Embedded systems, computer networks
Contact: [email protected]
Danielle DeFauw, Professor of Reading and Language Arts
Research Areas: Literacy, Pedagogy and Interventions, Writing
A former third-grade teacher and literacy coach, Prof. DeFauw is available to speak on:
- Student writing development
- K-12 literacy instruction
- Children's literature
Mesut Duran, Professor of Educational Technology
Research Areas: Educational Technology, STEM Teaching and Learning, Technology and Teacher Education
A former high school teacher, Prof. Duran is the author of Learning Technologies: Research, Trends, and Issues in the U.S. Education System. He is available to speak on:
- Technology and its impact on K-12 classrooms, including AI and other emerging technologies
- K-12 STEM learning: best practices, STEM student retention, afterschool STEM programming
- Disparities in STEM learning: gender, race, ESL, special needs students
- Online learning
- Technology and teacher preparation
Dara Hill, Professor of Reading and Language Arts
Research Areas: Literacy, Multicultural Education, Urban Education
Prof. Hill is a co-founder of the Best Classroom Project, which helps Detroit parents assess and select the best schools for their children. She is available to speak on:
- School choice
- Pandemic learning gap
- Literacy acquisition among language minority students
- Desegregation
- Detroit’s educational landscape
Contact: [email protected]
Kyongson Park, Assistant Professor of Education
Research Areas: Assessment, English as a Second Language (ESL), Intercultural Education, STEM Teaching and Learning
Available to speak on:
- Bilingual and English as a Second Language (ESL) education issues
- Intercultural communication in the classroom
- Language and cultural issues in online education
LaShorage Shaffer, Associate Professor of Early Childhood Education
Research Areas: Disabilities and Special Education, Diversity and Inclusion, Early Childhood Learning and Development, Literacy, Multicultural Education, Personnel Preparation, Special Education
Prof. Shaffer is a co-founder of the Best Classroom Project, which helps Detroit parents assess and select the best schools for their children. She is available to speak on:
- Young children with or at risk for disabilities and their families
- Anti-racist and culturally responsive practices
- Social-emotional development
- Challenging behavior and emotional/behavioral disorders
- School choice
Contact: [email protected]
Julio Borquez, Associate Professor of Political Science
Research areas: Media, Research Methods, Public Opinion and Polling, Voting / Elections
Available to speak on:
- Elections (presidential, Congressional, gubernatorial)
- Segments of the voting public, including Arab American voting
- Polling and survey methods
- Public opinion
- Campaign advertising
Contact: [email protected]
Mitchel Sollenberger, Professor of Political Science
Research Areas: Executive privilege, branches of American government, Obama Administration
Prof. Sollenberger is a widely recognized expert in executive privilege and the co-author of "Executive Privilege: Presidential Power, Secrecy, and Accountability" and “Judicial Appointments and Democratic Controls.” He is available to speak on:
- Presidential and Congressional issues
- Executive privilege and the limits of executive power
- Judicial controls
Contact: [email protected]
Ronald Stockton, Professor Emeritus of Political Science
Research Areas: Arab American Studies, Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, September 11
Ron Stockton is the author or co-author of five books and co-principal investigator on the Detroit Arab American Study, a landmark public opinion study of a representative sample of 1,016 Arab Americans and Chaldeans in southeast Michigan. In addition to local media outlets, he has appeared on CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, ABC, CBS, Al Jazeera, BBC and others.
He is available to speak on:
- Arab American voting
- Youth voting
- Arab-Israeli conflict
Contact: [email protected]
Dale Thomson, Professor of Political Science
Research Areas: Community Development and Organization, Government / Nonprofit Management, Public Policy, Urban Politics and Governance
Available to speak on:
- Michigan government, politics and public policy
- Government management and finance (local and state)
- Local/city/urban politics
- Elections/voting (including voter fraud allegations)
- Urban/community development (national knowledge, but particular expertise in Southeast Michigan and other legacy/rustbelt cities)
Contact: [email protected]
Reem Abou-Samra, Lecturer, Political Science
Available to speak on:
- Arab American and Muslim American voters
- Patriotism and Muslim Americans
- American politics and cultural identity
- Arab/MENA politics
Contact: [email protected]
Pamela Aronson, Professor of Sociology
Research Areas: Gen Z and electoral politics, Abortion rights and electoral politics, Gender Inequality and Social Movements, Transition to Adulthood
Prof. Aronson is a nationally recognized expert on Gen Z and the author of “Gender Revolution: How Electoral Politics and #MeToo are Reshaping Everyday Life.” She has extensively studied voting patterns/issues and the gender self-presentations of candidates. Her latest project examines the ways reproductive freedom influenced/is influencing the 2022 and 2024 elections. She is available to speak on:
- Gender and voting
- Abortion rights and voting
- Gen Z and voting
- Self-presentation of female candidates, including Kamala Harris
Contact: [email protected]
Jacob Napieralski, Professor of Geology; Director, Environmental Interpretive Center
Research Areas: Accessible Nature, Environmental Change, Geographic Information Science (GISc), Impact of Urbanization on Environmental Health, Quaternary Geology, Urban Rivers
Prof. Napieralski recently published a study on the impact of buried streams and wetlands on flooding in historically redlined Detroit neighborhoods. He is available to speak on:
- Urban flooding
- Flooding and poverty/flood equity
- Stormwater infrastructure
- The influence of the built environment on the Rouge River and other urban waterways
- Tree cover and urban health
Contact: [email protected]
Carmel Price, Associate Professor, Sociology; co-founder, Environmental Health Research-to-Action
Research Areas: Environmental Justice, Poverty, Public Health, Social Justice / Inequality
An environmental sociologist with a background in elementary education and social work, Prof. Price is available to speak on:
- Urban pollution and environmental justice, particularly in Dearborn/Detroit and southeast Michigan
- Food insecurity
- Community environmental activism
Contact: [email protected]
Natalie Sampson, Associate Professor, Public Health; co-founder, Environmental Health Research-to-Action
Research Areas: Community Based Research, Community Development, Environmental Health, Environmental Justice, Land Use & Health, Public Health, Public Participation, Youth Leadership.
Available to speak on:
- Urban pollution and environmental justice, particularly in Dearborn/Detroit and southeast Michigan
- Environmental regulation, clear language and the public engagement process
- Community environmental activism
Contact: [email protected]
Pamela Aronson, Professor of Sociology
Research Areas: Gen Z and electoral politics, Abortion rights and electoral politics, Gender Inequality and Social Movements, Transition to Adulthood
Prof. Aronson is a nationally recognized expert on Gen Z and the author of “Gender Revolution: How Electoral Politics and #MeToo are Reshaping Everyday Life.” She has extensively studied voting patterns/issues and gender self-presentations of candidates. Her latest project examines the ways reproductive freedom influenced/is influencing the 2022 and 2024 elections. She is available to speak on:
- Gender and electoral politics
- Abortion rights and electoral politics
- Gen Z and voting
- The experiences of Gen Z, the pandemic and social media
- The transition to adulthood
- Disadvantaged college students
- Career development in young adulthood
- Attitudes toward feminism
Contact: [email protected]
Michelle Fecteau, Director, Center for Labor and Community Studies
Available to speak on matters related to organized labor, including unionization efforts, strikes and labor disputes, contract negotiations and right-to-work.
Contact: [email protected]
Francine Banner, Professor of Sociology
Research Areas: Criminal Law, Gender & Law, Social Media
Trained as both a sociologist and an attorney, Prof. Banner’s research focuses on the ways the law operates in institutional contexts like universities, prisons and the military. She is the author of “Beyond Complicity: Why We Blame Each Other Instead of Systems,” which explores how individual cycles of shame and blame detract from institutional accountability, and “Crowdsourcing the Law: Trying Sexual Assault on Social Media,” which explores ways that individuals interpret and apply law in the influential online court of public opinion. She is available to speak on:
- Cancel culture
- Individual vs. institutional accountability
- #Metoo: sexual assault, sexual harassment and social media
- Sexual assault in the military
- Gender and the law
Contact: [email protected]
Maya Barak, Associate Professor of Criminal Justice Studies
Research Areas: Capital Punishment, Criminal Justice, Criminology, Gangs, Immigrants / Crimmigration, Legal Sociology, Procedural Justice, State-Corporate Crime
Available to speak about immigration courts and the legal process of deportation, family separation, and the impact of the death penalty on attorneys. Barak is the author of “The Slow Violence of Immigration Court: Procedural Justice on Trial” and co-author of “Capital Defense: Inside the Lives of America's Death Penalty Lawyers.”
Contact: [email protected]
Nehal Patel, Associate Professor of Criminal Justice and Sociology
Research Areas: Civil Rights, Environmental Justice, Legal Ethics, Gandhi Thought
Nehal studies the Mindfulness in Law movement, which aims to incorporate greater consideration of disempowered people into legal decisions.
Contact: [email protected]
Aaron Ahuvia, Professor of Marketing
Research Areas: Consumer Behavior/Psychology, Corporate Social Responsibility, Branding, Brand Loyalty, Customer Engagement, New Product Development
Prof. Ahuvia is a widely recognized expert on brand love and the author of “The Things We Love: How Our Passions Connect Us and Make Us Who We Are.” He is available to speak on a range of topics related to consumer behavior, including:
- Brand engagement, brand advocacy, and brand love
- How products and brands shape our identity
- Marketing, consumption, and the culture wars
- Luxury consumption
- Green consumption
- People falling in love with AI chatbots
- How happiness is impacted by marketing and consumption
Contact: [email protected]
Terri Laws, Associate Professor of African and African American Studies
Research Areas: Inequality/Disparity, Race and Health, Religion and Health
Available to speak on:
- Health disparities
- Medical ethics
- Medical aid in dying
- Religion and medical research, from a patient perspective
- African American religion and health
Contact: [email protected]