Student Israelity
Everything Student-Designed, Everything Student-Written, Everything Israel
A project of American University's Center for Israel Studies
Our Team
Editorial Board
Zach Ainbinder-Barkley, Editor-in-Chief
Zach Ainbinder-Barkley is a senior at American University, where he studies in the School of International Service (SIS) and focuses on Foreign Policy & Conflict Resolution in MENA. Zach has been avidly studying Israeli history and politics for years. Outside of SIS and Student Israelity, Zach has experience on Capitol Hill as a legislative intern and fellow, along with being a researcher at the Abba Eban Institute for International Diplomacy in Herzliya, Israel. In his personal life, Zach is an avid distance runner, having raced multiple half-marathons.
Ian Caplan, Editor
​Ian Caplan is excited to return to Student Israelity after spending a year abroad at The London School of Economics & Political Science. Ian is a senior at American pursuing a dual degree with a BA in CLEG (Comms, Law, Econ, & Gov’t) and an MA in Political Communications. On campus, Ian is involved with Hillel as well as the Center for Israel Studies, where he is an Israel Studies minor in addition to serving as an Editor of SI. Off campus, Ian applies his communications background at Jewish nonprofits including BBYO, the leading pluralistic Jewish teen movement, and the Jewish Center for Justice, an LA-based advocacy and education organization. Hailing from Pittsburgh, Ian is a die-hard fan of the Steelers, Pirates, and Penguins
Max Lagoy, Editor
​Max Lagoy is a sophomore born in Leesburg, VA, he has lived in, Missouri, Hawaii, Indiana, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Florida, and Israel. He is majoring in International Relations, with a minor in Israel Studies and Hebrew. Max has worked for the Union for Reform Judaism, as a recruiter for their study abroad program in Israel and also has worked at a Jewish summer camp. He hopes to work for the United States embassy in Israel and further improve American Israeli relations.
Barak Levitt, Editor
​Barak Austin Levitt is a Junior at American University, where he studies in the School of International Service and specializes in East Asia and Middle East Foreign Policy. He has gained valuable professional experience as a Public Diplomacy Intern at the Embassy of Israel to the United States in Washington, DC, and as a researcher at the Moshe Dayan Center for Middle East Studies. In addition to his academic pursuits, Barak is an avid Warriors fan who aspires to be drafted into the NBA one day.
Maya Lobel, Digital Media Coordinator
Maya Lobel is a freshman at American University, where she studies at the School of International Service, and plans to pursue a regional focus on the Middle East. She was born in Denver, CO, and moved to Melbourne, Australia in 2012 where she engaged heavily with Jewish youth organizations and Israeli dialogue groups. In her free time, she enjoys cooking, live music, seeing her friends, and going as many places as possible!
Faculty Mentor
Dr. Guy Ziv
Professor Guy Ziv mentors the blog's student team in management and teamwork as well as helps to brainstorm interesting topics about Israel to explore. In addition, he leads biweekly discussions about Israeli current events as part of programming by the Center for Israel Studies, which sponsors the Student Israelity blog. As an associate professor in the School of International Service's U.S. Foreign Policy Program, Professor Ziv teaches a variety of undergraduate and graduate courses on U.S. foreign policy, the Middle East, and international negotiations.