Steven D. Roper Named Founding Executive Director
Steven D. Roper, Ph.D., has been appointed as the founding executive director of the Peace, Justice and Human Rights Initiative at Florida Atlantic University.
Steven D. Roper, Ph.D., has been appointed as the founding executive director of the Peace, Justice and Human Rights Initiative at Florida Atlantic University. Roper also will serve as a professor in the Department of Political Science within FAU’s Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters. He begins his duties on Wednesday, June 1.
Roper has held several positions in higher education in the United States and overseas. Most recently, he was the dean of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at Nazarbayev University in Astana, Kazakhstan. He is currently the editor-in-chief of Human Rights Review and has served as a consultant to the U.S. Department of State, U.S. Agency for International Development and the World Bank. He is a former Fulbright senior scholar and Fulbright senior specialist, and has served as an election observer on more than a dozen missions for the Organization for Security and Co-Operation in Europe. 
“I am delighted to be joining FAU and serving as the executive director of the Peace, Justice and Human Rights Initiative,” said Roper. This is a very exciting time at the University, and I know that the Initiative will continue to contribute to FAU’s goals of social inclusion and assist in the University’s community and international outreach efforts.”
Roper’s research explores the design and implementation of transitional justice with a focus on conflict resolution mechanisms. His research has included fieldwork in diverse regions including East Europe, the former Soviet Union, the Middle East and Southeast Asia. He is the author of four books and more than 50 articles and book chapters.
The Peace, Justice and Human Rights Initiative is one of nine key platforms in FAU’s current strategic plan. It is a multidisciplinary effort that seeks to bring together scholars, practitioners and community leaders that are invested in the themes of human rights, peace and social justice. The four themes of the initiative include inequalities and social inclusion; environmental justice and sustainability; mindfulness and well-being; conflict, violence and genocide; and creative expression and social change. For more information about the Peace, Justice and Human Rights Initiative, visit www.fau.edu/pjhr.
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