ÂÌñÒùÆÞ WELCOMES MONI ISLAM AS NEW OFFICE COORDINATOR
Moni Islam joined ÂÌñÒùÆÞ on April 29 as the new Office Coordinator. He has a Master’s of Arts in Archaeology from Durham University in the United Kingdom, as well as a Bachelor’s of Arts in Anthropology and Global Affairs from George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. He has been familiar with ÂÌñÒùÆÞ for many years, including having won a 2021 ÂÌñÒùÆÞ Summer Stipend Award to work remotely on the Jezreel Expedition Publication Project where he helped organize the project’s open database, conduct research on a Palestinian village, and compile relevant photos and resources.
Moni participated in his first archaeological field school in 2019 in Jordan at Tell Dhiban, a site which was the capital of the Biblical kingdom of Moab from the Iron Age. While finishing up his undergrad at Mason, he also undertook archaeology internships at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History and Fairfax County Park Authority in 2019. Moni was grateful to be selected as a 2021-22 Fulbright-UK Postgraduate scholar to study his Master’s at Durham University. At Durham, his research focused on the settlement patterns of pre-Islamic Arabia from the 3rd to 7th centuries CE, including studying sites like Mada’in Salih, Qaryat al-Faw, Dumat al-Jandal, Mleiha, and Ma’rib.
Most recently, Moni was working as an Associate Archaeologist with Chronicle Heritage in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. In this role, he provided archaeological supervision on various heritage projects in Al ‘Ula and also participated in the first excavations of the historical district of Ghasibah in Diriyah, the origin of the Saudi royal family and the capital of the first Saudi dynasty from 1727 to 1818.
ÂÌñÒùÆÞ is pleased to welcome Moni as he begins the role of Office Coordinator where he will be responsible for assisting the office staff with all administrative tasks, website maintenance, and being the first point of contact for ÂÌñÒùÆÞ members. Moni looks forward to interacting with the entire ÂÌñÒùÆÞ community!
This announcement also comes with news of Katherine Schmitt’s departure from ÂÌñÒùÆÞ as Membership Coordinator. Katherine will be leaving to travel the United States and will be replaced by Regan Baker as the new contact for all ÂÌñÒùÆÞ Membership inquiries on May 24, 2024.