Rachel Wahl
Research Scientist, New York University
[email protected]
(917) 941-4687
Education:
Ph.D. International Education (Degree conferral 1/27/14)
Dissertation Defended September 25, 2013
New York University
Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development
Department of Humanities and Social Sciences
Program in International Education
Ph.D. Dissertation Title: Learning Norms or Changing Them? State Actors, State Violence, and
Human Rights Education in India
Areas of expertise:
o International human rights education and advocacy
o Liberalism and its critics
o Politics, human rights, and policing in South Asia
o State violence
o Philosophies of justice
ACADEMIC APPOINTMENTS
Visiting Scholar, September 2012 – June 2014
Institute for the Study of Human Rights (ISHR)
Columbia University
o I am a Visiting Scholar at ISHR, Columbia University. This includes activities such
as presenting my research and participating in seminars and colloquia.
Research Scientist, April 2013 – June 2014
Office of the Dean
Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, New York
University.
o I coordinate and conduct research on government efforts to disseminate new
standards in colleges and universities.
Adjunct Instructor, Fall 2012
International Education Program, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences
Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, New York
University.
o Courses taught:
International Human Rights Activism and Education (Fall 2012)
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Adjunct Instructor, Fall 2012
Education Studies Program
Eugene Lang College. The New School University.
o Courses taught:
Education and Human Rights
Visiting Scholar, Fall 2011 – Spring 2012
Centre for the Study of Law and Governance
Jawaharlal Nehru University. New Delhi, India
o I participated as a Visiting Scholar during the year of my dissertation fieldwork in
New Delhi. This included weekly seminar participation, involvement at
conferences such as serving as a discussant, and mentorship by senior faculty.
PUBLICATIONS
Wahl, R. (2013). Policing, Values, and Violence: Human Rights Education with Law
Enforcers in India. Special Issue on Human Rights Education and Training: Taking Stock
of Theory and Practice. Oxford Journal of Human Rights Practice. 5(2): 220 – 242.
Wahl, R. (2013). Review of Critical Aesthetic Pedagogy: Toward a Theory of Self and Social
Empowerment by Yolanda Medina. Teachers College Record.
Das, A., Mogford, E., Barbhuiya, R., Chandra, S., and Wahl, R. (2012). Reviewing
Responsibilities and Renewing Relationships: An Intervention with Men on Violence
Against Women in India. Culture, Health, and Sexuality: An International Journal for Research,
Intervention and Care. 14(6): 659 – 675.
Burde, D., Kapit-Spitalny, A., Wahl, R., Guven, O. (2011). Education and Conflict Mitigation:
What the Aid Workers Say. Washington, DC: USAID.
WORK IN PROGRESS
Wahl, R. Protecting Rights by Violating Them: Police, Context, and Violence. Submitted to
Law and Society Review.
Burde, D., Kapit-Spitalny, A., Wahl, R., Guven, O. (unpublished 2010). Education in
Emergencies: A Literature Review of What Works, What Does Not, and Why. Norwegian Agency
for Development Cooperation. Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Oslo, Norway.
(Contracted & Submitted, NORAD).
Burde, D., Linden, L., Middleton, J. and Wahl, R. Islamic Education and School
Readiness: The Role of Mosque schools in Remote Afghan Villages.
Wahl, R. Protecting Rights to Violate Them: Law Enforcement and Doubts About
Democracy in India.
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HONORS AND AWARDS
Junior Scholar Symposium, International Studies Association Annual Convention.
(Selected to participate with a small group of junior scholars to receive in-depth feedback
from senior scholars). April 2013.
Travel Award, International Studies Association Annual Convention. (Funding to
participate in the convention). April 2013. $250.00.
Best Paper. Peace Education Special Interest Group, Comparative and International
Education Society Annual Meeting. March 2013.
Student Travel Award (Funding to participate in a symposium on “The Intersection of
criminal and social justice” at the American Psychological Association annual meeting).
August 2012. $400.00.
National Security Education Program David L. Boren Fellowship. (Funding for
fieldwork and Hindi language study in India). Institute of International Education. June
2011 – March 2012. $23,600.00.
Dean’s Grant for Student Research, New York University. May 2011. $1,000.00.
High Pass, Doctoral Qualifying Examination. New York University. October 2010.
Alternate, Social Science Research Council Dissertation Proposal Development
Fellowship. Social Science Research Council. March 2010.
Shearwater Grant, New York University. (Funding for fieldwork in India). June –
August 2010 & April 2013. $1,500.00.
Steinhardt Doctoral Student Fellowship. New York University. September 2010 – June
2011. $15,000.00.
Rothman Scholarship. New York University. September 2010 – June 2011. $10,000.00
Doctoral Student Travel Grant. New York University. March 2009 & March 2013.
$1000.00.
Twenty-first Century Fellowship. New York University. September 2008 – June 2010.
$20,000.00.
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PRESENTATIONS
Police on Violence and Rights: How Police Understand Torture and Human Rights in India. Presentation at
the Human Rights Institute 10th Anniversary Conference, “Contexts of Human Rights.”
University of Connecticut. Upcoming September 2013.
Doing Without Believing? Persuasion versus Coercion in Human Rights Activism. Paper will be presented
at the University Seminar for the Institute for the Study of Human Rights at Columbia
University. Upcoming December 2013.
Policing, Violence, and Justice: Understanding Police Response to Human Rights Education in India. Paper
presentation on the panel “Interrogating Expert Knowledge: The Making (and Unmaking) of
Torture as a Human Rights Violation” at the conference Re-Imagining Human Rights – The
Challenge of Agency, Creativity, and Global Justice. Co-sponsored by Critical Sociology, The Society
for the Study of Social Problems, the Human Rights Section of the American Sociological
Association, and George Mason University's Consortium on Global Problem Solving. August
2013.
Justice and Violence: The Ethics of Torture among Law Enforcers in India. Paper presentation on the
panel “Legal Conflict: From Procedural Rules to Professional Ethics” at the Law and Society
Association Annual Meeting. Boston. May 2013.
Police, Justice, and Violence: Law Enforcement Officers on Torture and Human Rights in India
Paper presentation on the panel “Police and Policing” at the conference Police, Prisons, and
Power: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Criminal Justice. The Graduate School of the City
University of New York. New York. April 2013.
Protecting Rights by Violating Them: The Diffusion of Human Rights Norms among Law Enforcement
Officers in India. Junior Scholar Symposium presentation on the panel “Human Rights
Norms: From International Law to Practice” at the International Studies Association
annual convention. San Francisco. April 2013.
Doing Without Believing: The Tension Between Internal Socialization and Compliance with Human
Rights Norms Among Law Enforcement Officers in India. Paper presentation on the panel
“Social Movements and Community Resistance” at the International Studies Association
annual convention. San Francisco. April 2013.
Learning Norms or Changing Them?: State Violence, State Actors, and Human Rights Education in
India. Paper presentation at the Comparative and International Education Society annual
conference. New Orleans. March 2013.
Richard Rorty: Human Rights Educator? Paper presentation on the panel “Contingency,
Irony, and Solidarity for Education” at the Middle Atlantic States Philosophy of
Education Society. New York. February 2013.
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Protecting Rights by Violating Them: Law Enforcement and Doubts about Democracy in India. Accepted
for presentation at the American Political Science Association annual conference. New
Orleans. August 2012.
Enforcing the Peace: Police Violence and Human Rights in India. Paper presentation for the
symposium “Intersection of Criminal and Social Justice” at the American Psychological
Association annual conference. Orlando. August 2012.
Learning Human Rights: Human Rights Education and Law Enforcement Officers in India. Paper
presentation for a Peace Education Special Interest Group panel at the Comparative and
International Education Society annual conference. Puerto Rico. April 2012.
Rights and Religion: An Empirical Study of the Relationship Between Religiosity and Support for
Human Rights in India. Accepted for presentation at the American Political Science
Association National Conference The Politics of Rights. Chicago, IL. September, 2011. First
author on paper. With C. Tubbs, J. Protzko, T. Gupta.
Religiosity: Barrier or Boost to Human Rights Support in New Delhi, India? Accepted for
presentation at the Second Annual Emory University conference on Religion, Conflict
and Peacebuilding. Atlanta, GA. June, 2011. First author on paper. With C. Tubbs, J.
Protzko, T. Gupta.
The Family vs. the State: Moral Responsibility among Indian Parents. Paper presentation at the
conference Self, Other, and the Social Good in a Cross-Cultural Context: A Conference on Personal
Identity and Moral Obligation in Contemporary Eastern and Western Thought. University of
Pennsylvania. Philadelphia, PA. October, 2010.
Iqbal, Gandhi and Social Change: Religious Beliefs and Views of Justice. Paper presentation at the
American Academy of Religion Mid-Atlantic Region conference. New Brunswick, NJ.
March 12, 2010.
School Climate and Psychological Well-being among Indian Adolescents. Poster presentation at the
Comparative and International Education Society annual conference. Chicago, IL. March,
2010. First author on paper. With T. Gupta, J. Protzco, S. Singh.
Exploring Individualism and Collectivism among Urban, Middle Class Indian Adolescents. Poster
presentation at the Society for Research on Adolescence Biennial Meeting. Philadelphia,
PA. March, 2010. First author on paper. With T. Gupta, J. Protzco, S. Singh, R. Hedge, P.
Mukherjee.
A Cross Cultural Analysis of Maternal Perceptions of Adolescent Friendships in India, China, and the
United States. Poster presentation at the Society for Research on Adolescence Biennial
Meeting. Philadelphia, PA. March, 2010. Second author on paper. With C. Tubbs and N.
Way.
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The Role of Religious Belief in the Formation of Political Opinions. Paper presentation at the Columbia
University Middle Eastern and Asian Languages and Cultures Graduate Student
Conference. New York, NY. April, 2010.
Civil Conflict and Civil Society: Political Preferences, Religious Identities, and Violence against
Education. Panel with Dr. Dana Burde and Amy Kapit-Spitalny. Presented at the
Comparative and International Education Society national conference. Chicago, IL.
March, 2010.
Citizens of Europe: The Role of Human Rights Education in the Creation of a Common European
Identity. Paper presentation at the Comparative and International Education Society
Northeastern Regional Conference Rethinking Approaches to International Development in
Education. Lehigh, PA. October, 2009.
To Change or Not to Change: UNESCO’s Early Encounters with Communities in the
Developing World. Paper presentation at the New York University Graduate Student
Conference Developing Peace: Education for Mutual Understanding. New York, NY. March
2009.
INVITED TALKS
Doing Without Believing? Persuasion versus Coercion in Human Rights Activism. Invited paper
presentation at the Columbia University Human Rights Seminar. Columbia University.
December 2, 2013.
Policing the Police: Strategies for Activism with Law Enforcement and Security Officers. Invited talk at
the Center for Human Rights and Global Justice. New York University School of Law.
October 18, 2013.
Police, Violence, and Justice. Invited classroom talk at Lehman College, City University of
New York. (Human Rights, Professor Chiseche Salome Mibenge). October 9, 2013.
Protecting Rights by Violating Them: How Police and Military Officers Explain Torture and Respond
to Human Rights Activism in India. Invited talk at the Arnold A. Saltzman Institute of War
and Peace Studies. Columbia University. October 8, 2013.
Learning Not To Torture? State Actors, State Violence, and Human Rights Education in India.
Invited Talk at the Institute for the Study of Human Rights. Columbia University. January
30, 2013.
Religion, Profession, and Police Judgments on Torture. Invited Classroom talk at New
York University. (Cross-Cultural Studies of Socialization, Professor Cynthia Miller-Idriss).
September 25, 2013.
The Right to Education: Access to Education in Afghanistan. Invited talk, Global Kids 21stAnnual
Youth Conference on international children’s rights law. April 9, 2010.
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PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE TEACHING STUDENTS OF DIVERSE
BACKGROUNDS
Teacher of Reading (New York), June – September 2008
Institute of Reading Development
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Taught reading and comprehension skills in a summer program for primary,
secondary, and adult students who need additional assistance to succeed in
academic and professional environments.
Coordinator of Education & Training (New York), January 2006 – June 2008
Boys Town of New York
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Created, coordinated, and taught education programs for youth within the Boys
Town shelters.
Worked with the City of New York, local universities and non-profits to provide
services to youth, such as educational workshops and events.
Conducted research on youth trends and success rates within the shelters.
Wrote and edited materials for publication.
Youth Program Developer, Teacher (Trujillo, Peru), March – June 2007
Supporting Kids in Peru (SKIP)
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Developed educational programming for youth in an impoverished area of
Trujillo, Peru.
Developed a two-year English as a Second Language curriculum for youth.
Developed and taught workshops for SKIP parents regarding education.
Taught English as a Second Language classes to youth within the public school
system.
Developed micro-credit programs for eligible SKIP mothers, and worked with the
local community to secure outlets for businesses.
Worked with local government officials to plan events to facilitate communication
between parents and public schools teachers.
Teacher of Arts and English (Hunan, China), May – September 2005
Universal Culture School
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Created curricula and taught in a summer program for students in Hunan,
China which emphasized critical thinking, artistic expression and English language
skills.
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Teacher of Reading and Math (New York), September 2004 – May 2005
Kaplan
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Designed lesson plans and taught in an after-school program for primary school
students who require additional assistance.
Special Projects & Volunteer Coordinator (New York), 2003 – 2007 (Volunteer
Position)
Women for Afghan Women
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Taught English as a Second Language to Afghan immigrants.
Worked on special projects in an effort to connect individual women living in
Afghanistan and Pakistan to medical aid.
Coordinated internship and volunteer program.
Assisted Afghan immigrants in obtaining citizenship in the United States.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: RESEARCH
Research Assistant, “Protecting Children from War and Ensuring their Prospects
for the Future: Educating in the Context of Crisis and Transition.” September 2008June 2012
International Education Program, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences
Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development. New York
University.
Professor Dana Burde.
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I was a research assistant to Professor Dana Burde for her multi-year study funded by
NSF, the Spencer Foundation, and USIP. This is a mixed methods study that uses a
randomized trial design, surveys and qualitative interviews to study the impact of
community-based schools on children’s social and educational outcomes in
Afghanistan. I worked closely with Professor Burde on analyzing the data from this
study. I have:
 Created the codebook, coded, and analyzed qualitative interviews using
the software Atlas. ti.
 Collaborated on articles for publication.
 Conducted extensive literature reviews on:
 Education in conflict and post-conflict zones, including:
 interventions and outcomes
 education in Afghanistan
 peace education
 gender issues in emergencies
 state and non-state actors in educational provision in
emergencies
 Access to education for girls
 Islamic education
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Student Researcher, “Indian Adolescent Study” September 2008- June 2011
Developmental Psychology program, Department of Applied Psychology
Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development. New York
University. Professor Niobe Way.
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I worked with Professor Niobe Way and a team of doctoral students on the
Indian Adolescent Study, in which I examined moral and political beliefs among
Indian adolescents and their parents. Pilot data was collected in 2009. We
collected the first full wave of qualitative and quantitative data in India in 2010.
For this project I have:
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Conducted 30 hours of in-depth qualitative semi-structured interviews
with parents and adolescents in Delhi, India, on religious beliefs, moral
reasoning, social and political views, and beliefs about gender.
Collaborated to formulate research questions.
Coded quantitative data using SPSS.
Analyzed the quantitative and qualitative data.
Written articles and presented research findings at national conferences.
Consultant, March – July 2011
United States Agency for International Development (USAID) /American Institutions for Research
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Under the supervision of Professor Dana Burde, NYU, I conducted a desk study
examining successful strategies of educators working in areas of conflict and
natural disaster. The final product has been published by USAID under the title
Education and Conflict Mitigation: What the Aid Workers Say.
Consultant, November 2011
Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation
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Under the supervision of Professor Dana Burde, NYU, I conducted a desk study
to assess the current state of the literature on education in emergencies, with
particular attention to peer-reviewed evidence-based studies of education in
emergencies programs. The final product has been submitted to NORAD under
the title Education in Emergencies: A Literature Review of What Works, What Does Not,
and Why.
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Program Officer (New York), March 2009 – August 2009
Multinational Institute of American Studies
New York University
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Funded by the US Department of State and Fulbright Commission, this is an
academic summer program that provides scholars from across the globe the
opportunity to study the United States. The program covers American history,
politics and culture. As a program officer my work included the following:
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Created curriculum of American studies for foreign scholars, in
collaboration with other program officers.
Acted as a resource for foreign scholars researching topics related to
human rights.
Administered program needs such as arranging lectures and tours.
COURSES TAUGHT: HIGHER EDUCATION
Instructor:
o International Human Rights Activism and Education.
o Education and Human Rights.
Teaching Assistant:
o International Educational Development (Professsor Dana Burde).
o Qualitative Methods (Professor Cynthia Miller-Idriss).
o Cross-Cultural Studies of Socialization (Professor Cynthia Miller-Idriss).
o The Culture Wars in America: Past, Present and Future (Professor Jonathan
Zimmerman).
PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES
Discussant, Comparative and International Education Society Annual Meeting for the
panel Identity Formation and Schooling Across Contexts. April 2012.
Speaker, Comparative and International Education Society annual conference for the
panel New Scholars Essentials: Tips for Funding. April 2012.
Discussant, Symposium on Law and Life in India, Law and Social Sciences Research Network.
New Delhi, India. February 2012.
LANGUAGES
Hindi: 3 years. Study in New York and New Delhi, India. International Language Testing
Service Score: Intermediate – Middle
Mandarin Chinese: 1 year. Study in New York and Yue Yang, China. (not tested)
Spanish: 5 years Study in New York and Quito, Ecuador. (not tested)
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MEMBERSHIPS
American Political Science Association: Human Rights Section
International Studies Association
Comparative and International Education Society: Peace Education Special Interest
Group
Law and Society Association