Students Learn About Middle East Politics from SUNY Professor

On November 17th, Homer High School was lucky enough to host a guest speaker in the library during fifth, sixth, and seventh periods. Professor Alexandru Balas gave a presentation on geopolitical affairs in the Middle East, particularly Syria and its relationship with neighboring states like Iraq.

Each of the period-long talks focused on the rise and inevitable fall of the Islamic State, also known as IS, ISIS, or ISIL. Answering various students’ questions, he went into detail on other related matters, such as how to stop IS, the illegal trade of looted antiquities, and the reasons for western military intervention in the Middle East.

Professor Balas is the recently appointed head of the James M. Clark Center for International Education at SUNY Cortland. His teaching experience includes positions held at Loyola University, the University of Vermont, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, as well as the Human Rights Center and Center for Executive and Professional Education at the University for Peace in Costa Rica. He also coordinates SUNY Cortland’s International Studies Program and teaches courses there. He joined the faculty at the rank of Assistant Professor of International Studies.