Ron Kassimir is executive program director at the Social Science Research Council (SSRC), supporting the development of new program initiatives as well as the deepening cross-program connections. He also provides leadership for the Scholarly Borderlands initiative and Religion program, works closely with the Council’s Africa-focused activities, and is editor of the SSRC-wide digital forum Items. From 1996 to 2005, Kassimir was first a program officer and then a program director at the Council, where he managed the Africa Program and, from 2000 to 2005, the International Dissertation Field Research Fellowship Program. He also coordinated research networks on youth and globalization and humanitarian intervention. From 2005-2013, Kassimir served first as associate dean and then associate provost for research at The New School, where he was also associate professor in the Department of Politics. Kassimir earned a PhD in political science from the University of Chicago. He has published on religion, civil society, higher education, and globalization in Africa, as well as on youth activism and civic engagement.