Dr. Keren E. Fraiman is Spertus Institute’s Dean and Chief Academic Officer. She also holds a faculty appointment as Professor of Israel Studies.

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She previously served as Director of Research and Evaluation at The iCenter for Israel Education, where she continues to serve on the faculty of the iFellows Masters Concentration in Israel Education program.

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In January 2020, Dr. Fraiman was selected for the prestigious Wexner Field Fellowship, presented by the Wexner Foundation in partnership with the Jim Joseph Foundation.

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She received her PhD in International Relations and Security Studies from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and her BA in Political Science and Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations from The University of Chicago. Her work has been supported by the US Institute of Peace, the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism, and the Chicago Project on Security and Terrorism.

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A former Schusterman Israel Scholar, Dr. Fraiman has worked at the Crown Center for Middle East Studies at Brandeis, served as an officer in the IDF, and led trips to Israel as a Facilitator both for Encounter and Birthright Israel.

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​Keren works with educational organizations across the country to support their Israel educational efforts, and also serves on the faculty of the iFellows Masters Concentration in Israel Education program, Hillel International’s MasterClass Israel, and the Wexner Heritage Program.  Her research focuses on Conflict Education – how we learn and teach about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict within Jewish settings.  She recently published a chapter advancing a typology of educator reticence for engaging with the conflict.