Dr. Keren E. Fraiman is Spertus Institute’s Vice President 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. 

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​In March 2025, Keren received the 2025 Ilia Salita Excellence in Research Award from the Jewish Funders Network for her book chapter, Barriers to Entry: Exploring Educator Reticence for Engaging with the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict. The award recognized her innovative work and its critical contributions to understanding the challenges of conflict education in Jewish settings, while offering practical solutions to support educators in fostering nuanced, meaningful discussions.