Interview: ASEEES Newsnet

The Association for Slavic, East European and Eurasian Studies (ASEEES) – despite its clumsy name – is the most important professional organization in my field. I've been going to their conferences since 2021 and reading their journal, Slavic Review – since forever.

Recently they asked me to give an interview about my life so far and about my work at POLIN Museum in Warsaw. I was a little uncertain about how much of my past I should share with them (and thus with anyone who reads it), but in the end I decided to own my story. My background differed greatly from a lot of my colleagues in graduate school. I didn't go to an elite undergraduate college; I wasn't a high achieving student in high school; and I certainly wasn't the eager beaver in classroom discussions. But I'd like to think that my slightly different life experiences allow me to approach history with a different lens.

Read the full interview here.