Leonard Binder,nbsp;Distinguished Professor of Political Science and Director of the Center for Near East Studies at UCLA is a past President of the Middle east Studies Associationnbsp; and a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.nbsp; He is one of the founders of the field of modern Middle East Studies through his research, scholarship, publication, and participation in the work of the Middle East Studies Association, the Social Science Research Council, and the Mideast Centers at the University of Chicago and at UCLA.nbsp;