Julie Ancis was already a “committed Zionist,” but traveling to Israel from Nov. 2 to 6 as part of an Academic Engagement Network trip gave her an “even greater conviction and deep appreciation for the absolute miracle of Israel.”
“I also have a better understanding of the completely unfounded libels that haunt our professions and, unfortunately, the minds of so many,” Ancis, distinguished informatics professor at the New Jersey Institute of Technology, told JNS.
Raeefa Shams, communications director at the Academic Engagement Network, told JNS that law, political science and psychology professors were part of the trip. The scholars met with Israeli policymakers and thought leaders, she said.
The visitors went to the Knesset, the Supreme Court and universities.
“They learned from jurists, legal experts and civil society leaders about Israel’s legal system, engaged with diverse perspectives on Israel’s domestic and international legal challenges and bore witness to the horrors of Oct. 7 and efforts to achieve justice for its victims,” Shams said.
