Dr. Sharon Pardo, a member of the Department of Politics and Government and the Director of the Centre for the Study of European Politics and Society (CSEPS), has been awarded the prestigious Jean Monnet Chair ad personam – the first to be awarded to a scholar in Israel.
The lifetime chair recognizes the outstanding calibre of Pardo's research and teaching on the European integration process. It is the highest award the European Commission can bestow on a European Studies scholar. The Centre became a Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence this past summer (the only centre in Israel) and was just recently recognized as one of the top 20 centers for European Studies in the world by the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency of the European Union.
The Jean Monnet Programme was launched by the European Union in 1989 in memory and in honor of Jean Monnet, one of the founders of the European Union. The Programme’s mission is to encourage excellence in research and teaching of European Studies in institutes of higher education around the world. Candidates for the ad personam award are selected by the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency of the European Union using very strict criteria. Sharon Pardo is the first and the only Jean Monnet Chair ad personam in Israel.
“I will humbly join this exclusive group of researchers specializing in European integration studies and will proudly represent Ben-Gurion University of the Negev,”Dr. Pardo said upon being informed of the European Union’s decision.
