Advisory Board
PDLI's Advisory Board is responsible for the advising the direction of the program and providing invaluable leadership and guidance to the executive and student boards.
Dan Shapiro
Daniel B. Shapiro served as the United States Ambassador to Israel from 2011 to 2017 under President Barack Obama. Prior to serving as U.S. Ambassador, he was the senior director for the Middle East and North Africa on the President’s National Security Council. He has worked on Capitol Hill and in two administrations, advising leaders on issues related to the Middle East. He is a graduate of Brandeis University and holds a Masters from Harvard University.
Dennis B. Ross
Dennis B. Ross served as the Director of Policy Planning in the State Department under President George H. W. Bush, the Special Middle East Coordinator for President Bill Clinton, and advised Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on the Persian Gulf region. He is the author of numerous books on the Middle East, including Doomed to Succeed: The U.S.-Israel Relationship from Truman to Obama. He holds a B.A. and Ph.D. from the University of California, Los Angeles.
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Michael Posner
Michael H. Posner served as Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor under President Obama and is currently the Director for the Center of Business and Human Rights at NYU Stern School of Business. He was the founding Executive Director of the non-profit Lawyers Committee for International Human Rights, now called Human Rights First. He holds a B.A. from the University of Michigan and a J.D. from the University of California, Berkeley.
David Makovsky
David Makovsky is a distinguished fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and an adjunct professor at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). He previously served as editor-in-chief for The Jerusalem Post and has been recognized for his journalism covering Middle East issues. With Dennis Ross, he is the author of Myths, Illusions, and Peace. He is a graduate of Columbia University and holds a Masters from Harvard University.