This fall, the John Charles Meditz College of Arts and Sciences marked an exciting milestone with the creation of five named professorships, each made possible through the generosity of philanthropic partners.
These distinguished appointments honor faculty members whose teaching, scholarship, and service exemplify Fairfield’s Jesuit mission and liberal arts tradition.
Named professorships represent one of the highest forms of academic recognition. They not only celebrate faculty excellence but also provide lasting support for research, creative inquiry, and student engagement.
Among the inaugural recipients are professors whose scholarship spans history, philosophy, chemistry, sociology, and political science, evidence of the breadth of inquiry that underpins Fairfield Meditz’s growing reputation for excellence in research and transformative student mentorship.
Robin and Joseph Kanarek Professorship in History
Gavriel Rosenfeld, PhD
Dr. Rosenfeld, professor of history, serves as director of Fairfield’s Judaic Studies program and as president of the Center for Jewish History in New York City. An expert on Nazi Germany, Holocaust memory, and the politics of history, he is known for bringing scholarly insight to contemporary conversations—from remembrance of the Holocaust in the United States to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The author or editor of eight books, including The Fourth Reich: The Specter of Nazism Since World War II and Building After Auschwitz: Jewish Architecture and the Memory of the Holocaust, a finalist for the National Jewish Book Award, Dr. Rosenfeld continues to shape how audiences understand history’s ongoing resonance. He holds a BA from Brown University and a PhD from UCLA.
Carmen Donnarumma Professorship in Politics
Lucrecia García Iommi, PhD
An associate professor of politics, Dr. García Iommi also teaches in the interdisciplinary programs of International Studies and LatinX, Latin American, and Caribbean Studies. Her work explores international relations theory, norm dynamics, and global governance, with research published in International Studies Quarterly, Global Constitutionalism, Cambridge Review of International Affairs, and other leading journals.
Dr. García Iommi is the co-editor of The United States and International Law: Paradoxes of Support across Contemporary Issues and an active member of several scholarly associations, including the International Studies Association and the American Political Science Association.
Ed O’Connell Professorship in Chemistry
Elizabeth Stone, PhD
A native of New York’s Hudson Valley, Dr. Stone earned her BA in chemistry, with a minor in English, from Connecticut College before completing her PhD in organic chemistry at Yale University as an NSF Graduate Research Fellow. Her doctoral work focused on how short peptides can serve as selective catalysts in pharmaceutically relevant reactions.
As a Jane Coffin Childs Postdoctoral Fellow at UC Berkeley, she developed a biosynthetic strategy for producing peptide therapeutic analogues. Now an assistant professor of chemistry and biochemistry at Fairfield, Dr. Stone combines her expertise in organic chemistry and chemical biology with a deep commitment to student mentorship. She was recognized as Fairfield’s 2025 Undergraduate Teacher of the Year.
Stuart McGuigan ’82 Professorship for the Fredrickson Innovation Lab
Mehmet Cansoy, PhD
Dr. Cansoy, associate professor of sociology, examines how digital technologies shape social and economic life. His research, published in American Behavioral Scientist, Theory and Society, and Socio-Economic Review, investigates the dynamics of platforms like Airbnb and the broader implications of technological change and inequality.
An interdisciplinary scholar whose work bridges sociology, economics, and public policy, Dr. Cansoy brings critical insight into the complex relationship between innovation, labor, and social structures. He earned his PhD in sociology from Boston College.
The Morris Family Professorship in Philosophy
Ryan Drake, PhD
A member of Fairfield’s faculty since 2012, Dr. Drake is an associate professor of philosophy whose research spans ancient philosophy, social and political thought, and 19th- and 20th-century European philosophy. His work in hermeneutics and intellectual history deepens students’ understanding of enduring philosophical questions while connecting them to contemporary ethical and political concerns.
To learn more about Fairfield Meditz named professorships, contact Edlira Curis, director of development, Meditz College of Arts and Sciences, at ecuris@fairfield.edu.
