Matthew Berkman

(he/him/his)

  • Assistant Professor of Jewish Studies

Areas of Study

Education

  • PhD, University of Pennsylvania
  • MA, New York University
  • BA, New York University

Biography

Matthew Berkman is a political scientist specializing in American Jewish history, race and ethnicity, and the Israel-Palestine conflict.

He received a PhD from the University of Pennsylvania in 2018. His dissertation, “Coercive Consensus: Jewish Federations, Ethnic Representation, and the Roots of American Pro-Israel Politics,” explores the role of philanthropic federations in the creation of an American Jewish political infrastructure during the postwar period.

He is currently working on a book project about evolving American Jewish definitions of antisemitism. His work has been published in Jewish Social Studies, the Journal of Modern Jewish Studies, and American Jewish History.

Fall 2024

Jewish Identity and American Politics — FYSP 156
Zionisms — JWST 310
Zionisms — POLT 310

Spring 2025

Jews and Power — JWST 218
Jews and Power — POLT 218
The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict — JWST 224
The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict — POLT 224

Notes

Matthew Berkman Gives Talk at Grand Valley State University

October 16, 2024

Assistant Professor of Jewish Studies Matthew Berkman gave an invited talk at Grand Valley State University titled "A Critical History of the 'New Antisemitism' Paradigm: From the Six-Day War to 10/7."

Shari Rabin and Matthew Berkman publish in America Jewish History special issue

September 2, 2021

Assistant Professor of Jewish Studies Shari Rabin and Visiting Assistant Professor of Jewish Studies Matthew Berkman both had pieces published in the journal American Jewish History’s new special issue on antisemitism.

Matthew Berkman Wins Award for Dissertation

August 14, 2020

Visiting Assistant Professor of Jewish Studies Matthew Berkman’s dissertation won an award from the American Political Science Association. Berkman’s dissertation, "Coercive Consensus: Jewish Federations, Ethnic Representation, and the Roots of American Pro-Israel Politics" is the winner of the association’s Walter Dean Burnham Dissertation Prize. “Coercive Consensus” sets out to answer the question of how complete identification with the state of Israel came to characterize every major national Jewish organization in the highly consequential period following the Six Day War.  

News

College of Arts and Sciences Welcomes New Faculty for 2023-24

September 18, 2023

Students choose Oberlin—and thrive at Oberlin—because of the nurturing mentorship of the outstanding faculty who guide their learning. We are honored to welcome the newest additions to our faculty across the College of Arts and Sciences for 2023-24.