Master of Arts Program in Conflict Resolution

The Conflict Resolution Program would like to welcome Dr. Sarah Hillyer. Sarah comes to Georgetown from the University of Tennessee where she earned a PhD in Sport and Exercise Science with a concentration in Sport Sociology. Her dissertation, titled “Women’s Softball in Iran: An Autoethnographic Journey,” detailed her experiences as a woman’s softball coach in Iran and examined the role of sport as a tool for meaningful dialogue and peacebuilding between Iranian and American women through sports. Sarah’s research interests include the intersection of sport and peacebuilding, sport and community development, sport and diplomacy, and sport as a tool for effective and positive social change.
 

 
Sarah’s passion for research stems from seventeen years as asport and peacebuilding practitioner. In 1993, Sarah joined Global Sports Partners (GSP) and created Sport 4 Peace, the women’s division of GSP. In her role as International Women’s Sports Coordinator, Sarah has led numerous sport and peacebuilding projects for girls and women in Iran, Iraq, Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Oman, Turkey, Morocco, Tunisia, Inner Mongolia, China, Brazil, and Mexico. Sarah’s ongoing work as a sport and peacebuilding practitioner continues to inform her work and interest as a researcher in the field.

This semester, Sarah begins her work as the King Abdullah  II/Generations for Peace (GfP) Post-Doctoral fellow in the CR program focusing on peacebuilding through sport. She will be teaching GOVT 517: Sport & Peacebuilding and in her class, students will cover a range of topics including the history, current trends and future direction of sport and peacebuilding, best practices in sport & peacebuilding, and how to design, implement, and evaluate sport and peacebuilding programs. Students will participate in several hands-on activities related specifically to the course objectives.

In addition to Sarah’s time in the classroom, she will begin examining best practices in Sport & Peacebuilding and exploring the intersection of sport, peacebuilding, and technology through a pilot project she has named, the Virtual Youth Sports Exchange (VYSE). In May, Sarah will travel to Baghdad, Iraq to collect data and test the VYSE pilot project and will return to campus in August for the fall 2011 semester.