Biographical Text
Professor Emeritus of Political Science/ Criminal Justice Jawad Barghothi (June 2, 1938-) was born in the city of Jerusalem to a Palestinian father and a Turkish mother. He had a normal childhood for the first ten years of his life; however, after the creation of the State of Israel in 1948, Barghothi became incensed about what happened to his people, the Palestinians. As he witnessed the injustices inflicted on them, he vowed to do what he could to remedy these inequities. By the age of sixteen, indelibly impressed with the events of 1948, Barghothi became involved in the politics of the Middle East, where he led student uprisings in Jerusalem against the Jordanian government and its Western support. In the spring of 1956, Barghothi graduated from high school and entered Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, where he successfully earned his bachelor's degree in mathematics and physics. In the fall of 1961, he entered graduate school. The political environment in the Middle East at that time influenced Barghothi to change his academic field from mathematics to government. He graduated with a master's degree in government in 1963. After working as a math instructor in a high school in O'Fallon, Missouri, from 1963 to 1965, he returned to Southern Illinois University to pursue a Ph.D. in government (political science), with a concentration in international politics. Graduating in 1968, he then accepted a position at Arkansas State University, Jonesboro, where he taught for one year. In 1969, Barghothi married Barbara, his lovely companion since that time. He also accepted a position at Appalachian State University in the fall of 1969. Dr. Barghothi became very active in regional political science associations, where he delivered several papers each year, related to the past and the future of the Middle East. Barghothi took a sabbatical leave in 1980 when he, his wife, and two children went to live and work in occupied Palestine. He and Barbara worked at the University of Beir Zeit, where Dr. Barghothi taught political philosophy and his wife taught psychology. Due, however, to the occupation policy of Israel, Dr. Barghothi was forced to leave his native home once again by order of the military governor of the occupied West Bank. In July 1981, he and his family came back to Boone, where he continued to teach at Appalachian State University and participate in regional conferences of political science. Dr. Barghothi retired in 2003 after a teaching career of almost forty years, including three years teaching in the Appalachian State University phased-retirement system. He and his wife then went to live in Mexico for four-and-a-half months, where he taught two political science courses at the University of the Americas in Puebla, Mexico, in the spring semester of 2004. During this time, the couple enjoyed touring Mexico and learning firsthand about the lives of the Mexican people. In August of 2004, Barghothi accepted a position as a professor with the Semester at Sea Program, where he taught three classes aboard a ship while journeying around the world. In retirement, he and his wife pursue a very busy travel schedule. Dr. Barghothi continues to enjoy lecturing on cruise ships, while both he and his wife enrich their lives through opportunities to continue teaching and study abroad. Dr. Barghothi was awarded emeritus status by the Appalachian State University Board of Trustees on April 29, 2005. Sources: Appalachian State University files and personal correspondence. -Kay R. Dickson
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