About Us
IAAB Staff
Mana Kharrazi, Executive Director
Ms. Mana Kharrazi received a BA in International Studies and Middle Eastern Studies, along with a minor in Persian, from Emory University. While at Emory, Ms. Kharrazi co-organized a lecture series focusing on Iran that brought together academics, artists, and community leaders from within the Iranian diaspora. Ms. Kharrazi initially joined Iranian Alliances Across Borders as a member of 2007's camp planning committee after participating in Camp Ayandeh as a counselor in 2006. In 2008, Ms. Kharrazi led Camp Ayandeh as its Director in Georgia, which was featured on CNN International. In 2009, Ms. Kharrazi became IAAB's Executive Director and continued the role on a volunteer-basis until 2011 when IAAB received a generous grant from PARSA Foundation and hired Ms. Kharrazi as IAAB's first paid Executive Director. Prior to working for IAAB, Ms. Kharrazi was a Field Organizer in Amnesty International USA's Southern Regional Office. As a Field Organizer, Ms. Kharrazi was responsible for Amnesty International's organizing and campaigning within Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. She served as a member of the Southern Human Rights Network's steering committee and helped organize the youth summit as a part of 2010's Southern Human Rights Organizer's Conference. Ms. Kharrazi has led numerous trainings and workshops, participated in panels at universities throughout the South, and organized events with the ACLU, NAACP and other nonprofit organizations. Ms. Kharrazi also worked at the Carter Center, Posse Foundation and CareerBuilder.
Narges Bajoghli, Co-Founder and Acting Director
Ms. Narges Bajoghli is a PhD candidate in socio-cultural and linguistic Anthropology at New York University, focusing on the production of media and popular culture in revolutionary societies. Along with Ms. Nikoo Paydar, Ms. Bajoghli co-founded IAAB in 2003, overseeing, among others, the development of its International Conferences on the Iranian Diaspora, Camp Ayandeh, and co-curating TRANSFORM/NATION: Contemporary Art of Iran and Its Diaspora, sister exhibitions in Washington DC and Tehran, summer 2007. Ms. Bajoghli received a M.A. in the Social Sciences, focusing on Anthropology, from the University of Chicago, a M.A. from New York University in Anthropology, and her B.A. from Wellesley College in International Relations and Middle Eastern Studies. As the recipient of the Susan Knafel Fellowship, Ms. Bajoghli spent three semesters researching at the University of Tehran's Faculty of Law and Political Science, and developing projects focusing on the victims of chemical weapons during the Iran-Iraq War. She currently directs an oral history project of the victims of chemical warfare in Iran, based out of the Tehran Peace Museum. After her research in Iran, she was awarded a place at the Hedgebrook Writer's Residency. Ms. Bajoghli has worked extensively with non-profit organizations in Iran and Latin America and has spent time studying at the University of Havana, Cuba, La Casa de las Americas, Cuba, and the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London (SOAS). She is involved in the organization of art exchanges between Havana, Tehran, and New York and is currently on the Steering Committee of the Iranian Studies Initiative at NYU.
Shirin Vossoughi, PhD, Director, Camp Ayandeh
Dr. Shirin Vossoughli received her BA in History and International Development from UCLA in 2002, with an emphasis on political economy and revolutionary movements in the Middle East and Latin America. These interests led her to study for one semester at the University of Havana, Cuba. Upon graduation, Dr. Vossoughi worked as a teacher and educational advocate in Los Angeles and New York City. She also worked with children's and women's rights organizations in Tehran, Iran. Dr. Vossoughi then returned to UCLA and completed her MA (2006) and PhD (2011) in Education, studying the creative development of humanizing educational contexts for migrant and immigrant students. This included working as teacher-researcher in an academic and artistic summer program for high school age migrant students. Currently, Dr. Vossoughi is a lecturer and teacher educator at UCLA, where she focuses on the anthropology of literacy, human development, and social change. Dr. Vossoughi became involved with IAAB through Camp Ayandeh 2010, where she served as a facilitator for counselor training and the theater component of camp.
Afsoon Talai, Design
Ms. Afsoon Talai is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design where she received her degree in Graphic Design. She is currently the Senior Designer for a New York-based design firm. Ms. Talai was born and raised in Norman, Oklahoma. In addition to managing IAAB’s design projects, Ms. Talai has also designed graphics for a number of other organizations and businesses including CNN, Weleda, and First Act. Ms. Talai also serves as a designer for the Museum of Rhode Island School of Design.
Arash Majdi, Finance
Mr. Arash Majdi received his M.S. from the Georgia Institute of Technology and currently resides in Washington, D.C., where he is employed by Deloitte. Mr. Majdi graduated from Georgia Institute of Technology with a B.S. in Industrial and Systems Engineering where he formerly was the President of the Georgia Tech Iranian Student Association. Mr. Majdi has been involved with Camp Ayandeh since its inception first as a counselor, then as an Associate, and finally as the Director in 2009.
