Academic Record
A short-form record of education, publications, presentations, and professional activity. A complete PDF version is available below for reviewers and search committees who prefer to save a full copy.
Last updated March 2026
Education
Ph.D. in Religious Studies (Coptic Studies)
Claremont Graduate University · School of Arts & Humanities
Adviser: Dr. Tammi J. Schneider
B.S. in Leadership Studies
California State University, Stanislaus
Dissertation
A Study of the Copto-Arabic Synaxarium
Claremont Graduate University · In progress
Director: Dr. Tammi J. Schneider
Fields of Competence
Primary: Coptic Studies, late antique hagiography, patristics, Coptic liturgical traditions
Secondary: History of Christianity, historiography of global Christian denominational identity, Eastern Christianity in the modern period
Publications
Monographs — Forthcoming
- The Ascent of the Spirit: An Annotated and Expanded Edition of Pope Shenouda III’s “The Release of the Spirit.” Translated by Mena Basta, with a Foreword by Rev. Dr. Tim Vivian. Gorgias Press, 2026.
- The Book of the Holy Psalter According to the Coptic Rite Along with the Book of the Hours. Translated by Mena Basta. St. Mary and St. Moses Abbey Press, 2026.
Monographs
- Golden Channels: Blessed Writings of St. Pope Kyrillos VI. Translated by Mena Basta, with a Foreword by Metropolitan Serapion and a Preface by Bishop Kyrillos. ACTS Press, 2026.
- Virginal Birth and Divine Manifestation, Book 1: Nativity Feast. Translated by Mena Basta. Theology Academy, 2024.
- Virginal Birth and Divine Manifestation, Book 2: Epiphany Feast. Translated by Mena Basta. Theology Academy, 2024.
- The Coptic Hymnal. Self-published, 2024.
Articles
- “Tree Trunks, Streams, and Veins: Rethinking How To Map Denominational History in Teaching Christianity.” Journal of World Christianity (under review).
Conference Presentations & Invited Talks
- “Sacred Territory and the Wounded Body: Epistolary Authority and Theological Framing of Political Struggle in the Encyclicals of Pope Kyrillos VI.” Annual Southwestern Anthropological Association Conference, Claremont, California. March 2026.
- “Tree Trunks, Streams, and Veins: Rethinking How We Map Denominational History in Teaching Christianity.” Annual AAR-Western Region Meeting — Christianity Unity, Las Vegas, Nevada. March 2026.
- “A Living Repository: The Liturgical Role of the Psalter in Contemporary Coptic Orthodox Practice.” Annual AAR/SBL Meeting — Biblical Exegesis from Eastern Orthodox Perspectives Section: The Psalms in Eastern Liturgy, Boston, Massachusetts. November 2025.
- “Illuminating Diaspora: Architectural and Artistic Expressions in Fanousian Coptic Churches in America.” Annual AAR/SBL Meeting — Middle Eastern Christianity Unit: Liberation, Liturgy, and Space in Middle Eastern Christianity, Boston, Massachusetts. November 2025.
- “‘Their Voices Went Forth Upon the Face of the Earth’: Mapping Coptic Academics and Their Communities in the Diaspora.” XXIII International Association for the History of Religions World Congress, Krakow, Poland. August 2025.
- “Councils Reimagined: Variant Readings and Collective Memory in the Copto-Arabic Synaxarium.” 26th Annual St. Shenouda-UCLA Conference of Coptic Studies, Los Angeles, California. July 2025.
- “Reconstructing Ecclesiastical Memory: A Critical Edition of the Synaxarium Entry on the Council of Nicaea.” Nicaea Today Conference, Titusville, Florida. May 2025.
- “Is it Scripture: External Sources Say Yes.” SBL Global Virtual Meeting. April 2025.
- “Coptic and Arabic Liturgical Manuscripts in the Collection of the St. Shenouda the Archimandrite Coptic Society in Los Angeles.” Presented on behalf of Hany N. Takla. St. Mark Foundation Symposium, Cairo, Egypt. February 2025.
- “How Religion Moves Society Forward.” TEDx Dougherty Valley High School. May 2018.
Academic Projects & Research Experience
Claremont Graduate University
Critical Edition of the Synaxarium Entry on the Council of Nicaea
Reconstructed a unified critical edition of the Arabic Synaxarium entry on the Council of Nicaea using eleven manuscript witnesses from diverse traditions. Developed an apparatus criticus and comparative textual analysis situating liturgical memory in historical-political context.
Beyond the Written Word · Student-led seminar
Designed and facilitated discussion linking religious orality, liturgical memory, and manuscript culture.
Hoover Institution, Stanford University
Soviet Microfilm Publication Project
Tracked citations of the Soviet Union archives across publications, identifying more than 50 works over a 30-year span.
Publication Tracking Project
Documented 70 publications citing the Hoover Library and Archives, enriching institutional records.
Digitized Posters Language Recognition Project
Enhanced language metadata for 4,500 posters spanning approximately 40 languages in the digital collection.
Egypt Subject Collection Box Project
Translated and accurately described archival materials in Arabic and English.
Professional Experience
Assistant Managing Editor
Claremont Coptic Encyclopedia
Collaborate with scholars to produce updated entries on Coptic theology, liturgy, culture, language, and ecclesial figures. Assist with primary source review, translation, hyperlinking, and referencing.
Student Information Technology Aide
Claremont Graduate University
Assist professors and graduate students with academic technology, digital tools, and troubleshooting support across research and classroom settings.
Engagement Department Intern
Hoover Institution, Stanford University
Enriched metadata repositories and facilitated access to primary source materials for researchers.
Teaching Preparation
Prepared to teach in:
- World Christianity
- Church history
- Eastern Christianity
- Introduction to Christianity
- Comparative liturgical traditions
- Patristics
Languages
Arabic · Native (Classical, Modern Standard, and Egyptian)
English · Native
Coptic · Advanced reading proficiency (Bohairic)
Greek · Basic reading skills (Koine / New Testament)
French · Basic reading skills
Professional Affiliations
- American Academy of Religion (AAR)
- Society of Biblical Literature (SBL)
- St. Shenouda the Archimandrite Coptic Society (SSACS)
- American Society of Church History (ASCH)
- North American Patristics Society (NAPS)