Bio

Nathan Lean is an Assistant Teaching Professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at North Carolina State University. His interests and specialties include: Islam in America; Muslim-American history and life; religion and music; and religion in popular culture.

Prior to joining the faculty at North Carolina State University, Nathan was an Adjunct Faculty member at George Mason University.

He earned his PhD in Theology and Religious Studies from Georgetown University. He has graduate degrees in Theology and Religious Studies, Arab Studies, and International Studies.

Nathan is the author of several books, book chapters, journal articles, and book reviews, including Understanding Islam and the West (2018); The Islamophobia Industry (2nd edition, 2017); The Moral Psychology of Terrorism (co-editor, 2013); and Iran, Israel, and the United States (co-author, 2011).

From 2014 to 2016, Nathan served as the Director of Research at Georgetown University’s Bridge Initiative, an innovate research program housed in the Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding. Under his direction, the program produced groundbreaking research on the experiences of Muslim Americans and public perceptions of them.

With a commitment to fostering religious literacy, he has served as a consultant for a variety of organizations aimed at growing awareness of religious diversity within the public square. He has advised government leaders, think tanks, media enterprises, and served as a subject-matter expert for television and documentary features on Islam, including PBS’s “Great American Muslim Roadtrip” and Al-Jazeera’s “Inside Islamophobia.” He is a regular public speaker, delivering lectures and keynote presentations at major universities, and public and private organizations. Outside of academia, Nathan has appeared in a variety of popular outlets, including the Los Angeles Times, the New York Daily News, the Washington Post, the San Francisco Examiner, CNN, Salon, The New Republic, Forbes, NPR, and more.