Dr. Daniel Faas

Daniel Faas is Associate Professor in Sociology and an elected Board Member at Trinity College Dublin, Convenor/Champion of the university-wide interdisciplinary research theme 'Identities in Transformation', and founding Director of the MSc Comparative Social Change (an inter-institutional partnership and joint degree programme with University College Dublin). He has held Visiting Professorships at Universidade de São Paulo, Beijing Foreign Studies University, University of the Philippines Diliman and University College London (Institute of Education). He is a graduate of the University of Cambridge (PhD, MPhil), the University of Stuttgart (MA) and Trinity College Dublin (MA jo). His research and teaching interests are in the sociology of migration with specific emphasis on the intersection of migration and education. His work focuses on youth identities in relation to immigrant integration, national identity, multiculturalism and social cohesion, religion and schooling in Ireland and Europe, curriculum design and development, as well as comparative case study methodologies. He has published widely on these topics in high-impact peer-reviewed international journals, as well as a sole-authored monograph (Negotiating Political Identities: Multiethnic Schools and Youth in Europe) and is internationally reputed for his work in these areas. In 2015, Professor Faas was elected to Fellowship of Trinity College Dublin in recognition of his scholarship and research achievements and his contribution to College and to the School. Daniel Faas is winner of the Trinity Global Engagement Award (2016) in recognition of outstanding global relationship building, collaboration, outreach and cultural understanding, winner of the Provost's Teaching Award at Trinity College Dublin (2012) in recognition of his contribution in the pursuit of teaching excellence and innovation, and recipient of the 2009 European Sociological Association award for best journal article. Professor Faas was Head of the Department of Sociology at Trinity College Dublin (2012-16), Member of the University Council at Trinity College Dublin (2012-18), Fulbright-Schuman Fellow in the Department of Sociology at UC Berkeley (2009) and Marie Curie Research Fellow at the Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy in Athens (2006-2008). Professor Faas has served as College Tutor, Director of International Affairs in the School of Social Sciences and Philosophy (2010-15), Member of the College International Committee (2012-18) and Member of the Equality Committee (2016-17). He has been strongly involved in Trinity College's Global Relations Strategy development and implementation, including chairing a Task Force on Mobility leading to the publication of a policy report on 'Barriers to Inward and Outward Student Mobility' (2013), developing an International Foundation Programme (2015), as well as numerous international student recruitment and partnership building delegations particularly in India, China, Brazil and the Philippines (since 2012). Externally, Professor Faas has acted as expert evaluator and panel vice-chair for the European Commission (Horizon 2020 and FP7) and numerous national funding agencies including: Research Promotion Foundation of Cyprus, Swiss National Science Foundation, Qatar National Research Fund, Foundation for Science and Technology in Portugal, Luxembourg National Research Fund, Academy of Finland, Research Council of Norway, and the Volkswagen Foundation.

  Case-study research   Citizenship   Community and School Relations   Comparative Education   Comparative Sociology   Educational Planning/Policy   Ethnicity & Nationalism in Central Europe   EU developments   European minority cultures and identities   Globalisation   Identity politics and social change   Knowledge Based Society   Migration   Migration and Employment   Multicultural Education   Multiculturalism   Qualitative methodologies   Race and ethnic studies   Social Policy   Teacher Education Issues

My research is in the sociology of migration and consists of three interlinked strands: (1) identities and integration, (2) comparative curriculum analyses, and (3) religion and schooling in Ireland and Europe. It strongly links to Trinity's interdisciplinary research theme "Identities in Transformation", of which I am the Convenor/Champion. My work creates new knowledge by asking fundamental questions: How do societies and institutions differ in the ways in which they integrate migrant students and what structural characteristics drive this? How do national school curricula address migration-related diversity and European issues? How is religion integrated in schools and education systems? My work is rigorous and policy-oriented, allowing me to build bridges between academic and policy communities at national and European level. My earlier body of works on identities and integration included a monograph, "Negotiating Political Identities: Multiethnic Schools and Youth in Europe", which provided the first analysis of within-country and between-country differences in identity formation, revealing the factors which shape contemporary identities. It offered innovative insights into the role of school dynamics in shaping youth identities, including school ethos, peer cultures and school-level policy approaches. My most recent work on religion and schooling includes the first study in Ireland on the new multi-denominational state-funded Community National Schools, and the first empirical study exploring school sector variation of the role of religion, inter-faith communication and religious education in Ireland. The outcomes of this research have shaped education policy-making and contributed to wider academic debates in Ireland and internationally. I have received numerous research grants (totalling €1.3m - of which over €600k since last promotion) and highly competitive fellowships including a Fulbright Fellowship, Marie Curie Intra-European Fellowship, and other external funding as PI and Co-PI in European collaborative projects. In 2015, I was elected to Fellowship at Trinity College Dublin (FTCD). In 2019, I received a Provost's PhD Project Award, linked to my latest research strand on religion and schooling in Ireland and Europe. I have a substantial and sustained research output of around 70 publications including 34 journal articles, 13 book chapters, 9 reports, 3 (edited) volumes, and 10 reviews. I have supervised 43 postgraduates to completion (12 PhD, 31 MSc/MPhil) and mentored 5 postdocs. I have promoted research leadership in numerous ways: I have encouraged staff to engage in collaborative research through creating and deepening links with the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), the university-wide interdisciplinary research theme "Identities in Transformation", the TCD-UCD Strategic Alliance, Marino Institute of Education, as well as international networks such as IMISCOE. In addition, I have mentored a number of junior staff and have discussed their research plans and publication strategies enabling them to expand their vision and operating successfully within Trinity and beyond. I consider this part of cultivating the next generation of Trinity scholars.