The Association for Israel Studies is a scholarly organization founded in 1985. It is open to scholars in the social sciences

Social sciences

Social science is the field of study concerned with society. "Social science" is commonly used as an umbrella term to refer to a plurality of fields outside of the natural sciences usually exclusive of the administrative or managerial sciences...

 and humanities

Humanities

The humanities are academic disciplines that study the human condition, using methods that are primarily analytical, critical, or speculative, as distinguished from the mainly empirical approaches of the natural sciences....

 who study the modern state of Israel

Israel

The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

. AIS is an affiliated member organization of the Middle East Studies Association of North America

Middle East Studies Association of North America

Middle East Studies Association of North America is a learned society, and according to its website, "a non-political association that fosters the study of the Middle East, promotes high standards of scholarship and teaching, and encourages public understanding of the region and its peoples...

. The Association has over 200 members in 2005.

Political inclination

Although the Association was founded by scholars dissatisfied with bias against Israel in the Middle East Studies Association, the organization is scholarly, and does not take political positions.

Criticism

The Association has been accused of giving "center stage" to anti-Israel scholars, legitimizing their views.