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Since our founding in 2000, Turkish American Cultural Society of Rhode Island has developed and grown in a positive direction. We’re very proud of the diversity of our staff, and their abilities to contribute their own unique experience and skills to our success. Find out more about our board members below.

PELIN

President

A native of Istanbul, Pelin Kadercan (Livia or Dr K as students know her) is a professor of history and government. She studied Modern Europe with an interest on the histories of the relations between Jews, Christians, and Muslims in a global context. Her research and teaching interests lie in the broad fields of displacement, war, human/ women’s rights, education and film.
She is currently completing her book on the German and Jewish émigrés who fled Nazi Germany for Turkey. Examining the transnational encounters in music, visual arts, and humanities education, her research explores how the cross-territorial forces in the form of ideas and a real dialogue between multiple actors conditioned the nation-building processes as a dynamic space of decision-making.
Dr. Kadercan completed her Ph.D. in History at the University of Rochester, NY. She has an M.A. degree in International Relations from the European Union Institute of Marmara University, and a B.A. from Bogazici University. 
She acted as a visiting professor at Brown University, and a researcher and organizer at various institutions in the UK, Spain, and Turkey. During the 2012-2013 academic year, she acted as the Executive Director for Academic Affairs at Koc University in Istanbul.
Her experience as a higher education professional in Turkey enabled her to have a comprehensive understanding about a broad range of matters in politics and education in the region. She is interested in creative writing, photography and film. She is currently learning how to play guitar.

ALEV

Vice President

Alev Elçi is a retired Associate Professor and the president of the Higher Education Professional Development Network (YÖMEGA) Association. She holds a BSc in Mathematics, an MSc in Computer Engineering, and a PhD in Educational Sciences. Her main research areas include faculty development, digital teaching and learning, technology-enhanced learning, social networks, learning communities, animation and game-based learning, internationalization, and narrative approaches.
TACSRI has a primary focus on educating its community about Turkish and American cultures. Alev, a passionate advocate for education, has dedicated her life to advancing this cause. In line with this mission, Alev is excited to be on board.

MERVE

Secretary

Merve BektaÅŸ was born in Ankara, Turkey in 1990 and graduated from Yeditepe University Law School in Istanbul. She has extensive knowledge of Labor, Tenancy, and Criminal Law. Merve has been working as a lawyer at the Istanbul Bar Association since 2015. In 2019, she relocated to the United States. She is married and a mother of one. Her hobbies include traveling, reading, writing about her experiences and memories, and cooking.

ERENSOY

Treasurer

Erensoy... 

Onat

ONAT

Director (Former President)

Experienced, trustworthy, fun. These are just a few of the ways coworkers describe this invaluable member of our team. Onat is truly a joy to be around and makes it a pleasure to work together every single day.

ÅžERÄ°FE

Director (Founding President)

Åžerife Uludokumaci-Hathaway, is the founder and first president of the Turkish American Cultural Society which was founded on October 29, 2001. 
She was born in Istanbul, then moved to Germany at the age of 15 and to Rhode Island at the age of 21. She has been here for over 50 years now. 

While in Germany, she obtained cosmetology license and went on to do her masters in hair, skin and nails here in RI. She was a Member of the RI Cosmetology Association for 30 years and served in roles such as vice president, director, private class teacher and judge at the hairdresser fashion show. Aside from her love for hairdressing and cosmetology, another passion is yoga. She studied in CA and earned her certified teacher certificate.
Over the years, she was also a member of the Warwick women’s club, American Cancer Society, Heritage Harbor Museum project, Brown University and last but not least, Turkish and Germany film festival assistant.
Her love for cooking led her to write a Turkish Cuisine book. She enjoys meeting up connecting and celebrating holidays and our Turkish culture.

Melih

MELIH

Director (Past President)

Melih BektaÅŸ was born in Istanbul/Turkey. He graduated from Yildiz Technical University majored in Mechanical Engineering. He attended and received his MBA degree from Johnson and Wales back in 2007.
After finishing his degree he had worked in Monarch Industries as an mechanical engineer and then he started his own company.
He is a business owner and an investor. He has a pizza restaurant and construction company. Also he is a registered contractor and specializes in deck building.
He is currently involved with local politics and trying to engage the members of Turkish-American community with them. He had served as TACSRI President between 2019-2021. He has been a member of the TACSRI board since 2017. Currently he is the Representative of Turkish American Steering Committee of Rhode Island and working on projects that bring communities together.

Erensoy

Board Member

DELIVERED TO YOUR DOOR

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