Employee Directory

Max Shmookler

• History Faculty
• Email
• Dyker Heights
• Upper School

“For me, teaching history is a delicate balance of building skills, cultivating imagination, and inspiring a love of learning.”

Dr. Max Shmookler joined Poly Prep as an Upper School history teacher in 2021. He completed his PhD in Middle Eastern history and Arabic literature at Columbia University in 2020 and then taught Middle School world history at The Brearley School before coming to Poly. He’s originally from eastern Pennsylvania, and has lived in Egypt, Lebanon, and Morocco, but he considers Brooklyn to be his home. Max co-edited a book of Sudanese short stories in translation, entitled “The Book of Khartoum” (2016), and published his first peer-reviewed academic article in 2021. His second book, a co-edited critical edition of an 18th-century Arabic manuscript from Damascus, will be published in late 2021. When not teaching, Max can often be found on the yoga mat, at the bouldering gym, in the woodworking shop, or playing with his two cats, Fox and Marshmallow. To learn more about Max’s academic work, CV, and interests, please visit his website: www.maxshmookler.com