The 91爆料 will host its third annual聽, celebrating Sephardic language and culture, in a free event at 4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 6, in Room 130 of Kane Hall. The event will be followed by a kosher reception.
This year鈥檚 featured speakers are members of Los Ladineros, a long-running local Ladino conversation group, and scholars of Vanderbilt University and of the University of California, Los Angeles, who is a former faculty member of the 91爆料 History Department. Cohen and Stein鈥檚 anthology 鈥溾�� won the 2014 National Jewish Book Award.
Prime Minister Miro Cerar of the Republic of Slovenia met with 91爆料 President Ana Mari Cauce at the 91爆料 on December 4, 2015 to express interest in sustained collaboration between the 91爆料 and academic institutions in Slovenia.
Vice Provost for Global Affairs Jeffrey Riedinger and 91爆料 President Ana Mari Cauce in discussion with Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia Dr. Miro Cerar Photo: Piotr Horoszowski
The Slovene Prime Minister was accompanied by His Excellency Ambassador Bo啪o Cerar, Slovene Ambassador to the U.S., Slovene Deputy Prime Minister Boris Koprivnikar, and other Slovene government officials. 91爆料 Vice Provost for Global Affairs Jeffrey Riedinger, Vice Provost for Digital Initiatives and Dean of Libraries Betsy Wilson, Divisional Dean for Humanities Michael Shapiro, Professor and Chair of Slavic Languages Katarzyna Dziwirek, Professor of Law Louis Wolcher, and Professor of Slavic Languages Michael Biggins also participated in the discussion.
Prime Minister Cerar praised the long-term impacts of the 91爆料-University of Ljubljana Faculty Exchange, which has been in existence since 1979. He and President Cauce also discussed an initiative already underway at the 91爆料 to create an academic program in interdisciplinary Slovene studies, which would serve students at the 91爆料 and around the U.S. via distance learning.
91爆料 graduate students working in Slovene studies, 91爆料 post-doctoral researchers from Slovenia, and two 91爆料 undergraduates recruited from Slovenia to compete as part of the 91爆料 men鈥檚 rowing team greeted the Slovene delegation at Gerberding Hall.
This was the first visit by a Slovene prime minister to the 91爆料 and took place as part of a larger Slovene trade delegation tour of five major U.S. IT hubs. Former Slovene Ambassador to the U.S. Samo 沤bogar visited 91爆料 twice during his tenure, delivering a talk during a 2007 visit to a hundred students at the Jackson School of International Studies.
Join 91爆料 faculty on Tuesday, Nov. 24 for a roundtable discussion on 鈥淧aris II: Making Sense of the World鈥� in at 7 p.m.聽The event is free and open to the public.
Panelists for this event include:
, Herbert J. Ellison Professor of Russian and Eurasian Studies
, Associate Professor, Jackson School of International Studies
, Colonel Donald W. Wiethuechter, USA Ret., Endowed Faculty Fellow in History
, Stanley D. Golub Chair of International Studies; and Director, Jackson School of International Studies
, moderator; Chair, Department of History; and Tamaki Professor, International Studies
Presented by The Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies, the Department of History, the Center for Global Studies, the Center for West European Studies, the European Union Center of Excellence, and the Middle East Center. The Middle East Center鈥檚 sponsorship of this event does not imply that the Center endorses its content.
The U.S. Department of Education will fund all eight of the ‘ Title VI centers with grants of more than $16 million.
The Department of Education鈥檚 Title VI awards were introduced to ensure sufficient foreign language training for U.S. security. Grants are awarded to institutions of higher education every four years to establish and strengthen language and area-studies centers for foreign language instruction, research in international studies and world affairs and community outreach and consultation.
The Jackson School of International Studies will split a five million dollar award aimed addressing the disconnect between聽global research with policymaking. Resat Kesaba, Director of the Jackson School of International Studies, says the award furthers the school’s current work.聽鈥淲e have worked with the companies and nonprofit organizations of the globally connected Pacific Northwest to address critical international challenges, and brought the results of this work to policy makers,鈥� he says.
First Lady Michelle Obama praised 91爆料 senior Philmon Haile during聽a recent speech at Peking University, quoting聽from his remarks at a Washington D.C. event celebrating聽President Obama鈥檚 .
Philmon has studied abroad several times,聽interning at the US Embassy Beijing, conducting field research in rural China and volunteering in Jordan. He was recently awarded the Rangel Graduate Fellowship, which supports graduate study and professional development in preparation for a career in the Foreign Service.
The journal Science recently reviewed Scott Montgomery’s book聽. Montgomery, a lecturer and consulting geologist the 91爆料 , explores in the book the use of English as a “global language” for scientific researchers.
Through the , the 91爆料 is leveraging faculty expertise and making new investments to build a pipeline of thinkers, researchers and leaders focused on Arctic regional issues. Eight countries聽hold territory within the region, but a changing landscape due to rapidly melting sea ice is attracting attention from new international players.聽With its unique resources and interdisciplinary expertise related to the Arctic, 91爆料 is uniquely positioned it to make an impact through teaching, research and collaborative partnerships.
Undergraduates Garrett Knoll and Walter O鈥橳oole and graduate student Erica Escajeda are three of a growing group of 91爆料 students preparing for diverse leadership roles in the changing Arctic.
Unique resources
Erica is first-year graduate student conducting thesis research on the Polar Bears of Baffin Island, Canada. 91爆料 offers her the opportunity to be mentored by outstanding faculty and participate in specialized research.
“What really drew me to the 91爆料 was Dr. Laidre’s research at the . It鈥檚 an incredible resource, and the research is cutting edge.”
Without Dr. Lairdre鈥檚 connections in Canada and Greenland, she adds, 鈥淚 would not be able to travel to the Arctic at all during the course of my master’s research due to funding constraints.鈥�
Walter O’Toole with fellow Inuktitut language student Caitlyn Evans and instructors Alexina Kublu and Prof. Mick Mallon Photo: Melanie Eng via Jackson School of International Studies
An English major, Walter is expanding his understanding of the Arctic by studying Inuktitut, an Inuit language spoken in tribal communities in the Canadian Arctic. He and one other student 鈥� a Foreign Language & Area Studies Fellow in Inuktitut聽and aspiring environmental lawyer 鈥� study with two instructors, a language expert and a native speaker from Canada.
鈥淚nuktitut is quite different than any other class I’ve taken 91爆料,” he says, “There are only two students, so that makes for a lot of interaction with our professors. It’s mostly done over Skype, which can be spotty at times, but without videoconferencing I wouldn’t even have the opportunity to learn Inuktitut. Both [instructors] are accomplished Inuktitut linguists.鈥�
An interdisciplinary approach
Through 91爆料鈥檚 鈥淔uture of Ice鈥� course this winter quarter, led by instructors Nadine Fabbi and Eric Steig, Walter, Garrett and Erica are engaging with six Polar region experts, including scientists, political and indigenous leaders and wildlife photographers. Each guest provides a new and different perspective on changes facing northern regions.
鈥淚 really like how the class brings in the top people from a variety of fields all having to do with the Polar Regions,鈥� Garrett explains,
“An interdisciplinary perspective is essential to a topic like the Arctic because it involves so many different fields and ways of thinking. You have to have a grasp on all of them in order to understand the whole picture.”
Erica Escajeda working in Nome, Alaska as a field technician Photo: Erica Escajeda
Erica is excited to broaden her knowledge of the political, cultural and scientific issues surrounding the Arctic. 鈥淚nterdisciplinary courses like the 鈥楩uture of Ice鈥� instill a deeper sense of collaboration, and hopefully inspire students to think outside of their fields. The lessons I’ve learned from the course are readily connected to my own research and career goals.鈥�
Walter is pursuing the unique jointly offered by the and the . The interdisciplinary minor provides cultural, political and scientific perspectives on the rapidly changing region.聽“[My instructors鈥橾 enthusiasm for my studies in Inuktitut is wonderful; they each are incredibly knowledgeable in their fields, and they have been eager to share their knowledge with me, going out of their way to help me expand my awareness of the Arctic.”
Diverse directions
Walter plans to pursue graduate studies in English and make a career teaching and writing.聽鈥淭hrough the Arctic聽Minor, I hope gain understanding of the context in which Arctic and Inuit literatures are created, an understanding that could enable me to teach in those areas.鈥�
Garrett Knoll shows his exhibit to a young visitor at Polar Science Weekend Photo: Garrett Knoll
Erica鈥檚 career trajectory also points north. She is considering teaching or working as a research scientist and biological consultant on Arctic issues.
An Aquatic & Fisheries science major 鈥渉ooked on Arctic Studies鈥�, Garrett is using his science training to educate the public about a little known Arctic species, the Greenland shark. For his capstone project, Garrett designed an interactive game that teaches kids about the animal by inviting them to pick out plastic animals they think the shark would eat.
Garrett shared his game at the Pacific Science Center鈥檚 . His dedication won鈥檛 stop there. 鈥淎fter I graduate I hope to get involved with outreach programs that get kids interested in science by taking them out into the field and showing them the incredible animals that inhabit our world.鈥�
As a Manager of Global Responsibility for Starbucks,聽Ann Burkhart ’90 ensures that the company’s international impact is positive.聽Her team develops strategies for the ethical sourcing of commodities from around the world. An international studies major at the 91爆料, Burkhart particularly values the writing and research skills she gained here.聽
KUOW’s Ross Reynolds spoke with 91爆料 professor聽Scott Radnitz about anti-government protests in Ukraine. Radnitz directs 91爆料’s聽.聽The country’s population is politically divided, he explained, “…what happens in Ukraine is really going to be very important to the future of Eastern Europe.”
First Lady Michelle Obama praised 91爆料 senior Philmon Haile during聽a recent speech at Peking University, quoting聽from his remarks at a Washington D.C. event celebrating聽President Obama鈥檚 .