International Studies Resources

Russia Will Send Top Students Abroad, and Expects Them to Return

jgreen — Wed, 16 May 2012 13:24:45 +0000

In an effort to grow its scientific workforce and to stimulate international research collaborations, the Russian government is set to pay for thousands of Russian students to attend top universities around the world. But to benefit from the generous scholarships, the students must agree to apply their new-found skills back home — assuming that jobs will be waiting for them when they return.

Vladimir Putin, who took office as president last week following a controversial election, is expected to officially approve the five-billion-rouble (US$165-million) Global Education programme by the end of this month. His pre-election promises included a pledge to substantially increase government funding of science and education (see Nature 483, 253–254; 2012).

The programme will be run by the Strategic Initiatives Agency, a government-funded bureau set up last year with a view to promote social and economic innovation in Russia. The first call for applications should be launched next month, says Dmitry Peskov, who is head of the agency’s division for young professionals and oversees the programme. “We have the means to very generously support up to 2,000 talented Russian students per year,” he says.

Trial to Literaturnaia gazeta

jgreen — Mon, 14 May 2012 19:57:48 +0000

Binghamton University Libraries will be offering a trial to Literaturnaia Gazeta. Established on April 22, 1929 with the support of the “father of Soviet literature,” writer Maxim Gorky, Literaturnaia gazeta is a landmark publication in Russia’s cultural heritage. With its focus on literary and intellectual life, Literaturnaia gazeta allowed Soviet Russia’s preeminent authors, poets, and cultural figures a particular podium for commentary, affording perhaps fewer restrictions than might be possible in other publications. Literaturnaia gazeta was considered the most open among newspapers of the Soviet era, and it remains popular among the intelligentsia in today’s Russia. (Note: Publication of Literaturnaia gazeta was completely suspended in 1942 and 1943, and no issues were produced. In 1944, only 8 issues were published. The lack of database content for this period is not a gap, but reflects the publication schedule during these challenging years.)

Trial ends June 11, 2012.

Harpur College partners with Chinese school

jgreen — Thu, 10 May 2012 13:25:39 +0000

Visiting Assistant Professor Paul Shovlin talks with Zhenjiang International School student Xu Yun during an Intro to English Composition class that the visiting students participated in at the Glenn G. Bartle Library last month. Photo by Jonathan Cohen

By Eric Coker

Zhenjiang International School teacher Sofia Jiang smiled as she watched the Chinese students interact with their Binghamton High School counterparts.

“This trip to the United States is their first chance to talk with so many English-speaking people,” said Jiang, who teaches English at Zhenjiang International School (ZIS). “It’s a very good experience for them. In China, they can have books and imagine what they could say. But they don’t have real situations like this.”

The visit to Binghamton High was just one highlight of a whirlwind week for 20 Chinese high school sophomores who came to Binghamton on April 16 as part of a new program that links Binghamton University’s Harpur College and Ambow Education’s Zhenjiang International School.

In the partnership, ZIS students will take Binghamton University online English and writing classes and then attend Binghamton University after their high school graduation. The recent visit gave the students an introduction to Binghamton University, its classes, campus life and the community.

“They are coming away with a sense of what Binghamton University feels like, how it operates and what the possibilities of an American university experience are like,” Harpur College Dean Donald Nieman said.

“We’ve brought our students here to understand how the American educational system works,” ZIS Principal Zhou Wei said. “In the future, most of them will choose to come to Binghamton University. We have loved Binghamton University and the city very much.”

German Lyric Diction Class Recital

jgreen — Wed, 09 May 2012 17:18:43 +0000

A spring bouquet of German lieder and arias will be heard at the “Melodienstraub” concert from the students of the German Lyric Diction Class, instructed by Judy Berry, at 8 p.m. Thursday, May 10, in FA-Casadesus Recital Hall. This free concert will feature Binghamton University voice students Molly Adams-Toomey, Eun Hwan Bae, Meghan Çakalli, Charles Hyland, Christina Kompar, Heepyoung Oh and Richard Leonberger singing compositions by Mozart, Schubert, Wolf, Schumann, and Strauss. This concert open to the public and sponsored by the Binghamton University Music Department. For more information, call 607-777-2592, visit http://music.binghamton.edu or become a fan on Facebook.

Korean Studies Symposium

jgreen — Wed, 09 May 2012 17:17:32 +0000

A Korean Studies Symposium titled “After Neoliberalism: Democracy and Class in South Korea/East Asia” will be held Friday and Saturday, May 11-12, in FA-258. Opening remarks will be at 4 p.m. Friday, May 11, with Hagen Koo, University of Hawaii, as keynote speaker on the topic of “Class Restructuration after East Asia’s ‘Growth with Equity.’” The Saturday program will run from 9 a.m. until 3:45 p.m. and will include a roundtable discussion and two panel discussions. For more information, visit the Center for Korean Studies at http://cks.binghamton.edu or contact Yoonkyung Lee at yklee@binghamton.edu or Chungse Chung at chungse.jung@binghamton.edu.

IASH Fellows’ Speaker Series

jgreen — Tue, 08 May 2012 13:56:49 +0000

Lisa Yun, associate professor of English and AAAS, will discuss “The Other Side of Abolition” at noon Wednesday, May 9, in the IASH Conference Room (LN-1106). This will be the final IASH presentation for this semester. While a significant body of literature and scholarship exists on the African slave passage, slaveholders and masters, comparatively little has been studied about the Asian coolie passage and their American and European masters. This paper examines period maritime literature and documents, such as ship journals, captain’s letters, crew testimonies, newspaper and novel accounts, with particular attention to the backdrop of abolition and slavery that shadows the traffic. What might these materials reveal about the masters of new slavery and their role in the hierarchies of power? The discussion of these materials expands our understandings of coercion, slavery and racialization.

Wind Symphony to Perform Saturday

jgreen — Wed, 02 May 2012 13:11:17 +0000

The Binghamton University Wind Symphony, conducted by Robert Smith, will celebrate Mexico’s Independence Day with the “Cinco de Mayo” concert at 3 p.m. Saturday, May 5, in the AC-Chamber Hall with works by native Mexican composers as well as compositions by American composers inspired by aspects of Mexican culture. Tickets are $6 general public; $3 faculty/staff/seniors and free for students and are available at the Anderson Center Box Office from noon-5:30 p.m. weekdays, by calling 607-777-ARTS, online at http://anderson.binghamton.edu or at the door. For more information, call the Binghamton University Music Department at 607-777-2592, visit http://music.binghamton.edu or become a fan on Facebook.

Public Presentation by Candidate for Director of Study Abroad and Exchange Position

jgreen — Wed, 02 May 2012 13:09:49 +0000

Kirsten McKinney, a candidate for the director of study abroad and exchange position, will speak on “The Future of Study Abroad and Exchange and Its Impact on the Internationalization of Binghamton University” at 1:30 p.m. Thursday, May 3, in LN-1406 (across from the entrance to Bartle Library). Following her presentation, she will be available to meet with faculty, staff and students who can stop by any time between 1:30-3 p.m. Sponsored by the Office of International Programs at 777-2336.

Film and Food Series Continues Thursday

jgreen — Wed, 02 May 2012 13:08:08 +0000

The 1992 film “Like Water for Chocolate” and food from Nezuntos Café will be featured at the next Film and Food Series event at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 3, at the Art Mission and Theatre, 61 Prospect Ave., Binghamton. Before the film begins, theatergoers will have the opportunity to eat appetizers and other samples. Prior to the 8 p.m. screenings, Professor Ingeborg Majer-O’Sickey will introduce the film. Cost is $15. Call 607-722-6914 or e-mail artmission@artmission.org.

IASH Fellows’ Speaker Series

jgreen — Tue, 01 May 2012 19:14:38 +0000

Yoonkyung Lee, assistant professor, sociology/Asian and Asian American Studies, will discuss “From Regionalism to Programmatic Competition: Korean Political Parties Under Transformation” at noon Wednesday, May 2, in the IASH Conference Room (LN-1106). This study examines how Korean parties have changed … Continue reading →