Supporting the Creation of More East European and Eurasian Content at Community Colleges and Minority-serving Institutions

By Elieen Kunkler, Ohio State U Center for Slavic, East European Studies

Six Russian, East European, and Eurasian National Resource Centers have launched a national curriculum development stipend competition whose goal is to create more content about Eastern Europe and Eurasia at community colleges and minority-serving institutions across the country.  These six centers each have received funding from the U.S. Department of Education to serve as National Resource Centers in 2014-18.  Funding for National Resource Centers comes from Title VI of the Higher Education Act to support the study of modern foreign languages and the study of the regions and countries that use these languages, in particular those that are less studied and have been identified by government agencies as areas of national need.  For the 2014-18 grant cycle, emphasis was put on broadening access to area studies and language content at all levels of postsecondary education throughout the country, not just traditional four-year colleges and universities.  As a result, National Resource Centers are expanding their cooperation with community colleges and minority-serving institutions to establish partnerships that will lead to more courses covering Eastern Europe and Eurasia at these institutions.  In turn, by broadening access to area studies at more postsecondary institutions and to a more diverse body of students, these National Resource Centers strive to encourage not only more interest in the study of Eastern Europe and Eurasia, but also the representation of more opinions and perspectives.     

The curriculum development stipend competition is open to all full-time, part-time, and adjunct faculty who work at a community college or minority-serving institution.  Applicants can apply for $1,000-$3,000 to be used to create or redesign a course that will have 25% or more content about Eastern Europe or Eurasia.  Funds can be used for the purchase of curriculum materials, research related travel, consultation with a faculty member from a participating NRC, or to be paid as a stipend.  The 2014 curriculum development stipend competition is open until Monday, December 15, 2014 and the application can be downloaded at: http://slaviccenter.osu.edu/curriculum-development-stipends

The participating centers are: Indiana U., Inner Asian & Uralic National Resource Center; Indiana U., Russian & East European Institute; Ohio State University, Center for Slavic & East European Studies; U. of California, Berkeley, Institute of Slavic, East European, & Eurasian Studies; U. of Pittsburgh, Center for Russian & East European Studies; and U. of Washington, Ellison Center for Russian, East European, & Central Asian Studies.

For more information or questions, please contact Eileen Kunkler, the assistant director at the Center for Slavic and East European Studies at Ohio State, at kunkler.10@osu.edu