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Current Press Releases & Announcements

2009

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November 2009

October 2009

September 2009

Activist to discuss helping acid-throwing survivors at Oct. 1, 2 lectures

Monira Rahman, founder of the Acid Survivors Foundation (ASF) in Bangladesh, will share how to help acid-throwing survivors in two lectures. The first lecture will be at 4 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 1, in Room 1117 in the University Capitol Centre as part of the University of Iowa South Asian Studies Program Lecture Series, which is free and open to the public. For more information, call 319-335-3862.

The second lecture will be at noon Friday, Oct. 2, at an Iowa City Foreign Relations Council (ICFRC) luncheon lecture at the Congregational Church, 30 N. Clinton St. in Iowa City. The Oct. 2 is catered by Mama's Deli and costs $8 for ICFRC members and $9 for non-members. MidWestOne Bank is sponsoring the talk.

Acid throwing is a common form of violence used against women and children in Southeast Asia. The consequences of these attacks include permanent disfiguration, disability and deep psychological wounds. Motivations include disputes over dowry, property or rebuffing romantic advances. Rahman will share how to provide assistance to survivors of these attacks and move their role from victim to activist.

Reservations for the Oct. 2 event are required by noon Thursday, Oct. 1; contact icfrc@uiowa.edu or 319-335-0351.

UI student shares insights on headscarf debate in Turkey Sept. 24

Kate Karacay, a University of Iowa doctoral student, will speak from experience and research in a lecture titled "The Headscarf Debate in Turkey: Intersecting Private Lives and National Identity" from 5 to 6 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 24, in Seminar Room 2520D in University Capitol Centre.

The lecture, sponsored by the Middle East and Muslim World Studies scholarly group in UI International Programs, is free and open to the public.

Karacay has undertaken graduate research in Turkey uncovering issues surrounding the country's significant human trafficking problem. As a graduate student in 2006, she was instrumental in lobbying for Iowa's first human-trafficking law. In 2008, Karacay was awarded the Phillip G. Hubbard Human Rights Award, presented by the UI Human Rights Committee to a student who has made the most outstanding contribution to the advancement of human rights.

Currently enrolled in the Social Foundations of Education doctoral program in the UI College of Education, with an emphasis on international education, Karacay's research interests are gender and cultural identity in education, particularly in traditionally Muslim societies, and human rights education.

For more information on Karacay, visit http://www.uiowa.edu/be-remarkable/portfolio/people/karacay-k.html.

For more information or special accommodations to attend this lecture, call 319-335-2026.

CLAS Alumni Fellow speaks Sept. 11 on gender models of classical South Asia

University of Iowa alumna Martha Selby, associate professor in the Department of Asian Studies at the University of Texas, Austin, will discuss "The Color of Gender: On Substance, Sex Determination, and Anatomical Difference in the Caraka and Sushruta-samhitas" at 4 p.m. Friday, Sept. 11 in Room 315, Phillips Hall.

Selby earned a bachelor's degree in Asian Languages and Literature from the UI in 1982, and then completed her doctorate at the University of Chicago. A distinguished scholar and translator of Tamil, Prakrit and Sanskrit, she is the author of "Grow Long, Blessed Night," an anthology of erotic poems from classical India. The recipient of Radcliffe, Guggenheim, and NEH fellowships, she is currently writing a book on the gynecological and obstetric theories of Ayurveda, informed by feminist cultural history.

She is visiting campus as a 2009 College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Alumni Fellow. The Alumni Fellows Program, established by Dean Linda Maxson in 1999, recognizes CLAS graduates for outstanding contributions to society, their professions, the college and the university. The event is co-sponsored by the UI South Asian Studies Program and International Programs. For information, visit http://www.clas.uiowa.edu/alumni/programs/fellows/2009/.

NEW LOCATION: 'Taping the World' lecture series begins with talk by Joanna Demers Sept. 15

Joanna Demers, associate professor of musicology at the University of Southern California, will present a lecture titled "William Basinski, Tape Loops, and Mourning" as part of the International Programs series "Taping the World: The Global Legacy of a Neglected Technology." The lecture takes place at 4 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 15, in Room 107 of the English Philosophy Building on the UI campus..

Demers specializes in 20th- and 21st-century popular and concert music. Her work has appeared in Popular Music, the Journal of Popular Music Studies and the Social Science Research Network, and her monograph, "Steal This Music: How Intellectual Property Law Affects Musical Creativity," won the 2006 Book of the Year award from the Popular Culture Association. Her next book, "Listening Electronically: the Aesthetics of Experimental Electronic Music," is under contract with Oxford University Press.

"Taping the World: The Global Legacy of a Neglected Technology" is an International Programs Major Project initiative, funded by the Stanley-UI Foundation Support Organization. John Durham Peters, communication studies professor, and Kembrew McLeod, communication studies associate professor, co-direct the project, which will investigate the cultural, historical, aesthetic and political imprint of tape recording as the single most important medium of sound recording in the last century.

August 2009

Implications of Iran's internal conflict subject of Aug. 26 talk

Dr. Michael Kraig, senior fellow at the Stanley Foundation in Muscatine, Iowa, will present "Iran: Politics and Perspectives" at a noon luncheon of the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council Wednesday, August 26 at the Congregational Church, 30 North Clinton Street in Iowa City. MidWestOne Bank is a co-sponsor of this event. Oasis Falafel is catering the event, and the cost is $8 for ICFRC members and $9 for non-members. Reservations are required in advance.

Kraig's work includes research and outreach in the areas of G-8 expansion in an era of rising powers (BRICs, others) as well as human protection issues such as conflict prevention, mitigation, and management in cases of fragile states. He is interested in widening the policy debate in the United States and within foreign capitals by discussing multilateral, cooperative policy options that could make both the United States and the world more prosperous and secure.

The Iowa City Foreign Relations Council seeks to promote understanding about international issues by hosting community forums with informed speakers from around the world. For more information or to make a reservation, call 319-335-0351 or visit
http://international.uiowa.edu/outreach/community/icfrc/default.asp.

Iranian student panel to explore recent election results, aftermath Aug. 26

Iranian and Iranian-American young people will share their own and their friends' and families' stories and perspectives on the recent turmoil in Iran at a panel discussion on August 26 from 7:00-9:00 p.m.
The discussion will take place in Meeting Room A of the Iowa City Public Library, 123 South Linn St., Iowa City and is free and open to the public.

Additional topics will be the role of social media, the significance of public protests, the influence of the Iranian diaspora and thoughts about the future of the next Iranian generation.

The Iowa City Foreign Relations Council seeks to promote understanding about international issues by hosting community forums with informed speakers from around the world. For more information call 319-335-0351 or visit http://international.uiowa.edu/outreach/community/icfrc/default.asp.

Mandarin Chinese classes begin in September in Iowa City, Davenport

The Confucius Institute at University of Iowa International Programs is offering Mandarin Chinese community classes in Davenport, and community and family classes in Iowa City.

Community classes begin in Iowa City on Wednesday, Sept. 2 in the University Capitol Centre (UCC) and will meet from 7:15 to 8:45 p.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays through Oct. 21 (class will not meet on Sept. 7). Family classes will be held on Saturdays from Sept. 12 through Oct. 17 in UCC from 2 to 3 p.m. (children age four through first grade and parents) and from 3 to 4:30 p.m. (children grades 2-4 and parents).

Community classes begin in Davenport on Thursday, Sept. 3 at the New Ventures Center, 331 W. Third St. Classes will meet from 6:30 to 8 p.m. through Oct. 22 (classes will not meet on Sept. 8).

Level one classes are designed for adults and high school students without previous training in Mandarin Chinese. Level two classes are designed for persons who have successfully completed a level one class or who have a comparable amount of past coursework.

Enrollment forms and fee information are available at http://international.uiowa.edu/confucius/courses/default.asp. For more information, contact Rebecca Kessler at 319-335-0159 or e-mail confucius@uiowa.edu.

July 2009

June 2009

April 2009

Croatian scholar to discuss legal aid in Europe April 16

Zvonimir Jelinic, a faculty member at the University of J.J. Stossmayer in Croatia and a Junior Faculty Development Program (JFDP) scholar at the University of Iowa, will present "Access to Justice: Legal Aid in Europe" at 2 p.m. Thursday, April 16 in Room 1117 University Capitol Centre.

Jelinic will focus on legal aid systems in Europe, specifically involving civil rights matters. He will also discuss the historical development of the case law of the European Court for Human Rights concerning access to justice and legal aid in civil matters and examine legal aid's future perspectives in the context of Treaty of Lisbon and Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU. The lecture, hosted by the UI Center for Human Rights, is free and open to the public.

For more information visit http://international.uiowa.edu/centers/human-rights/news/default.asp.

Area elementary students celebrate UI Global Exploration Day April 17

Area elementary school students will learn about different languages and cultures of the world at the eighth annual University of Iowa International Programs Global Exploration Day on Friday, April 17.

"Learning Languages is Fun!" is the theme of the elementary school event, which takes place in two different sessions from 9 to 11 a.m. and noon to 2 p.m. at the Iowa Memorial Union on the UI campus.

More than 250 third-, fourth- and fifth-graders will participate in the day's activities, which include a bilingual puppet show, "The Musical Ant," performed by Eulenspiegel Puppets, and the opportunity to participate in two interactive language-learning sessions, Puppets in Action in German and Japanese Kanji.

Participating schools include Longfellow Elementary School, Iowa City; Roundy Elementary School, Columbus Junction; West Liberty Middle School, West Liberty; Herbert Hoover Elementary School, West Branch; Deep River-Williamsburg Elementary School, Millersburg; and Viola Gibson Elementary School, Cedar Rapids.

For more information visit http://international.uiowa.edu/outreach/k12/global-exploration.asp.

'Second Language Acquisition in 21st Century' focus of symposium April 17, 18

The second annual Second Language Acquisition (SLA) Graduate Student Symposium, "SLA in the 21st Century," will take place Friday and Saturday, April 17 and 18 in Room 1117 University Capitol Centre in downtown Iowa City.

The symposium, which is co-hosted by the SLA student organization of the University of Iowa and the University of Wisconsin-Madison's SLA graduate student organization, is a two-day event during which SLA faculty and students from domestic and international institutions will present original research and discuss the future of SLA.

Friday features student papers and talks by Carol Chapelle of Iowa State University and a memorial panel discussion in honor of the late James Pusack, a UI professor and chair of the UI German department. Saturday features student papers and posters, and talks by UI's Judith Liskin-Gasparro and Jane Zuengler of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, as well as a panel discussion, "Voices from the Field: Professional Paths in SLA."

The symposium is free and open to the public.

For more information visit http://www.uiowa.edu/~flaregra/symposium_09.html.

Public invited to student-led forum on domestic and global diversity April 19

Bridging Domestic and Global Diversity, or The Bridge, a program fostering student initiatives that bring together underrepresented domestic groups and international students, is holding an open forum at 5 p.m. Sunday, April 19 in Room 1117 University Capitol Centre in downtown Iowa City.

The forum is a student-led event designed to generate conversations about global and domestic diversity on campus and collaborate on ways students can increase the connections between these two categories. All students, faculty, staff and community members are invited to attend. Participants will receive a Global Diversity Certificate. A free, catered dinner will be provided for participants.

To participate contact Julie Pollock at 319-335-0335 or julie-pollock@uiowa.edu.

For more information about The Bridge visit http://international.uiowa.edu/oiss/training/students-scholars/bridge.asp

UI alum to share his experiences in Belo Horizonte, Brazil April 13

Brett Johnson, a 2006 UI religious studies graduate and former UI International Programs student employee, will present "How to cross the street in Belo Horizonte, and other tales from the heart of Brazil" as part of the International Mondays lecture series. The presentation takes place from noon to 1 p.m. Monday, April 13, in Meeting Room A at the Iowa City Public Library.

For nearly 200 years, Brazilians and foreigners have struggled to characterize Brazil, a country with many complex intersections of politics, geography, demographics and history. Johnson will discuss the city of Belo Horizonte, or the small part of Brazil that he came to know as a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar for 10 months in 2008.

The lecture is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.

For more information and a complete schedule of events contact Amy Green, 319-335-1433 or amy-green-1@uiowa.edu or visit http://international.uiowa.edu/outreach/community/international-mondays.asp.

UI Opera Studies Forum features Handel Bicentenary Lecture April 10

Nathan Link will present the University of Iowa Opera Studies Forum Handel Bicentenary Lecture "Charmed: Song and Enchantment in Handel's 'Rinaldo'" at 4:30 p.m. Friday, April 10, in Gerber Lounge of the English Philosophy Building on the UI campus.

Link, an assistant professor at Centre College, is a specialist on the opera of George Frideric Handel and vice-president of the American Handel Society.

Although onstage performers in most of Handel's operas communicate almost exclusively by singing, the characters they represent would say they were speaking with one another. But in some operas, Handel makes clear that the performers are engaging in real song -- "phenomenal" as opposed to "noumenal" song. "Rinaldo" offers two instances of explicitly phenomenal song in which the operatic characters appear to "charm" each other. Link will discuss how this process works in "Rinaldo."

For more information visit
http://international.uiowa.edu/centers/opera-studies/events/default.asp.

Human Rights Center to screen documentary about 'Sudan's Lost Boys' April 5

The UI Center for Human Rights will host a film screening of the documentary  "African Soul, American Heart" at 6 p.m. Sunday, April 5 in Room 2520-D of the University Capitol Centre.

"African Soul, American Heart" is a documentary of the journey of Joseph Akol Makeer. Makeer is a "Sudanese Lost Boy," or one of the estimated 27,000 boys who were displaced and/or orphaned during the Second Sudanese Civil War from 1983 to 2005. He now lives in the U.S. and dreams of helping the orphaned children who live in his village in South Sudan. The film details his struggles to balance the responsibilities of caring for his younger siblings and three children of his own with his dream of opening an orphanage. A discussion will follow the film.

The screening is free and open to the public. For more information on the film, see www.africansoulamericanheart.com.

For more information on this or other events hosted by the UICHR, call 319-335-3900 or visit http://international.uiowa.edu/centers/human-rights/.

UI hosts Slavic Bazaar at Robert A. Lee Community Recreation Center April 5

University of Iowa International Programs will host the annual Slavic Bazaar from 2 to 4:30 p.m. Sunday, April 5 at the Robert A. Lee Community Recreation Center, 220 S. Gilbert St. in Iowa City.

Attendees can sample authentic Slavic food and enjoy performances by the Czech Plus Band from Cedar Rapids. The bazaar will include displays from the National Czech and Slovak Museum and the Slavic collection of the UI Main Library. For a complete schedule visit http://international.uiowa.edu/centers/creees/.

For more information contact Heidi Vekemans at heidi-vekemans@uiowa.edu or 319-335-3862.

March 2009

Havens to discuss TV portrayals of African America life April 6

Tim Havens, a UI associate professor in communication studies and African American studies in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, will present “Black Television After Broadcasting: Globalization, Digitalization, and Portrayals of African American Life on Television” as part of the International Mondays lecture series. The presentation takes place from noon to 1 p.m. Monday, April 6, in Meeting Room A in the Iowa City Public Library.

Since television started, African American portrayals have been a hot political topic. Havens will explain that as television becomes a worldwide industry, international forces have increasingly shaped U.S. portrayals of African Americans. Simultaneously, the introduction of digital satellite channels, internet video distribution, and television over mobile devices have encouraged those portrayals.

The lecture is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.

For more information and a complete schedule of events visit http://international.uiowa.edu/outreach/community/international-mondays.asp or contact Amy Green, 319-335-1433, amy-green-1@uiowa.edu.

Annual Latin dance festival, Gusto Latino, to take place April 10

The University of Iowa International Crossroads Community will hold its annual Latin dance festival, Gusto Latino, from 7 p.m. to midnight Friday, April 10, in the second floor ballroom of the Iowa Memorial Union. Dance lessons will be offered from 7 to 8 p.m. and a dance contest will take place later that night. Live music will be provided by Orquesta de Jazz y Salsa Alto Maiz, an 11-piece Latin jazz dance band featuring local musicians.

This year's dance festival is being co-sponsored by the UI chapter of Engineers Without Borders. Proceeds from the event will help fund an EWB project to work with a health clinic in Las Mangas, Honduras.

For more information or for special accommodations to attend this event, contact Amy Green, 319-335-1433 or amy-green-1@uiowa.edu or visit http://international.uiowa.edu/outreach/about/news.asp.

King to speak on Iraq Education Initiative March 30

Scott King, director of the University of Iowa Office of International Students and Scholars in International Programs, will present "The Iraq Education Initiative: An Opportunity for Academic Leadership" as part of the International Mondays lecture series. The presentation takes place from noon to 1 p.m., Monday, March 30, in Meeting Room A of the Iowa City Public Library.

The UI was one of only 21 U.S. educational institutions that participated in recent forums in Baghdad and Sulymania that discussed an educational initiative to send thousands of Iraqi students overseas for study, as well as plans to rebuild the country's educational system. King will report on his trip, the goals of the initiative, and how the UI's involvement may impact the university and the state.

The lecture is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.

For more information and a complete schedule of events contact Amy Green, 319-335-1433, amy-green-1@uiowa.edu or visit http://international.uiowa.edu/outreach/community/international-mondays.asp.

Mandarin Chinese classes for families begin March 28

The Confucius Institute at the University of Iowa is offering family Mandarin Chinese classes for elementary students and their parents.

The Family Mandarin Chinese Classes are designed for pre-K through 6th grade students to attend with their parents. Family members will be introduced to Mandarin Chinese in a relaxed and fun atmosphere. Examples of topics include greetings, colors, counting, animals, food, clothing, the home and more. Art, music, dance and food will be incorporated into the learning.

Classes will take place on March 28; April 4, 11, 18 and 25; May 2 and 9 in 1117 University Capitol Centre in the Old Capitol Town Center in downtown Iowa City.

Section one classes take place from 2 to 3:30 p.m. for children pre-K through third grade and their parents. Section two classes take place from 10:30 a.m. to noon for children in fourth through sixth grade and their parents.

The enrollment fee is $60 for a family with one child and at least one parent. For each additional child, the enrollment fee increases by $18.

Enrollment forms are available at http://international.uiowa.edu/confucius/courses/family-language.asp.

For more information contact Rebecca Kessler, 319-335-0159 or at confucius@uiowa.edu.

Mandarin Chinese community classes begin week of March 23

The Confucius Institute at the University of Iowa is offering Beginning Mandarin Chinese community classes in the Quad Cities and Iowa City.

Classes begin in Bettendorf on Monday, March 23, at Rivermont Collegiate High School, 1821 Sunset Drive. Level one and two classes will meet from 6:30 to 8 p.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays through May 6.

Classes begin in Iowa City on Tuesday, March 24, on the University of Iowa campus, 1100 University Capitol Centre. Level one and two classes will meet from 7:15 to 8:45 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays through May 7. A new level three class will take place in Iowa City on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 5:30 to 7 p.m.

There is a $50 course fee, plus a materials fee of $30 for first-time enrollees. Level one classes are designed for adults and high school students without previous training in Mandarin Chinese. Junior high students may enroll if an adult who also enrolls accompanies them.

Enrollment forms are available at
http://international.uiowa.edu/confucius/courses/community-classes.asp

For more information contact Rebecca Kessler at 319-335-0159 or confucius@uiowa.edu.

UI alumna to discuss community-owned tourism in developing countries March 25

MaryGrace Weber, a 2008 UI graduate, will present "Travel for Change: Community Based Tourism in the Developing World" at a noon luncheon of the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council Wednesday, March 25, at the Congregational Church, 30 N. Clinton St. in Iowa City.

Weber founded Travel for Change, a nonprofit organization committed to helping communities in developing countries build community-owned ecotourism initiatives. Profits are then invested in development projects and micro businesses in the surrounding areas. Travel for Change is currently working on its first project in Tanzania, Africa.

Weber's talk is part of a series of events celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council.

Taste of China will cater the event. Reservations are $7.50 for council members and $8.50 for nonmembers. The deadline to register is noon Tuesday, March 24.

For more information call 319-335-0351 or visit http://international.uiowa.edu/outreach/community/icfrc/default.asp.

Akyea to discuss Cuban travels, Afro-Cuban dance March 23

Modei Akyea, an instructor in the UI College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Department of Dance, will present, "Cuban Travelogue: Shekeres at a Crossroad," as a part of the International Mondays lecture series. The presentation takes place from noon to 1 p.m. Monday, March 23, in Meeting Room A at the Iowa City Public Library.

The lecture is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.

Akyea will present his notes and observations on his reactions to the numerous layers of knowledge he encountered after short stays in Havana and Matanzas, Cuba, studying Afro-Cuban folkloric dance.

Akyea's talk will serve as a preview to Gusto Latino, UI's annual salsa dance festival sponsored by the International Crossroads Community. Gusto Latino will take place from 7 p.m. to midnight Friday, April 10, in the second floor ballroom of the Iowa Memorial Union.

For more information and a complete schedule of events contact Amy Green, 319-335-1433 or amy-green-1@uiowa.edu or visit http://international.uiowa.edu/outreach/community/international-mondays.asp.

Shah to discuss exploitation of foreign workers at March 5 luncheon

Shivali Shah, an immigration attorney, journalist and immigrants' rights activist, will present "Exploitation of Highly Skilled Foreign Workers in the U.S.: The H-1B Visa and the Modern Economy" at a noon luncheon of the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council Thursday, March 5, at the Congregational Church, 30 N. Clinton St. in Iowa City.

Shah was a founder of Kiran: Domestic Violence and Crisis Services for South Asians in North Carolina where she first starting working with battered wives of foreign workers during law school. Later she conducted a survey of 100 women on the H-4 dependent spouse visa and was instrumental in getting a provision into the Violence Against Women Act allowing battered dependent spouses work authorization. She has written extensively on the subject.

Shah's talk is part of a series of events celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council.

Mama's Deli will cater the event. Reservations are $7.50 for council members and $8.50 for nonmembers. The deadline to register is noon Wednesday, March 4.

For more information call 319-335-0351 or visit http://international.uiowa.edu/outreach/community/icfrc/default.asp.

Eko to discuss legal analysis of Internet law and policies March 9

Lyombe Eko, associate professor in the UI College of Liberal Arts and Sciences School of Journalism and Mass Communication, will present, "Many Spiders; One World Wide Web: Towards a Taxonomy of Internet Law and Regulation" as part of the International Mondays lecture series. The presentation takes places from noon to 1 p.m. Monday, March 9, in Meeting Room A at the Iowa City Public Library.

The lecture is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.

Eko will speak about a comparative legal analysis of issues of Internet law and policy at the national, supranational and international levels. The issues explored will include freedom of express and intellectual property.

For more information and a complete schedule of events visit http://international.uiowa.edu/outreach/community/international-mondays.asp or contact Amy Green, 319-335-1433 or amy-green-1@uiowa.edu.

Careers for Change lecture to feature Anne Fadiman March 9

Anne Fadiman, award-winning author, essayist, editor and professor, will present "The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: How Culture Complicates Medicine." The lecture will take place at 7:30 p.m. Monday, March 9, in Buchanan Auditorium, Room W10 in the Pappajohn Business Building on the University of Iowa campus, as part of the UI Center for Human Rights' Careers for Change speaker series.

Fadiman, a Yale University professor, will speak on her book, "The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down," which chronicles the trials of an epileptic Hmong child and her family living in Merced, Calif. Besides authoring books, Fadiman is also a Yale University English professor, and she formerly edited "The American Scholar" for seven years. Her essays and articles have appeared in Harper's Magazine, The New Yorker and The New York Times, among many other publications. Fadiman has won National Magazine Awards for both reporting and essays.

 

February 2009

Lillios to discuss archaeology in Portugal March 2

Katina Lillios, associate professor of anthropology in the UI College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, will present “The Archaeology of Social Collapse: A View from the Neolithic-Early Bronze Age Mortuary Site of Bolóres, Portugal” as a part of the International Mondays lecture series. The presentation takes place from noon to 1 p.m. Monday, March 2, in Meeting Room A of the Iowa City Public Library.

Though ancient societies naturally underwent social collapse, one particular cycle occurred between 3000 BC and 1500 BC during the Neolithic to Bronze Age transition of Portugal. Lillios has been directing the excavations at the Bolores burial site and will explain the results of the 2007 and 2008 season of fieldwork and discuss future research plans.
This lecture is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.

For a complete schedule of events visit http://international.uiowa.edu/outreach/community/international-mondays.asp or contact Amy Green, 319-335-1433, amy-green-1@uiowa.edu.

Careers for Change series, KRUI to feature UI alumna Feb. 24

University of Iowa alumna Adeyemi Oshodi will visit the University of Iowa Tuesday, Feb. 24 as part of the UI Center for Human Rights Careers for Change lecture series. Oshodi will speak live on KRUI from 2:30 to 3 p.m. She will also speak with interested students from 7 to 8 p.m. in Room 2520-D University Capitol Centre.

Oshodi is the director of anti-trafficking at World Hope International in Washington, D.C. She received a master's degree in Third World development support in 2003 from the UI.

Both events are free and open to the public. The lecture is co-sponsored by the UI College of Nursing, the UI Center for Human Rights, and the Center for Diversity and Enrichment.

For more information or broadcast times visit http://www.kruiradio.org/.

Immigration rights, detention focus of film screening and talk Feb. 22

The University of Iowa Center for Human Rights will screen "The Visitor" from 1 to 4 p.m., Sunday, Feb. 22 at the Englert Theatre in Iowa City. The event is free and open to the public. Doors open at 12:30 p.m.

"The Visitor," an Academy Award-nominated film, addresses two increasingly relevant issues to Iowa, immigrant rights and detention and will be followed by a panel discussion on local immigration issues, including worker rights and immigration raids.

Speaking on the panel are Angel González Irizarry, a labor educator at the UI Labor Center and vice chair for the Commission of Latino Affairs in Iowa; Kathryn Salazar, an immigration attorney practicing in Washington, Iowa, co-founder of Friends and Neighbors of Immigrants Coalition, and a member and former vice chair of the Iowa-Nebraska Chapter of American Immigration Lawyers Association; and Miryam Antúnez de Mayolo, an immigration and naturalization lawyer from Cedar Falls, with experience in issues such as asylum, family-based immigration, deportation defense and employment-based immigration.

For more information contact the UICHR at 319-335-3900 or uichr@uiowa.edu or visit http://www.uichr.org.

'Religion and Secularism in the Muslim World' topic of Feb. 17 luncheon

Adrien Wing, a UI professor in the College of Law, will present "Religion and Secularism in the Muslim World," at a noon luncheon of the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council Tuesday, Feb. 17, at Congregational Church, 30 N. Clinton St., in Iowa City.

Wing has lectured all around the world and has worked for organizations in South Africa, Palestine, and Rwanda. She also holds a myriad of positions including the UI Associate Dean for Faculty Development, Director of the summer abroad program in Arcachon, France, and Vice President of the American Society of International Law.

At the UI, Wing teaches international human rights and law in the Muslim world. Her international scholarship emphasizes South Africa and the Middle East, particularly Palestinian legal system.

Oasis Falafel will cater the event. Reservations are $7.50 for council members and $8.50 for nonmembers. The deadline to register is noon Friday, Feb. 13.

For more information call 319-335-0351 or visit http://international.uiowa.edu/outreach/community/icfrc/defautl.asp.

UI Center for Human Rights seeks applications for funded internship program

The University of Iowa Center for Human Rights is seeking applications for the Kenneth J. Cmiel Human Rights Funded Internship Program.

The Kenneth J. Cmiel Human Rights Funded Internship Program provides $3,000 to UI undergraduate and graduate or professional students to fund travel and living expenses associated with summer internships in organizations or agencies engaged in human rights advocacy, research, or education.

Students must remain enrolled in a degree program for the semester following their internship. The application deadline is 5 p.m. March 13. Application materials are available online at http://www.uichr.org under "Internships." UI Center for Human Rights staff can assist with the application process and help identify appropriate placements.

Submit application materials to the UI Center for Human Rights at 1120 University Capitol Centre or send via email to uichr@uiowa.edu.

For more information contact Amy Weismann at amy-weismann@uiowa.edu or 319-335-0483.

Eichstaedt to discuss child soldiers of Uganda at Feb. 13 luncheon

Peter Eichstaedt, Africa Editor for the Institute for War and Peace Reporting, will present "First Kill Your Family: Child Soldiers of Uganda and the Lord's Resistance" at a noon luncheon of the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council Friday, Feb. 13, at Congregational Church, 30 N. Clinton St., in Iowa City.

Eichstaedt has worked as a journalist and news media adviser in the Balkans, Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, Afghanistan and most recently Uganda, Democratic Republic of Congo and Sudan. His book is based on his experiences and research in Uganda during 2005 and 2006.

He has been a journalist, editor and author for more than 30 years and was a recipient of a Fulbright grant in journalism in 1998-99 in Slovenia and Moldova. Eichstaedt's talk is part of a series of events celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council.

Masala will cater the event. Reservations are $7.50 for council members and $8.50 for nonmembers. The deadline to register is noon Tuesday, Feb. 10.

For more information call 319-335-0351 or visit http://international.uiowa.edu/outreach/community/icfrc/default.asp.

Spring 2009 International Mondays series begins with Peace Corps discussion

Patricia Gillette, a returned Peace Corps volunteer in the Coast Province of Kenya, will present “Life in Mariakani Kenya” as part of the International Mondays lecture series. The presentation takes place from noon to 1 p.m. Monday, Feb. 23, in Meeting Room A of the Iowa City Public Library.

The discussion is the first International Mondays of the Spring 2009 semester and is part of National Peace Corps Week. Gillette, a retired executive from the health care industry, will introduce the culture of Kenya and share her experiences as a Peace Corps volunteer in Kenya from 2006 to 2008.

Peace Corps Week, which takes place Feb. 23 to March 2, is an opportunity for returned volunteers and their extended Peace Corps family to partake in promoting cross-cultural understanding, world peace, and friendship by shining a spotlight on the important work of volunteers around the world and the continuing service that returned volunteers bring to communities in the United States.

This lecture is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.

For more information visit http://international.uiowa.edu/outreach/community/international-mondays.asp or Contact: Amy Green, 319-335-1433 or amy-green-1@uiowa.edu.

A Message from IP Dean Thomas

International Programs has been asked, along with all offices and programs at The University of Iowa, to help confront the budget reductions that we are certain to face in the coming year. I will be working with the IP Executive Committee and with the staff leadership in our constituent units to determine ways to find savings while protecting the core academic mission and even advancing key areas that will benefit our students and affiliated faculty in the colleges. The conversation will continue in the coming weeks and months as the budget situation becomes clearer. In the meantime, if you have comments or suggestions, please do not hesitate to send them to me at downing-thomas@uiowa.edu.

Downing A. Thomas
Interim Associate Provost and Dean of International Programs

January 2009

Careers for Change lecture to feature Peter Eichstaedt Feb. 12

Peter Eichstaedt, Africa Editor for the Institute for War and Peace Reporting, will speak at the University of Iowa at 4 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 12, in Room 1117 of the University Capitol Centre, as part of the UI Center for Human Rights' Careers for Change speaker series.

Eichstaedt has worked as a journalist and news media adviser in the Balkans, Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, Afghanistan and most recently Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Sudan. His most recent book, "First Kill Your Family: Child Soldiers of Uganda and the Lord's Resistance Army," is based on his experiences and research during 2005 and 2006, when he lived and worked in Uganda. He has been a journalist, editor and author for more than 30 years and was a recipient of a Fulbright grant in journalism in 1998-99 in Slovenia and Moldova.

He is also the author of "If You Poison Us: Uranium and Native Americans," which revealed the health and environmental damage done by uranium mining on Navajo lands in the Southwest during the Cold War.

For more information or special accommodations to attend this talk, contact UICHR at 319-335-3900 or uichr@uiowa.edu.

CIVIC annual meeting, featuring postgraduate fellows, to take place Jan. 28

The Council for International Visitors to Iowa Cities will host its annual meeting from 5 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 28, in the International Commons, Room 1117 of the University Capitol Centre.

The meeting will include a social hour and board elections, as well as the announcement of the recipient of the CIVIC Citizen Award. Honored guests for the event are the five participants in a postgraduate fellowship program, the Junior Faculty Development Program, who are studying at the University of Iowa this spring. The five scholars are from Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Macedonia.

The event is free and open to the public. No RSVP is necessary.

For more information visit http://international.uiowa.edu/outreach/community/civic/events.asp.

UI Opera Studies Forum opens spring semester with 'Opera Cut Short' Jan. 30

The University of Iowa Opera Studies Forum, in collaboration with the Sound Research Seminar, will present a talk by Jennifer Fleeger from 3:30 to 5 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 30 in E105 Adler Journalism and Mass Communication Building.

Fleeger, a doctoral candidate in the UI Department of Cinema and Comparative Literature, will present "Opera Cut Short: From the Castrato to the Film Fragment."

Between 1926 and 1931, the Vitaphone Corporation, a subsidiary of Warner Bros., produced 65 operatic short films. With a maximum duration of 11 minutes, the films were excerpts from performances that never existed, generated for mass audiences that Vitaphone hoped would learn to appreciate high culture. This talk examines the visual style of the conversion-era opera short in relation to issues of gender and ethnicity by focusing on Marion Talley and Giovanni Martinelli, both singers with the Metropolitan Opera who signed early contracts with Vitaphone.

For more information visit http://international.uiowa.edu/centers/opera-studies/events/default.asp.

UI Center for Human Rights seeks submissions for essay contest by Feb. 2

The University of Iowa Center for Human Rights is seeking submissions for the Burns H. Weston International Human Rights Essay Prize Competition.

The essay prize is an annual award given to an undergraduate and graduate or professional student, respectively, for outstanding original scholarship on an international human rights topic. The winners receive $700 (undergraduate) or $1,000 (graduate), and are recognized at an awards event.

The competition is open to all currently enrolled UI, Iowa State and University of Northern Iowa students in all academic disciplines. Essays need not be written exclusively for competition. Eligible essays include papers previously written for class assignments. Undergraduate essays should be 15-20 pages in length; graduate essays 25-40 pages in length. The deadline for submission of essays for competition is 5 p.m., Feb. 2. Application materials are available online at http://www.uichr.org under the Education link.

Submit essays materials to the UI Center for Human Rights, 1120 University Capitol Centre, or send via e-mail to the UI Center for Human Rights at uichr@uiowa.edu.

For more information on either of these opportunities contact Amy Weismann at amy-weismann@uiowa.edu or 319-335-0483.

Silliman to discuss 'The Global Women's Movement Today' Jan. 17

Jael Silliman, a program officer with the Ford Foundation, will present "The Global Women's Movement Today: Opportunities and Challenges - A View from the Field" at a noon luncheon of the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council Saturday, Jan. 17, at Congregational Church, 30 N. Clinton St. in Iowa City.

Silliman is the program officer for women's rights and gender equity in the Human Rights Unit, Peace and Social Justice Program of the Ford Foundation. Immediately before that, she was the program officer for reproductive rights. Prior to joining the Ford Foundation she had been a tenured associate professor in the University of Iowa Women's Studies Department. She also served as a program officer at the Jessie Smith Noyes Foundation, where she developed that foundation's population and reproductive rights program in the U.S. and abroad. Silliman has spoken widely on issues of transnational feminist movements, population and reproductive rights, women of color organizing, and environmental justice concerns.

Mama's Deli will cater the event. Reservations are $7.50 for council members and $8.50 for nonmembers. The deadline to register is noon Wednesday, Jan 14. For more information see http://international.uiowa.edu/outreach/community/icfrc/events.asp or call 319-335-0351.

In memory of James Pusack

Jim Pusack made fundamental and indelible contributions to international learning at the University of Iowa. He was one of the small handful of faculty members who, in the early 1980s, convinced the University's leadership to commit itself organizationally and financially to the study of other countries, other cultures and global trends. Throughout the subsequent quarter of a century, he made the University's international efforts broader and better with his innovative thinking and his generous involvement in work to build programs and attain funds for them even though such work receives relatively little from the University's reward structures. A cornerstone of the University's overall strength in international education has been its ability to attract Title VI funding from the U.S. Department of Education. These multi-year grants require a complicated proposal that takes many months to write and secure University approval for, but they bring hundreds of thousands of dollars to campus for student fellowships and richer international course offerings. Pusack helped put together Iowa's first successful proposal in the mid-1980s, was principal investigator on another in the early 1990s and co-wrote two more in the 2000s.

Within his own area of expertise, Pusack's program-building legacy is equally impressive. In the early 1980s, he set up the Project for International Communication Studies and secured a series of large external grants over the next decade to support its work. Throughout the 1990s, he was co-principal investigator for another series of grants that supported multimedia language-learning centers at Iowa and other research universities. In the late 1990s, he helped initiate the interdisciplinary FLARE program, which supervises Iowa's Ph.D. program in Second-Language Acquisition. After FLARE's establishment, he remained one of its leaders and an active mentor for its doctoral students. In the early 2000s, he secured University funding that, together with federal support, allowed regular course offerings in Arabic. The same federal funding, one of the Title VI grants he co-authored, allowed him to initiate the Autonomous Language Learning Network (ALLNet). ALLNet was his response to students' increasing calls for the opportunity to learn so-called less commonly taught languages.

ALLNet takes advantage of the University's strength in second-language acquisition research to guide motivated students who are willing to learn on their own, without classroom instruction but with ALLNet providing pedagogically sound materials and help from a native speaking tutor. Pusack was the primary faculty supervisor of the ALLNet program from its start in 2003, ensuring the quality of its operation and winning University support for it. More recently, he turned to expanding the University's classroom offerings of less commonly taught languages in a novel way. He saw the potential in a U.S. State Department program, the Fulbright Foreign-Language Teaching Assistant (FLTA) Program, which brings native speaking instructors to U.S. campuses from a variety of countries to teach about their languages and cultures. But he realized that these instructors should receive instruction in American classroom practices and in second-language acquisition pedagogy if the students were to do well. He developed and secured approval for a model in which the FLTA participants receive instruction in the fall semester then teach their language intensively in the spring semester. He applied successfully to the State Department in each of the last three years for teachers of Turkish, Indonesian and Arabic.

These varied accomplishments are due to Pusack's rare melding of creativity with skill at bureaucratic advocacy. He demonstrated his commitment to better international learning for Iowa students by continually thinking of how to improve instruction and of new ways to build institutional support. In the face of barriers, he became neither obstinate nor disengaged. His accomplishments also indicate how well he got along with others. Other creative people were eager to collaborate with him, and there was no question that he would more than pull his weight in a group project. Naturally, administrators called on his service as often as they could get away with it and he seldom refused.

From 1991-1994, he directed the Center for International and Comparative Studies, which at that time oversaw the University's area studies and global programs. From the mid-1990s on, four successive associate provosts for international programs have relied on Pusack to share his insights and help with matters big and small. In addition to preparing the Title VI grants noted above, he also served on the Study Abroad Committee for three years, was on the advisory committee for the international learning community in the residence halls for three years and then helped write a review of it, supervised the senior projects of several International Studies majors, and was a member of the search committee for IP's accountant. The University of Iowa and three decades of its students are hugely in Pusack's debt.

--William Reisinger, former Associate Provost and Dean of IP

http://www.uiowa.edu/~flaregra/InMemoriamPusack.html