Initiatives and Events listed below are the product of single WIRC-member units or smaller collaborations, covering fewer world regions within a single program or event. Although more limited in terms of global reach, these programs provide opportunities for focused engagement.
These cultural kits are available on loan, free of charge, to educators and community organizations for classroom or event use. Click on the links below to explore the offerings from WIRC Members! Please make requests directly with the Outreach Coordinator for the sponsoring center.
Applications for the 2023-2024 Engaging Eurasia Teacher Fellowship Are Now Open!
The Engaging Eurasia Teacher Fellowship provides select high school and community college educators the opportunity to spend one academic year undertaking an in-depth study of the people, histories, cultures and current events of Eurasia. Fellows participate in monthly webinars with experts in Eurasian studies as well as an in-person workshop at one of the partnering universities, develop curricula for classroom application, and benefit from being a part of a diverse learning community.
The fellowship theme changes annually; the theme for the 2023-2024 program year is An Exploration of Central Asia. Previous themes include conflict in Everyday Life in the Soviet Union, Post-Soviet Eurasia and the art and culture of Eurasia.
2023-2024 Fellowship Details
This year’s fellowship theme, “An Exploration of Central Asia,” will allow participants to take a deep dive into the history, environment, politics, and culture of Central Asian states and peoples. This year-long study will take a multidisciplinary approach to understanding Central Asian cultures and history, what unites the region, and what distinguishes its peoples, environment, and politics from its surroundings. Fellows will consider novels, poetry, art, film and other media from Central Asian writers, artists, and auteurs which shaped pre-Soviet and Soviet Central Asian identities and which continue to inform postcolonial Central Asian culture and politics. Fellows will also be asked to challenge their own assumptions and expectations about Central Asia, and evaluate how they meet reality.
Over the 9-month fellowship, fellows will participate in 8 content webinars, hearing from scholars with expertise on the fellowship topic. Each fellow is expected to complete a final project–either curriculum development or a literature review on a question that develops during the course of the fellowship.
How to Apply
You can apply for the 2023-2024 fellowship here. The deadline for applications is April 30.
Program Sponsors
This fellowship is a collaboration between the Center for Russia, East Europe, and Central Asia at UW-Madison, the Davis Center at Harvard University, the Center for Slavic, East European and Eurasian Studies at the Ohio State University, and the Center for Russia and East European Studies at the University of Pittsburgh. It is funded through a Title VI/National Resource Center Grant from the U.S. Department of Education.
9 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. on February 4, 2023 (Ingraham Hall)
A professional development workshop for Wisconsin teachers, organized by the Center for Russia, East Europe, and Central Asia, and the Center for European Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
This 1-day teacher training workshop will address the subject of colonial famine and memory, focusing on the two examples of the Great Hunger (An Gorta Mór) in Ireland (1845-51) and the Holodomor in Ukraine (1932-33). Participants will learn about the history of each event, and their lasting impact on life, culture, and politics in the respective regions today. Workshop participants will receive a reader, visual media resources, and a certificate of completion with contact hours. The workshop will also incorporate synthesizing activities, which can be used in the classroom.
“Colonial Famine and Historical Memory” should be of interest to teachers in a wide range of subjects, such as social studies, history, geography, politics, communication, and language arts. We encourage participation by teachers in other fields, as well as librarians, administrators, and pre-service teachers. The workshop content will be most relevant to teachers of 6th-14th grades, but all Wisconsin K-14 teachers are welcome.
For more information about this workshop, and to register, please see the event page.
[PASSED] Fall 2022 Workshop: The South and Southeast Asian Refugee Experience in Wisconsin
November 19, 2022, 8:30 AM-4:30 PM
A Curriculum Development Workshop for Community College and K-14 Educators
Register here for the workshop.
This workshop is designed for current K-14 educators who are seeking ways to incorporate discussions and material on refugee experiences in their classes. As part of Madison College’s new Hmong Studies Initiative, our featured speakers will focus primarily on Hmong experiences and comparable experiences from Afghan and Vietnamese perspectives.
Presentations will offer educators a variety of ideas and concepts for easy mapping and adaptation across a variety of subjects. Topics will include reading and writing memoirs in addition to accounts of Hmong, Vietnamese, and Afghan refugee experiences. Educators will have the opportunity to participate in breakout discussions throughout the day to exchange ideas and develop lessons.
Featured speakers:
- Chong Moua (Lecturer in Asian American Studies and PhD Student at UW-Madison)
- Stephanie Taylor (Refugee Wellness Coordinator, Jewish Social Services of Madison)
- Muhammad Din Hajizada (Case Aide, Jewish Social Services of Madison)
- Mai Elliott (Pulitzer Prize Nominee, Author of The Sacred Willow: Four Generations in the Life of a Vietnamese Family, Consultant for the Ken Burns documentary The Vietnam War)
- Mai Neng Vang (Doctoral Candidate in Educational Policy Studies at UW-Madison)
- Tou SaiK Lee (Poet, Hip Hop Artist, and Master’s Student at UW-Madison)
Resources from the workshop will be posted here at a later date.
For more information on this event, please contact Mary McCoy at mccoy2@wisc.edu or Andrea Fowler at assistantdirector@southasia.wisc.edu.
Sponsored by: Madison College Center for International Education and UW-Madison’s Center for Southeast Asian Studies, Center for South Asia, and Asian American Studies Program.
[PASSED] Environmental Crisis, Development, and Human Rights in South Asia: Past and Present – An online workshop for educators seeking new ways of addressing the climate crisis. Sponsored by the Center for South Asia
Supporting materials will be provided for all attendees.
Featured speakers include:
Deepa Badrinarayana (Professor, Dale E. Fowler School of Law, Chapman University)
Shobhana Chelliah (Distinguished Professor of Linguistics and Associate Dean of Research and Advancement at the College of Information, University of North Texas)
Thomas Crowley (PhD Candidate in Geography, Rutgers University and author of Fractured Forest, Quartzite City: A History of Delhi and Its Ridge)