Application deadline: April 15 3rd International Summer Institute of Belarusian Studies Hajnówka, Poland July 6-August 3, 2014 Dr. Maria Paula Survilla, Executive Director of the Center for Belarusian Studies at Southwestern College (Winfield, KS) invites undergraduate and graduate students to participate in the Center’s 3rd International Summer Institute of Belarusian Studies from July 6 to August 3, 2014. The program, co-sponsored by the Belarusian Historical Society (Białystok, Poland), will be held at the Belarusian Cultural Center and Belarusian Lyceum in the town of Hajnówka, located in the Podlasie region of northeastern Poland, an area of great natural beauty and home to Poland’s sizable ethnic Belarusian population —an ideal setting for the study of Belarusian language, history, society, and culture, as well as for the study of a broad range of issues relating to cultural diversity and minorities policies in the EU. Ambassador (retired) David H. Swartz will serve as the Summer School’s Program Director. Amb. Swartz was the first U.S. ambassador to Belarus. His career also included service as Dean of the School of Language Studies at the U.S. Department of State. PROGRAM Coursework will include intensive Belarusian language instruction (beginning and intermediate levels and individual advanced-level tutorials) and lectures in English and Belarusian on Belarusian history, literature, contemporary politics and society. The program will also include a regional studies component, with lectures and events focusing on the history, culture and current status of the Belarusian minority in Poland, as well as of the Podlasie region’s other ethnic groups, including Poles, Jews, Tatars, Lithuanians, and Russian Old Believers. FACULTY The Summer Institute faculty will include instructors from Białystok University and the Belarusian Lyceum in Hajnówka, as well as visiting instructors from a number of Belarusian universities. Additional guest lectures on Belarusian history, politics, society and culture will be given by leading researchers in the field of Belarusian studies from Europe and North America. ACCOMMODATIONS Participants will have a choice of hotel accommodations or homestays with Belarusian-speaking families in Hajnówka. CULTURAL PROGRAM Coursework will be supplemented by a rich and diverse cultural program, including visits to local Belarusian cultural organizations and media outlets, meetings with visiting Belarusian writers and artists, films, concerts, and excursions to important sites related to Belarusian culture and the other cultures of the Podlasie region: the city of Białystok, the recently restored Orthodox monastery and Museum of Icons in Supraśl, the Białowieża (Biełavieža) National Park (the largest and ecologically most diverse remnant of the primeval forests of the Northern European plain), the historic town of Bielsk Podlaski, the Holy Mountain of Grabarka (the most important Eastern Orthodox pilgrimage site in Poland), the 17th-century Great Synagogue in Tykocin, the Tatar mosque in Kruszyniany, and the Borderland Center in Sejny, a unique institution dedicated to preserving the rich multicultural heritage of the borderland region and promoting dialogue and mutual understanding between its many ethnic groups and cultures. In mid-July students will also have the opportunity to attend Basovišča, the annual festival of Belarusian rock music organized by the Belarusian Students’ Association in the town of Gródek (Haradok) east of Białystok. OPTIONAL TOUR OF BELARUS AND LITHUANIA At the end of the program, from August 7-19, students will have the option of traveling to Belarus on a guided tour including Hrodna, Słonim, Navahrudak, Mir, Niaśviž, Minsk, Połack, Viciebsk, Mahiloŭ, Pinsk and Brest. The trip will end with a visit to the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, including important sites related to the history of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the modern Belarusian national movement. PROGRAM FEES The program cost is $4200. This covers: · 4 hours of graduate credit in Belarusian language/area studies; · Room and board at the Hajnówka site (homestay or hotel accommodations); · On-site expenses for program-related excursions. Financial aid may be available based on demonstrated need. Travel expenses from/to the U.S. to Hajnówka are additional. The cost of the optional tour of Belarus and eastern Lithuania at the end of the program will be announced as details become available. Application Deadline: April 15, 2014 CONTACTS For further information and application materials, please visit the CBS website (belarusiancenter.org/?page_id=455) or contact the Program Director, Amb. David Swartz ([email protected]) and/or Associate Program Director, Dr. Curt Woolhiser (Brandeis University):[email protected].
Posted on: Wed, 26 Mar 2014 01:08:36 +0000
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