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First Center For Belarusian Studies in the United StatesOn July 11, 2006, Southwestern College announced the establishment of the Center for Belarusian Studies at the college's main campus in Winfield, Kansas. The Center is the first in the United States devoted exclusively to the academic study of Belarus and Belarusians. The Center is a joint endeavor between the College and The European Humanities University Foundation, Inc., the latter terminating its activities with the creation of the new entity.Establishment of the Center followed a lengthy process of research and consultations the United States, Belarus, and elsewhere - both by the College and by the EHU Foundation. This effort resulted in the conclusion that a significant gap exists in academia in the United States with regard to perhaps the least well-known, but no less significant, member of the East Slavic branch of the Slavic group of nations, languages, and cultures (the other two being Ukraine and Russia). It also concluded that the academic study of Belarus would suffer through incorporation into broader Slavonic studies programs at larger U.S. institutions of higher education. The fundamental mission of the Center is to promote and facilitate the revival of the Belarus nation through higher education. Revival of the Belarus nation includes developing a better knowledge of Belarus - its history; culture; language; literature; economic, social and political structures; etc.- in the United States. Thus, the Center envisages developing a broad palate of academic initiatives, including but not limited to: exchanges of scholars and students; research; publishing scholarly works; offering courses in the Belarusian language, history, culture, and related topics; and holding seminars on topical subjects, such as ethnography, trade, and tourism. The College also anticipates hosting Belarusian performing arts groups, organizing exhibitions, and developing public awareness about Belarus in the United States. The Center extends its desire to cooperate with relevant, carefully selected institutions and organizations in pursuit of its mission. Many of these, it is hoped, will be in Belarus itself, where establishment of the Center has already been widely publicized via a number of media outlets. Current realities in Belarus necessitate caution in evaluating potential cooperative partners, but Center personnel are encouraged both by the breadth and depth of interest expressed from there in the few short weeks since the Center's creation was publicly announced. Outside of Belarus, the most obvious partner for collaborative work with the Center would be the Vilnius-based European Humanities University-International, which was forcibly closed in Minsk in 2004. Additionally, the Center will seek cooperation with relevant institutions in other countries where scholarly research on Belarus is also taking place. A formal opening ceremony for the Center is planned for later this autumn in Winfield. Details will be announced as they become available. In the meantime, Southwestern's Vice President for Academic Affairs, Dr. J. Andrew Sheppard, and the EHU Foundation's president, Ambassador David H. Swartz, are serving as co-Executive Directors of the Center. Swartz served as first U.S. ambassador to the newly-independent Republic of Belarus, beginning in 1992. Dr. Paula Survilla, Associate Professor of Music/Ethnomusicology at Wartburg College in Iowa - the leading scholar in the United States on contemporary Belarusian culture - has graciously agreed to serve as Associate Executive Director of the Center. A board of directors broadly representative of the Belarusian diaspora in the United States, academia, and the public and private sectors is currently being assembled and will be announced in due course. Southwestern College is a highly regarded private liberal arts institution. Established in 1885 by the then-Methodist Episcopal Church, Southwestern retains its close association with the United Methodist Church. It prides itself on graduating students of high integrity and deep commitment to public service and societal improvement. In addition to a wide variety of undergraduate majors leading to B.A. and B.S. degrees, the college also offers an MBA degree program at its campuses in Wichita and Oklahoma City, as well as Master of Education and Master of Science in Leadership programs at its Winfield campus. Southwestern's mission statement stresses the College's commitment to leadership through service in a world without boundaries. International programs have been high on the College's agenda for years, and each year it enrolls students from many countries in its degree programs. With the advent of the high-tech era, Southwestern routinely conducts real-time courses via the Internet with students around the world. Its Belarus outreach began several years ago with a book donation program for the benefit of the European Humanities University in Minsk. Two students from Belarus have graduated from the college and, as noted below, Southwestern has cooperated with the EHU Foundation on academic exchanges. The European Humanities University Foundation, Inc., established in 1996 by newly retired Ambassador Swartz and several colleagues, provided support to the university of the same name in Belarus. When EHU in Minsk was forced to close in 2004 the Foundation terminated its support activities. In 2005, the Foundation began a cooperative program with Southwestern to bring to the United States Belarusian academics formerly associated with EHU. The first of these, Dr. Alyaksandr Lahviniec, was in residence at Southwestern's Winfield campus in 2005. David Swartz was the first US ambassador to Belarus. He was instrumental in helping to establish the European Humanities University in Minsk. This article appeared in Belarusian Review, Vol. 18, No. 3 --------------------------------------------- Copyright 2006 Belarusian Review All rights reserved. belarusianreview@hotmail.com David Swartz
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