American students/Russian racism

Tue Sep 27 16:11:55 UTC 2011

Seelangtsy,

Many thanks to all who replied both on- and off-list to my query!

Best,
DB

-- 
David Borgmeyer, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Center for International Studies
Saint Louis University

> Date: Thu, 22 Sep 2011 15:38:00 -0400
> From: eric.dennis.christensen at GMAIL.COM
> Subject: Re: [SEELANGS] American students/Russian racism
> To: SEELANGS at bama.ua.edu
> 
> Thank you for raising this question about the Critical Language
> Scholarship (CLS) Program on behalf of your student.
> 
> American Councils for International Education
> (http://www.americancouncils.org) has administered the CLS institutes
> in Russia, as well as Turkey, Azerbaijan, China, South Korea, Japan,
> and Indonesia, since 2009.
> 
> Recruiting a diverse applicant pool is mission-critical for the CLS
> Program. “Diversity” is considered  broadly and includes, but is not
> limited to academic discipline, rural/urban background, geographic
> location, career goals, institutional type (e.g. community colleges,
> small liberal arts colleges, minority-serving institutions, large
> universities, etc), racial or ethnic background, gender,
> socio-economic status, or unique personal qualities or experiences.
> 
> American Councils discusses a range of topics for students traveling
> to Russia, including basic health and safety, racial attitudes,
> friendship and romantic relations, sexual orientation, and religious
> affiliations in the pre-departure program materials and during the
> orientation sessions in Washington, DC and the host city.
> 
> In addition, each CLS institute has a dedicated on-site staff, which
> includes a Resident Director and local program personnel. The Resident
> Director is on call around the clock to respond to any crises or
> emergencies that may arise, and to assist students as they adjust to
> the host environment.
> 
> Prospective students and faculty are encouraged to visit the CLS
> website (www.clscholarship.org) for more information on the program
> and individual CLS institutes. The application process is administered
> by the Council of American Overseas Research Centers (CAORC), and
> questions regarding the application can be directed to cls at caorc.org.
> 
> We also encourage students to take advantage of the resources on
> ExchangesConnect, an international online community managed by the
> U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational & Cultural Affairs.
> On this site, alumni have started discussion board topics addressing a
> variety of issues of interest to potential applicants, including race,
> gender, religious affiliation and sexual orientation for students
> interested in applying to the CLS program. The link to this website is
> http://connect.state.gov/group/cls.
> 
> Sincerely,
> 
> Eric Christensen
> 
> echristensen at americancouncils.org
> 
> Program Officer, Critical Language Scholarship Program
> American Councils for International Education: ACTR/ACCELS
> 1828 L St NW, Suite 1200
> Washington, D.C. 20036
> 
> Phone: (202) 833-7522
> Fax: (202) 833-7523
> 
> 
> On Thu, Sep 22, 2011 at 5:16 AM, anne marie devlin
> <anne_mariedevlin at hotmail.com> wrote:
> > David,
> > Out of the many identity issues facing students living in another culture (be they American or not), race and gender seem to be the most salient.  From what I have witnessed, racism (and sexism) exists at a low but constant level.  Direct attacks or extreme threats are very rare.  Students, especially females, often feel under threat due to a difference in subject positioning.
> >  It might be an idea to get your students to read Pellegrino Aveni's book Study Abroad and Second language Use. Constructing the Self.  It's an analysis of ethnographic material - diaries, interviews etc - taken from students in a study abroad programme in Russia.  It gives excellent insight into the difficulties they may experience in expressing their identity.  I can't remember if racism is dealt with in particular, but I think it will be interesting reading nontheless.
> > AM
> >
> >
> >> Date: Wed, 21 Sep 2011 22:56:40 -0500
> >> From: dmborgmeyer at HOTMAIL.COM
> >> Subject: [SEELANGS] American students/Russian racism
> >> To: SEELANGS at bama.ua.edu
> >>
> >> Dorogie kollegi,
> >>
> >>
> >> I know that periodically the
> >> topic of racism and American students studying in Russia has been raised on SEELANGS,
> >> and I don’t want to revisit the whole topic with my question. However, I have a nontraditional African-American
> >> student who is interested in studying in Russia through the Critical
> >> Language Study scholarship program in Ufa, Vladimir, or Kazan. She isn’t concerned about 'petty' racism as
> >> much as potential threats to her personal safety. Does anyone on the list have recent information, anecdotal or otherwise,
> >> about African-American students’ experiences and/or racially-motivated violence
> >> in these places or with this program?
> >> Thanks in advance!
> >>
> >>
> >> Regards,
> >>
> >>
> >> DB
> >>
> >>
> >> *******
> >>
> >> David
> >> Borgmeyer, Ph.D.
> >>
> >> Assistant
> >> Professor
> >>
> >> Center for
> >> International Studies
> >>
> >> Saint Louis
> >> University
> >>
> >> dborgmey at slu.edu
> >>
> >>
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