Help for U. of Connecticut Russian program

[George Fowler]

Greetings!

I've been asked to distribute this appeal for support; if you respond,
please write to Nadya Peterson at the address below.
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From: nlpeters at uconnvm.uconn.edu (Nadya Peterson)
Subject: HELP!!

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

The Russian program at the University of Connecticut is being eliminated.
Please do not let that happen.

I am sending you a digest of my letter to the Dean and the Provost;
please send your own e-mail on this subject to: Dean Ross MacKinnon,
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, U. of Conn., Storrs CT (E-MAIL:
MACKINN at UCONNVM.UCONN.EDU)
also to Chancellor Mark Emmert, U. of Conn. (E-MAIL:
MARK at CHANCELLOR.VPA.UCONN.EDU); also to Chairman of the Dept. of Modern and
Classical Languages David Herzberger (E-MAIL: HERZBERG at UCONNVM.UCONN.EDU);

I wrote:

        On the eve of Mikhail Gorabchev's visit to the Univeristy of
>Connecticut the administration has chosen not to fund any full-time
>positions in Russian, in effect eliminating the RUssian program
> at this University.
>
>         The decision to kill a program that has for years faithfully
>served a number of distinguished departments and programs is taken at the
>moment when the entire academic community is being persuaded of the
>Univeristy of Connecticut's commitment ot excellence in teaching,
>scholarship and of its openness to the outside world. The absence of
>professionally trained, experienced, full-time faculty in the RUssian
>section will have a ripple effect on the entire University, adversely
>affecting many programs that rely on the Russian section for preparing
>their students.
>
>
>         The department of Modern and Classical Languages now offers a full
> undergraduate degree in Russian with courses in Business Russian,
> translation, literature, and culture.  The Russian program participates in
> an innovative instructional project, Linkage Through Language, which
> combines the study of Russian with course work in other disciplines.  The
> Center for European Studies, an interdisciplinary program with strong ties
> to the Russian section of the department, offers a Masters Degree in
> related fields.

> To maintain the U.'s fiscal stability at the expense of a small program
>that is vital to the success of the U.'s curriculum in the humanities is
>
> extremely short-sighted and, for a state institution of this U.'s stature
> and academic importance, simply embarrassing.
>____________________________________________

Thank you very much for your help.

Nadya Peterson (NLPETERS at UCONNVM.UCONN.EDU)