Center2008 for East Asian Studies University of Kansas | 2008 Annual Report Letter from the Director was a year of intense China (Ret.) Joseph Babb, Instructor, Command celebration of this major milestone. 2008 watching as the world and General Staff College; and moderated Megan Greene, Associate Professor of counted down to the opening of the by Arienne Dwyer (Anthropology). History, will take the helm of the Center Olympic Games in Beijing. For CEAS, the “Olympic Spotlight on Tibet” combined a on January 1, 2009. I speak for the 2008 Olympics provided an exceptional film screening with a panel discussion by entire membership and staff of CEAS in opportunity to engage the community three members of the KU faculty (page 3). welcoming Megan and saying how much in events and dialogues about East Asia. Amid the special events, regular we look forward to working with her as The centerpiece was “Olympian Desires: programs continued, with a full roster of she charts the course for the Center’s Building Bodies and Nations in East “Tea & Talk” presentations by KU faculty future. Asia,” an international conference that and visitors. And as always, we punctuated explored the political, economic, and the year with festivals. CEAS greeted the —Marsha Haufler cultural impact of the Olympic Games Year of the Rat in early February with a Acting Director on East Asian host nations (page 7). The cheerfully noisy party featuring dumplings Beijing Olympics also inspired a CEAS and a martial arts theme to kickoff the film series on sports in Asia, a summer Olympic year. We welcomed new faculty CEAS Staff book discussion group focused on Beijing and students at the fall CEAS potluck (organized by CEAS community outreach held at the old Lawrence train station, Acting Director coordinator Leslie vonHolten with the where we surprised Bill Tsutsui with the Marsha Haufler Lawrence Public Library), and radio CEAS Staff Appreciation Award. Our spots on contemporary China written and second annual Mid-Autumn Festival was Associate Director presented on Kansas Public Radio by an elegant garden party with music by the Megan Greene Megan Greene (History), John Kennedy Kansas City Chinese Musical Ensemble, (Political Science), Marsha Haufler (Art ancient and new moon poems, tea and Accountant and Office Manager History), and Richard Schrock (Biological moon cakes, and a spectacular appearance Jun Fu Sciences, Emporia State University). by the guest of honor, the full moon. CEAS also presented two special Cultural events like the Lunar New CEAS K–12 Outreach Coordinator; programs in response to issues in the Year’s party and Mid-Autumn Festival KCTA and KCIES Outreach news. “More at Stake than the Olympics: are entirely supported by donations from Coordinator Power and Influence between China and Friends of CEAS. We are profoundly Randi Hacker Post-Soviet Central Asia” featured a talk grateful to the generous individuals who by Professor Morris Rossabi of Columbia make it possible for CEAS to continue CEAS Post-Secondary, Community, University, and a panel discussion with to offer these very successful outreach and Media Outreach Coordinator Rossabi; Brigadier General Mark E. programs. Leslie vonHolten O’Neill, Deputy Commandant, U.S. Army 2009 will be the 50th anniversary of Command and General Staff College, Ft. CEAS, and fittingly, a new director will Associate Program Staff Leavenworth; Lieutenant Colonel come on board in time to launch the Executive Director, The Confucius Institute at the University of Eurasian Security Symposium Kansas Sheree Welch Willis Associate Director for Education, KU Confucius Institute; Associate Director, KCTA Nancy Hope Center for East Asian Studies The University of Kansas 1440 Jayhawk Blvd. #201 Lawrence, KS 66045 Tel: (785)864-3849 Fax: (785)864-5034 E-mail: [email protected] Web site: www.ceas.ku.edu In May, KU Anthropology Associate Professor Arienne Dwyer moderated a panel discussion focusing on CEAS publishes electronic and geopolitics between China and Post-Soviet Central Asia. printed newsletters that provide up- Panelists were Lt. Col. (Retired) Joseph G.D. “Geoff” Babb to-date information on CEAS events and Brigadier General Mark E. O’Neill of the U.S. Army and news. To sign up, please contact Leslie vonHolten at [email protected], Command & General Staff College, Ft. Leavenworth, and (785) 864-1457. Prof. Morris Rossabi of the City University of New York. Tibetan Cultural Exchange EAS faculty members will partner with the Mayul Gesar Foundation, a charity run Cby Tibetans in Qinghai, China, to develop an arts curriculum at a newly founded Tibet in the Curriculum school for the local Tibetan population. The Mayul Gesar Foundation and its American branch, the Blue Valley Foundation, Tibetan studies are growing at KU, with founded the Mayul Multi-Disciplinary Technical School in 2008 to preserve Tibetan Tibetan language taught on two levels culture and help diversify the local economy. The U.S. State Department’s Ngwang by Ven. Champa Tenzin Lhunpo; Eric Choepal Fellowship Program will allow CEAS faculty to take part in this 2-year, Rath’s HIST 603: History of Tibet; and $215,000 cultural exchange program. Deborah Peterson’s EALC 331: Tibetan Eric C. Rath, Associate Professor of History; Yoonmi Nam, Associate Professor of Oral Literature, is being introduced in Art; Sooa Im, graduate student in Art History; and Champa Tenzin Lhunpo, lecturer spring 2009. in the Department of East Asian Languages & Cultures, will take part in the program. During their residence in Qinghai in 2009 and 2010, they will work with the staff of the Mayul school to survey traditional Tibetan arts and crafts. Their goal will be to better Recent Events promote and preserve the rich cultural history of the Golok region and to advise and May 5: Political tensions between assist the school staff in developing a modern educational curriculum, particularly in the Tibetans and Chinese officials inspired area of the traditional arts. The group also hopes to enhance and modernize art training. KU History Associate Professor Eric The goal is to provide important vocational skills for the young Tibetan students so Rath to organize “Olympic Spotlight they will have the opportunity to become financially independent working professionals on Tibet,” a panel discussion with KU in the local community. History Associate Professor Yang Lu “Hopefully my experience as an artist and teacher with a diverse cultural background and Tibetan language instructor Ven. will be of help in assisting the Tibetan teachers in developing a modern art curriculum Champa Tenzin Lhunpo. for their students without imposing our ways of education on them,” said Nam. “I want to find a good balance that could include positive aspects of education from both our cultures.” The grant from the Ngwang Choepal Fellowship also will allow five Tibetan students from the Mayul school to study at KU in the spring of 2010. They will take courses in English As a Second Language and in areas related to their needs and interests, such as fine arts, business, or education. CEAS faculty participating in the project have formed a study group to survey the culture and history of the region. This group will continue to meet through the duration of the project, serving as a forum and link between the Mayul school and KU in the future. Future plans for collaboration include the development of a web site to promote and exhibit works from the Mayul school, a traveling exhibition to introduce Western August 28: Tibetan artist Gonkar audiences to Tibetan culture from Golok, and the establishment of a service-learning Gyatso spoke about the evolution of program at the Mayul school for KU students. For updates and more information, visit his work in a series of lectures and the Mayul School Project blog at http://mayulschool.wordpress.com/. receptions in conjunction with the Spencer Museum of Art and the H&R Block Artspace of Kansas City. November 20: Lecture by Hungkar Lunch with Hungkar Dorje Rinpoche (seated, center), president of the Dorje Rinpoche, president of the Mayul Mayul Gesar Foundation. Left to right: Deborah Peterson (EALC), KU student Tashitso, Marsha Haufler (CEAS, Art History), KU student Bianba Gesar Foundation and abbot of the Ciren, Eric Rath (History), KU student Sooa Im, Yoonmi Nam (Art & Thubten Chokorling Monastery. Design), Bruce Nelson, and Peter Allen Roberts. Our Faculty Faculty and Staff Awards CEAS Advisory Committee Awards Promotions The CEAS Faculty Service Amy McNair (Art History) Award was given to Bill Full professor Tsutsui (Associate Dean of International Studies, Yong Bai (Civil, Environmental, & Architectural CLAS) for his contributions Engineering) to the Center, including Associate professor with tenure co-organizing with Michael Baskett April’s international Arienne Dwyer (Anthropology) conference, Olympian Dreams: Associate professor with tenure Building Bodies and Nations in East Asia. Megan Greene (History) Associate professor with tenure Research Travel Grants were awarded to Sanae Eda Thomas Huang (Design) (EALC), Sherry Fowler (Art History), Jie Han (Civil, Associate professor with tenure Environmental, & Architectural Engineering), Thomas Huang (Fine Arts), Yi Jin (Economics), Maki Kaneko Jie Han (Civil, Environmental, & Architectural (Art History), Pok Chi Lau (Fine Arts), Yoonmi Nam Engineering) (Fine Arts), Akiko Takeyama (Anthropology), and Associate professor with tenure Yanbing Zhang (Communications). Bill Tsutsui (History) Course Development Grants were awarded