Volume II | February 3, 2021
The quarterly College of International Studies newsletter is your source for CIS updates and stories, events and news related to international education at OU. If there's something you'd like to see included in our next newsletter, email Maura McAndrew at mmcandrew@ou.edu.
Dean's Corner

Taking Stock: The College of International Studies in a Turbulent Environment
Dear CIS community and stakeholders,

As 2021 kicks off — as students and faculty head back to class, and as our staff continue to plan for study abroad and for the provision of international student services – it would be an understatement to say we are in a challenging environment. In this post, I would like to share with you my basic sense of where we are and where we are going as a college — of what the terrain of international engagement might look like at OU in the months ahead. 

First, the College and the people who make it up and whom it serves are under great stress.  We have to face this squarely, and take care of each other.  

Second, our mission remains more relevant and vital than ever.  

Finally, we have begun rolling out a dynamic set of initiatives that will strengthen our resilience and help us to bounce back stronger. We commit to engaging with all of the College’s stakeholders throughout this year on these initiatives.


Upcoming Events
Feb. 5, 1-2 p.m. (Zoom)
Women, Human Rights and Insecurity in Conflict and Post-Conflict Zones, with Izabela Steflja of Tulane University, sponsored by the Center for Peace and Development

Feb. 5, 3-4:40 p.m. (Zoom)
Democracy and Elections in Bolivia with Sarah Hines (OU History), Diego Escobari (University of Texas Rio Grande Valley) and Ainara Moreno Mejía (OU Economics), sponsored by the Center for the Americas

Feb. 11, 5:30 p.m. (Zoom)
Environmental Security in Iran and the Middle East with Kaveh Madani of Yale University, sponsored by the Farzaneh Family Center for Iranian & Persian Gulf Studies
Feb. 24, 2-3 p.m. (Zoom)
Self-Devouring Growth, with Julie Livingston of New York University, sponsored by the Center for Peace and Development

Feb. 26, March 5 & 12, 10 a.m. (Zoom)
2021 IAS Symposium, Burning Issues: The Environment, Human Rights, and Democracy in Bolsonaro’s Brazil

March 18, 7-8:30 p.m. (Zoom)
Newman Prize Symposium: Yan Lianke and Contemporary Chinese Literature, with Jianmei Liu (Hong Kong University of Science & Technology), Eric Abrahamsen (Founder of Paper Republic) and Carlos Rojas (Duke University), sponsored by the Institute for US-China Issues

March 19, 7-9 p.m. (Zoom)
Department Updates
International & Area Studies
Two of our Affiliate Faculty/Research Center directors have announced the publication of new books.

Other recent publications:
International Student Services
Winter break presented additional challenges for OU international students this year, with social distancing in full effect and OU lengthening the break by one week to help mitigate COVID’s impact on the spring semester. While most domestic students went home to be with their families for the holidays, traveling home during the pandemic wasn’t an option for many international students. To provide additional care to students who had to remain in Norman over the extended break, ISS International Student Programs staff collaborated with units across campus, including Student Affairs, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Housing, and the Graduate College, to provide ways to stay connected. Several events were held throughout the break, including a virtual movie night, a take-away holiday meal that served over 200 students (largely international grad students), and a come-and-go event where over 50 students made their own self-care kits. Group shopping trips via CART buses took students to Walmart and international grocery stores in Moore and OKC. Students also had the opportunity to visit downtown OKC on two separate trips to Bricktown and Scissortail Park. And President Harroz kindly hosted an event for international students at Boyd House. ISS and the College of International Studies are grateful for our campus partners who came together to make these events possible and helped our international students feel cared for during the extended break.

Education Abroad
Education Abroad is working hard to ensure all OU students can participate in rewarding, transformative and safe study abroad programs. EA is currently accepting applications for Spring Session, Summer and Fall programs, and OU study abroad faculty, staff and international partners are looking forward to engaging with students once again! Deadlines are set for the end of February and March, so interested students should make sure to check the EA website for detailed program and application information. Our study abroad advising team will be offering regular drop-in advising (via Zoom) during the month of February, and EA will be hosting many exciting events for Italy and Mexico Week. For more info on upcoming events, programs and deadlines, visit studyabroad.ou.edu or email ea@ou.edu with questions.

Study Center Snapshot: OU in Puebla
OU in Puebla, OU’s Study Center in Mexico, provides the opportunity for Spanish language immersion over the summer with programs such as The Cuisine, Arts, & Culture of Mexico. In this program, students will not only learn about Mexico’s cultural and culinary traditions, but also will have the opportunity to practice their Spanish skills with local native speakers. OU in Puebla also offers semester programs for an even deeper immersion experience. Semester students can take both OU courses and courses at our local partner university, UPAEP, receiving OU credit while honing their Spanish language abilities. Semester programs are open to all majors with no minimum language requirements. To learn more about Puebla and its program offerings, visit puebla.ou.edu or contact OUP Adviser Logan Gray at logantgray@ou.edu.

CIS People
Staff Spotlight: Tracy Holloway

Our latest in-depth spotlight features Tracy Holloway, senior academic counselor in the Department of International & Area Studies, who has been guiding our students through the ups and downs of college since 2008. "The wonderful thing about CIS advising is that the three of us [Holloway and advisors Katie Watkins and Malin Collins] work well together and communicate regularly, which benefits our students," she says. "Our student ratio is low, which allows more personalized attention." Her advice for students during the pandemic? "Allow for change," she says. "I'm a planner and hate when things are out of my control, but it's a necessary part of life."

Faculty Spotlight: Natalie Letsa
Congratulations to Natalie Letsa, Wick Cary Assistant Professor of Political Economy in IAS, who has been awarded funding from the American Political Science Association Centennial Center and Warren E. Miller Fund in Electoral Politics to conduct research in Cameroon for her book manuscript, The Autocratic Citizen: Partisanship and Political Behavior under Dictatorship. The book seeks to understand why citizens in autocratic regimes feel attachment to political parties. Prof. Letsa also serves on the Executive Committee of OU's African Studies Institute.

Student Spotlight: Tirzah Perry
This quarter's student spotlight is on Tirzah Perry, a December 2020 graduate and most recent student to successfully complete CIS's Peace Corps Prep program, earning a Certificate in Health. Perry, who is originally from Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, graduated with a major in community health/minor in nonprofit studies and hopes to serve in Peace Corps in Africa. "The Peace Corps Prep program allowed for me to gain an even deeper understanding of the world and global issues," she said. "I found myself taking classes that pushed me to think about the world around me in new ways and allowed me to gain unique perspectives. It also forced me to go out of my way to get involved, taking on leadership roles and seeking out new experiences I never thought I would have."

Recent CIS Stories
Former OU in Puebla Faculty-in-Residence Carolina Rueda to Release Feature Film
Since it opened in 2015, the University of Oklahoma’s international study center in Mexico, OU in Puebla, has inspired many who have studied and taught there. Now, the OUP experience has even inspired a 70-minute feature film, Oklahoma Mon Amour, a new transnational film directed by OU Film and Media Studies associate professor and filmmaker Carolina Rueda. The film was conceived and partly filmed during Rueda’s year as OUP faculty-in-residence from 2015-2016. The Arts and Humanities Forum will host a discussion of the film on Feb. 11th.

OU Wins Davis Cup for Record-Setting Enrollment of United World College International Freshmen
For the seventh time in the past eight years, the University of Oklahoma has again been awarded the Davis Cup in recognition of its record-setting enrollment of Davis United World College international freshmen, with an all-time high of 76 Davis UWC Scholars in the OU Class of 2024.

2021 Newman Prize for English Jueju Contest Now Open
The Newman Prize for English Jueju, a poetry competition sponsored by the OU Institute for US-China Issues in the College of International Studies, is now open for submissions with a deadline of Feb. 25th. The Newman Prize for English Jueju is awarded every two years to the best classical Chinese poems written in English, and it offers an opportunity for teachers, students and adults to learn and explore a new creative form.

Award for Scholars: Announcing the Jafar and Shokoh Farzaneh Prize for Best Article on Persian Literature
This $2,000 prize, sponsored by the Farzaneh Family Center for Iranian and Persian Gulf Studies and chaired by IAS Assistant Professor Alexander Jabbari, will be awarded to the best published article on any topic relating to Persian literature. All relevant articles or book chapters published in English or Persian in scholarly, peer-reviewed journals or edited volumes between Jan. 1, 2019 and Dec. 31, 2020 are eligible for consideration.


Discussion Held on Iran, Saudi Arabia and US Foreign Policy
On January 28, The Farzaneh Family Center for Iranian and Persian Gulf Studies hosted a successful roundtable, moderated by Joshua Landis, with Vali Nasr of Johns Hopkins University and Gregory Gause of Texas A&M University on the politics of Iran and Saudi Arabia and the Biden administration's foreign policy towards each country.

CIS in the News
Assistant Professor Emma Colven was interviewed for the Urban Political Podcast, episode titled "Urban Climate Finance at the Edge of Viability?"

Professor Joshua Landis was interviewed for features in BBC Weekend (podcast), The Progressive, Financial Times, and for two articles in Al Jazeera, "What’s the Actual Human Cost of Syria’s War?" and "Syria Sanctions Inflict Suffering as al-Assad Regime Marches on."
Professor Afshin Marashi gave an online talk at UCLA on Jan. 13th as part of a lecture series sponsored by the Pourdavoud Center for the Study of the Iranian World. The lecture was on his recently published book, Exile and the Nation: The Parsi Community of India and the Making of Modern Iran (University of Texas Press, 2020).
The CIS Newsletter is a publication of the David L. Boren College of International Studies at the University of Oklahoma.
The University of Oklahoma is an equal opportunity institution. ou.edu/eoo
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