ANN ARBOR, MICH., September 26, 2011

October 14th & 15th, 2011 the Armenian Studies Program (ASP) will host a weekend of public events to mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of the Alex Manoogian Chair in Modern Armenian History as well as 30th anniversary of the founding of the Armenian Studies Program at the University of Michigan.

The celebration will begin on October 13th with a special reception for major donors, program supporters, and University of Michigan administrators to celebrate with ASP faculty and students. The free public events will begin on Friday, October 14th with an exclusive exhibit of Armenian studies related holdings at University of Michigan libraries, including significant holdings from the Armenian Research Center at the university’s Dearborn campus. Following the exhibit will be the conclusion of our fall film festival with two films, highlighted by a lecture on the history of Armenian films by Visiting Scholar Artsvi Bakhchinyan. On Saturday, October 15th ASP with host a symposium on “Armenia in World History/The World in Armenian History.” Complete details of the public events can be found on our website: http://www.ii.umich.edu/asp/30thanniversarycelebration_ci.

Based in the Department of History, the Alex Manoogian Chair at UM is one of the first endowed chairs established in the social sciences division of the University of Michigan, the fourth Armenian studies endowed chair in the US, and the first chair to be designated for the study of the modern period in Armenian history. 2011 marks the near 25th anniversary of the establishment of the second endowed Armenian studies chair at the University in 1987, the Marie Manoogian chair in Armenian Language and Literature. The Armenian Studies Program was also founded 1981, although language courses had started in 1974.

 

Parallel to these events, on October 14-16, the Armenian Studies Program at the University of Michigan will be convening the second meeting of the Workshop on the State of Armenian Studies, a unique project supported by the Harry Ardashes Paul Fund endowed by the Paul family at the University of Michigan.