Fact Sheet

The University of Kansas Center for Russian, East European & Eurasian Studies

320 Bailey Hall • 1440 Jayhawk Blvd • Lawrence, KS 66045
Director: Mariya Omelicheva | crees@ku.edu | 785-864-4236 | www.crees.ku.edu

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DESCRIPTION: The Center for Russian, East European & Eurasian Studies (CREES) at the University of Kansas (KU) has been a US/ED Title VI Comprehensive National Resource Center since 1965. KU has offered Russian language since 1943; area certificate since 1959; and an M.A. degree since 1968. KU offers PhDs with regional concentration in all core disciplines. CREES graduates more U.S. Army Foreign Area Officers than any other NRC program.

MISSION: To meet the national need for specialists by producing students with superior language and area studies training, providing professional mentoring, enhancement, and study/research abroad opportunities; to support students and faculty in their research and intellectual enhancement so that they can be outstanding teachers, scholars, and mentors; to be a local, regional and national resource, providing outreach, support services, and information to other KU units, K-12, post-secondary, business, media, government, military, and community constituencies.

DEGREE PROGRAMS, LANGUAGES, AND FACULTY: B.A. co-major; M.A. in Russian, Ukrainian, Polish, Balkan, general East European, and general Eurasian tracks. PhD in all major disciplines, including Slavic Languages & Literatures with capacity to teach 10 area languages. 8 AY and 5-10 Summer FLAS Fellowships awarded annually. Study abroad in Croatia, Poland, Russia, Turkey and Ukraine. 64 core and affiliated faculty members, including 14 language specialists, 20 humanists, 17 social scientists, 8 in professional schools and 5 in the libraries; 8-12 visiting foreign scholars each year.

LIBRARY: 425,000 volumes of Slavica, 3000 serials; 3 professional Slavic bibliographers (5 professional library staff); the major Slavic collection between Illinois and California-Berkeley.

ENHANCEMENT AND OUTREACH:

  • Over 50 events annually including lectures, workshops, plays, films, roundtables, and conferences;
  • K-12 Teacher training and newsletters; curriculum development; and video resources for K-16;
  • Online Content (www.crees.ku.edu; www.ku.edu/~herron; www.silkroad.ku.edu)
  • Translation and support services for business, government, media, military, and local community;
  • Sponsor of The Russian Review, the leading interdisciplinary journal on Russia past and present;
  • Fellows Program for area specialists at Kansas Regents, Big 12, and Great Plains institutions;
  • Collaboration with Central Slavic Conference, Mid-America Consortium for International Education, Haskell Indian Nations University, Robert Dole Institute of Politics, Kansas State University, Foreign Military Studies Office and Command and General Staff College (Ft. Leavenworth), International Relations Council, and others.

The University of Kansas prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, religion, sex, national origin, age, ancestry, disability, status as a veteran, sexual orientation, marital status, parental status, gender identity, gender expression and genetic information in the University’s programs and activities. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies: Director of the Office of Institutional Opportunity and Access, IOA@ku.edu, 1246 W. Campus Road, Room 153A, Lawrence, KS, 66045, (785)864-6414, 711 TTY.