Give now to expand opportunities for Ohio University's Asian Studies students

In Fall 2012, Ohio University and the Center for International Studies launched the Asian Studies Program — the only Asian Studies graduate program in the State of Ohio, at the time. This program, built upon, and expanded from the existing Southeast Asian Studies program, continues to provide opportunities for a broader and more inclusive study of all regions in Asia. The new program gives students the option to pursue a concentration in either East Asia Studies or Transnational Asia Studies. While adding these new concentrations has allowed us to offer new and exciting opportunities for our students and faculty, the University has also remained committed to excellence in the study and education of the Southeast Asian region. Students who pursue the Southeast Asian Studies track benefit from the University's extensive library collection, two endowed chairs, regional language offerings, and many outreach activities.

In giving to support the Asian Studies Program, know that you are investing in students and expanding opportunities that will help them excel in their post-Ohio University careers. Alumni gifts help to equip Asian Studies students by providing funding for their research activities, travel, and internship support.

Former Fulbright Language Teaching Assistant from Indonesia, Ihsan Faris (left), who taught Indonesian for the CIS World Languages program playing the kecapi, with Pittaya Paladroi-Shane (right) World Languages Coordinator and Associate Professor, Instruction of Thai & World Languages

Please consider a gift to the Asian Studies Program in honor of its rich history, its future potential, and in support of current and future students.

Asian Studies Student Highlights

Namrata Jain, 2020 graduate, graduate student in Asian Studies: Namrata Jain was the recipient of the 2020 Outstanding Asian Studies Student Award. Namrata first came to OU as a Fulbright FLTA Instructor in Hindi, and in the following year she applied for, and was accepted into, the Asian Studies MA program. After receiving funding support to conduct research during the summer at the National Gallery of Modern Art and National Archives in New Dehli, Namrata completed an outstanding capstone paper titled “India. The title of her project is “History of ‘Fashion’: Women’s Clothing in India Under the British Raj From 1857-1947”. The paper explored the post-colonial link between modern dressing in India and the British imposition of clothes and fashion upon the women of the subcontinent across caste and class distinctions.

Jahmir King, 2021 graduate, undergraduate in Asian Studies

Jahmir (left) was a scholarship cadet in the ROTC who was awarded the ROTC government scholarship “Project Go” to study in China. In addition to taking advanced Chinese, Jahmir also studied Japanese, and was selected as the CIS World Language Ambassador during his sophomore and junior year at Ohio. Upon graduation, Jahmir was commissioned into the US Army as a Second Lieutenant.

Aaron Reinhard, 2021 graduate, graduate student in Asian Studies: After completing his undergraduate studies here at Ohio University, Aaron enrolled into our M.A. program focusing on Southeast Asia and completed an outstanding capstone paper titled “Political Ecology as a Lens of Analyzing Identity Construction: Constructing “Dayak” in Kalimantan before World War II”. Aaron was awarded the prestigious Boren Fellowship in spring 2020, and designated to study and conduct research in Indonesia in the fall. However, given C0-vid restrictions on travel, the program was put on hold, and Aaron opted to accept an alternate Virtual CLS program during the fall 2020 semester.

Notable Asian Studies Events & Activities

• Guest Speaker Event: Shigeko Sasamori, “August 6, My Story”, Commemorating the 75th Anniversary of the End of WWII & the Dropping of the Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima & Nagasaki (October 30, 2020)
  In commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the end of WWII and the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, The Asian Studies co-sponsored an event on October 30th titled “August 6, My Story”, which featured invited guest speaker Ms. Shigeko Sasamori (age 88 and one of the last surviving members of the ‘Hiroshima Maidens’) who provided a first-hand account of experiencing the bomb and its aftermath.
• Guest Performance Participation Event, Varalinka Srivastava, “Bollywood Night with Varalinka Srivastava”, (March 5, 2021)
  The Asian Studies program sponsored a Bollywood dance workshop led by Varalika Srivasta, the founder of the Tumak Dance Company. Born and raised in India, she is a trained Bharatnatyam and Kathak dancer who has been dancing since the age of 10.
• The Frances M. and Stephen H. Fuller Visiting Professorship in Southeast Asian Studies. This an endowed professorship that was established in 2008 at the Center for Southeast Asian Studies at Ohio University.
  The inaugural holder of this distinguished chair was Dr. Carlyle Thayer from the University of New South Wales. Our upcoming Fuller Visiting Professor will be Dr. Jane Ferguson, from Australian National University. Dr. Fuller is an expert on Myanmar, and she will be teaching courses in Southeast Asian Politics at Ohio.