Tag: Department of Modern Languages and Classics


Arizumi Named Director of National Association

From the April 2015 Desktop News | Dr. Koji Arizumi, director of UA’s Critical Languages Center in the Department of Modern Languages and Classics and an instructor of Japanese language and literature, has been named executive director of the National Association of Self-Instructional Language Programs. As director, Arizumi will manage operations and promote the activities of the organization. The National Association of Self-Instructional Language Programs, or NASILP, includes more than 50 member institutions and helps students realize proficiency in less […]

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College Establishes New Academic Minors

From the April 2015 Desktop News | Two interdisciplinary minors focused on burgeoning academic fields have been created and can be pursued by students beginning in fall 2015. The first, cybercrime, will combine classes on the technical aspects of thwarting cyber attacks and processing digital forensic evidence with classes on understanding criminal motivations. The second, Latin American, Caribbean and Latino studies, will allow students to explore the social, cultural, linguistic, political, economic and biological diversity of nations that make up […]

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Japanese Delegation Visits UA

From the March 2015 Desktop News | A delegation selected by the Japanese government traveled to The University of Alabama on March 3 to discuss Japanese society, business, technology and culture in the second annual “Walk in U.S., Talk on Japan” symposium. The goal of the symposium, led by Yasuo Saito, former Japanese Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Russia and France, is to increase awareness of Japan’s foreign and economic policies in the United States and to strengthen the relationship between […]

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International Relations Club Recognized

From the February 2015 Desktop News | The Alabama International Relations Club at UA was recently named the Most Outstanding Large Delegation at the Harvard National Model United Nations-Latin America conference in Lima, Peru, the premier conference in South America. A group of 10 UA students traveled to the weeklong event, where they debated international politics and discussed solutions to critical global issues with some 500 students from universities around the world. The club received the Most Outstanding Large Delegation award […]

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Understanding Russia

Lecture series explores nation’s place in the modern world Are human beings any different from frogs? According to Dr. Andrew Drozd, this question appears often in the literature of great Russian authors of the 19th century, and the answer is almost always a resounding “No.” Monday, September 15, the associate professor of Russian spoke to a group of students about this philosophical conundrum, using the archetype of doctors in the worlds constructed by authors like Tolstoy, Turgenev, and Dostoevsky. His […]

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Students Named Fulbright Scholars

From the July 2014 Desktop News | Six recent graduates of the College were awarded Fulbright grants from the U.S. State Department to conduct research and teach abroad during the 2014-2015 school year. They were among 1,800 students chosen from a pool of 11,000 applicants nationwide. “For the College to have not one, but six students chosen for prestigious 2014-2015 Fulbright grants speaks very highly not only of these young men and women, but of the College faculty who have […]

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German Professor Receives State Awards

From the July 2014 Desktop News | Dr. Rasma Lazda, associate professor in the Department of Modern Languages and Classics, received two statewide teaching awards this year. She received in February the Outstanding Post-Secondary Teacher Award from the Alabama Association of Foreign Language Teachers. She also received the award in 2003 and was selected from all foreign language teachers working in post-secondary education in Alabama. She also received this year the Dr. Barbara Fischer Education Award from the Alabama Germany […]

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UA Delegation Travels to Greece

From the June 2014 Desktop News | When someone is truly confused by something, they might say “It’s all Greek to me,” but The University of Alabama Greece Initiative is just the opposite; it’s all about furthering understanding and collaboration between UA and Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece. A group of faculty members from the University recently traveled to Greece to meet with representatives from Aristotle University to discuss potential projects on which faculty from both entities could cooperate. “The Alabama Greece […]

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Biology and Classics Graduate Finds Home in Oil Industry

From the 2014 Celebrating Excellence | What do Colombia, Gabon and Brazil all have in common? For one thing, Lauren Wilder, a UA graduate with a bachelor’s degree in biology and classics, helped negotiate exploration rights for oil and gas in all three places. Wilder’s first trip abroad as a land negotiator with Hess Corporation was to Lima, Peru. She traveled with two other Hess employees, “experienced professionals” she calls them, who had been to Peru dozens of times. “I […]

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Building New Homes for Tornado Survivors

From the April 2014 Desktop News | More than a dozen students traveled to Moore, Okla., during spring break to participate in tornado recovery. The students worked with Cleveland County Habitat for Humanity to build homes for survivors of an EF5 tornado that struck the areas surrounding Moore in May 2013. It was the deadliest on record in the United States since the Joplin, Mo., tornado in 2011. The Alternative Spring Break trip was organized by UA’s Community Service Center. […]

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