March 2 and 3, 2016, two representatives from the U.S. Department of State in Kabul, Grants Program Specialist Lynn Walroth and Cultural Affairs Assistant Janet Thompson, visited AUCA. The goal of their visit was to checkup on existing policies and discuss ideas for the future of the partnership.

Ruslan Rahimov, an AUCA faculty member, associate professor, and candidate of historical sciences with a PhD from the School of Advanced Studies in Social Sciences (EHESS - France), recently embarked on a research trip to Mexico.

Anne Pyburn is a visiting professor at AUCA from Indiana University (IU) Bloomington. At IU, Pyburn is a professor in the Anthropology department and the Provost’s professor in the English department. In Kyrgyzstan, she has worked with archaeologists and citizens' groups to develop projects for cultural resource management.

Saltanat Ibraeva, ICP 109, tells us about her study at the American University of Central Asia (AUCA), about her career path after graduation, and her Erasmus Mundus Master’s Degree Program in Journalism, Media and Globalisation.

Saadat Ruslanova, a junior student in the International and Comparative Politics (ICP) department at the American University of Central Asia (AUCA), is our first student to study at the AUCA’s new partner university, the University of Hong Kong.

February 12, 2016 students from Introduction to Logistics and Supply Chain Management, accompanied by instructor Kanaiym Kydyralieva, visited one of the global brand production plants Coca-Cola Bishkek Bottlers (CCBB). CCBB is one of the leading investment companies in the Kyrgyz Republic.

On February 13, 2016 students from the Environmental Management and Sustainable Development (EMSD) program went on a field trip to the mountains near the "Polytech" ski base. Students practiced on-site measurements of water quality in the river.

 
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Abstract: In my dissertation I analysed representations of Soviet socialism in post-Soviet history textbooks and in the life stories of history teachers in Kyrgyzstan. I analysed, first, how the post-Soviet Kyrgyz state reconstructs its Soviet past on the level of official discourse, particularly in school history textbooks, and second, how history teachers – as professionals and private citizens – relate to the official discourse when making sense of the Soviet past.

"Negotiating Kyrgyz Nationhood: Of History Textbooks' and History Teachers' Attitudes towards the Soviet Past"
By Damira Umetbaeva, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Journalism and Mass Communications Department, AUCA.

Associate Professor of Philosophy Duane Lacey currently teaches in the FYS Division. In the near future, he will also be teaching in the new L.L.M. Graduate Program. Professor Lacey shares his academic experience, research projects, thoughts on AUCA, and even some advice for students in this brief interview.