UC Irvine Archives

Evening with DR Armine Ishkanyan Lecture, UC Irvine School of Humanities, Armenian Studies VIDEO

November 4, 2016 By administrator

Dr Armine Ishkanian

Programme Director of the MSc in Social Policy and Development (State and NGO Streams)

London School of Economics, Department of Social Policy, Houghton Street

The challenges facing Armenia today,

Civil society – range of actors from NGOs to social movements and grassroots groups

The private sector -small & medium businesses, large corporations

International organisations and financial institutions – e.g., the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, the UN agencies

Individuals – in Armenia and in the diaspora.s

Defining civil society

A concept with a long heritage in Western thought – from Ancient Greece, Rome to the 17th-18th Century Enlightenment

Also see other interveiws Exploring Armenia, Episode 2 The Coffee Shop Success with a touch of love Story

Video Interveiw Armenian Honorary Consul Bangkok

Exploring Armenia’s potential, Episode 1 Inaugurating Adopt A Village Project

The challenges facing Armenia today.

Actors & institutions in policy processes

Defining civil society

A concept with a long heritage in Western thought – from Ancient Greece, Rome to the 17th-18th Century Enlightenment

University of California Irvine Student Government Passes Resolution Calling for Divestment from Turkey

May 6, 2015 By administrator

UCI student Kristine Jermakian speaks to the UC Irvine student government in support of a resolution calling for divestment from Turkey

IRVINE, Calif.—On Tuesday, the student government at the University of California, Irvine (UC Irvine), unanimously passed a resolution “to Divest from the Republic of Turkey to End the Perpetuation of the Armenian Genocide.” The resolution ultimately called for UC Irvine, the UC Irvine Foundation, and the University of California to divest $72.6 million dollars worth of University of California bonds and investments in the Republic of Turkey for its crimes in, and continued denial of the Armenian Genocide.

Various students of UC Irvine, members of the Armenian Students’ Association (ASA), along with members of the greater Armenian community gathered for the hearing of the resolution and spoke about the university’s investments in the Turkish government, its compliance in genocide denial, and the need for divestment.

“As a descendant of the Armenian Genocide and a UC student, I was so angered and disappointed when I learned that the University of California, a public institution, invests over $70 million dollars in the Turkish government. These UC investment holdings in bonds directly issued in Turkish government ultimately, fund Turkish denialist propaganda and drive efforts of genocide denial,” said Carla Kekejian a third-year English and education sciences double-major at UCI. “Students’ tuition dollars- my tuition dollars- are being invested in the government that denies history and human right violations. I needed to present this resolution so that at least my student government, and my UC, was not complicit in the denial of the Armenian Genocide.”

Along with the citations of the UC’s investments in Turkey, the resolution cited the massacres of the 1915 Armenian Genocide as well as the current Republic of Turkey’s continuous genocide denial campaigns and efforts to hide its crimes against humanity. The resolution also cited how the California State Assembly Public Employment, Retirement, and Social Security (PERSS) recently voted to adopt Assembly Bill 1410 calling for divestment of the State of California’s investments in the Turkish government.

“The UC System should divest from governments who still continue to oppress and deny their atrocities and actions towards another minority,” said Ovsanna Balian, a fourth year double-major in psychology and social behavior and education sciences at UCI.“UC Irvine’s calling of divestment from the Republic of Turkey means a lot to me because I can walk on campus and graduate comfortably knowing that my university wants to divest on the Turkish government. This action of divestment has the potential of decreasing the denial and investments by governments of this genocide and any other genocides. Not only am I presenting this resolution for myself and my family, but I am doing this for all my ancestors that suffered by the hands of the Young Turks.”

The student governments of UCLA and UC Berkeley unanimously passed similar resolutions during January and February of this year. Moreover, just last month, ASUCI unanimously passed A resolution “Commemorating the Armenian Genocide and Condemning its Denial,” raising further awareness on campus about the Armenian Genocide and its need for international recognition.

“The active erasure of Armenian histories and the Armenian genocide has gone on too long. As UC students we should be represented and have agency over where our money is going. Overall, as human beings we cannot allow for the investment into oppressive governments, beyond Armenian people,” said Kristine Jermakian a third-year pharmaceutical sciences and women’s’ studies double major at UCI. The stand against genocide is a human rights issue, not only a student issue, so pushing to divest makes a clear statement of this and a statement that we stand against all unethical investments.”

“As President of the Armenian Students’ Association at UC Irvine, I am very proud of both our Armenian and non-Armenian support we received in Orange County as well as the support of ASUCI, our student government council,” said Aram Akhverdyan fourth year biological sciences major at UCI. “Just because April 24th has passed, that does not mean our campaign for recognition of the Armenian Genocide should end. There are a wide range of ways we can continue the efforts and the passing of this divestment resolution was a significant one.”

The resolution is an initiative started in part by the Armenian Youth Federation (AYF) Western United States- a grassroots community organization dedicated to justice for the Armenian cause and the Armenian people. For any questions, comments or inquiries on the #DivestTurkey campaign, please email divestment@ayfwest.org.

UC Irvine Agrees Collaboration with American University of Armenia

February 5, 2015 By administrator

Dean of the UC Irvine School of Humanities Georges Van Den Abbeele (right) and President of the American University of Armenia Armen Der Kiureghian sign an agreement in Los Angeles.

IRVINE, Calif.—In January, the University of California, Irvine, entered into an agreement to create faculty, student and research exchange between all schools on the UC Irvine campus and the American University of Armenia. Founded in 1991, the American University of Armenia is a U.S.-accredited institution of higher learning affiliated with the University of California, providing a global education in Armenia. Led by the School of Humanities for the UC Irvine campus, this partnership adds incredible value and knowledge-share to the Humanities’ current Armenian Studies Program.

A signing event took place on January 15th on the UCLA campus where Georges Van Den Abbeele, dean of the UC Irvine School of Humanities, and Armen Der Kiureghian, PhD, president of the American University of Armenia, were both present to sign the Memorandum of Understanding.

“We are very pleased to have this agreement with UC Irvine, which aims at facilitating study abroad and faculty interactions between our two universities. AUA provides an ideal choice for study abroad for UC Irvine students, who are interested in Armenian studies or wish to study in their ancestral homeland for a summer, a semester or a year,” said Armen Der Kiureghian, PhD, president of the American University of Armenia. “We would also be very pleased to host UC Irvine faculty, who are interested in studying the history and culture of Armenia or would like to spend a sabbatical leave at AUA. We hope our students and faculty will be able to make reciprocal visits and benefit from the many rich programs available at UCI.”

“We are most pleased and proud to enter into this exciting new partnership with the American University of Armenia not only for the tremendous opportunities it provides for our own burgeoning program in Armenian studies here at UCI, but also for the wider exchange of scholars and students it will generate between all our fields of inquiry, both at Irvine and in Yerevan,” said Georges Van Den Abbeele, dean of the UC Irvine School of Humanities.

The UC Irvine School of Humanities has a rich history of incorporating Armenian studies into its curriculum offerings. Established in December of 2007 under the leadership of history professor Touraj Daryaee and through the visionary efforts of Sylvie Tertzakian, Armenian Studies at UC Irvine includes undergraduate coursework in ancient and modern Armenian history. With financial support from Vahe and Armine Meghrouni, the program also hosts a quarterly lecture series that bridges historical and cultural topics surrounding modern day Armenia to the broader Orange County community. In the summer of 2014, The Meghrounis pledged $1M in support of the creation of an endowed chair in Armenian Studies. The School of Humanities is presently fundraising for the remaining amount to meet the minimum endowed chair requirement.

To learn more about the partnership between UCI and the American University of Armenia, please visit humanities.uci.edu.

If you are interested in supporting the endowed chair in Armenian Studies, please contact Marijana Lekousis, Interim Director of Development for the UC Irvine School of Humanities, at marijana@uci.edu or 949-824-1342.

UC Irvine, Russo-Iranian relations and the formation of Modern Armenian Event

December 1, 2014 By administrator

By professor George Bournoutian

Thursday , december 4th, 2014 6:00 PM – reception 6:30 Lecture

1010 Humanities Gateway

George Bournoutian is professor, Historian, and author. he is a Senior professor of History at Iona College and the author of over twenty-eight books, primarily on Armenian history. He has taught Armenian history at Columbia University, tufts University, new York University, Rutgers University, the University of Connecticut, Ramapo College, and Glendale community College. He is currently the visiting professor of Armenian History at Columbia.

Professor Bournoutian earned his bachelors, master, and doctorate degrees from UCLA.

we were fortunate to present Professor Bournoutian last february, and are excited to hear him again.

we look forward to Dean Georges Van den Abbeele’s opening remarks about the future of Armenian studies at UC Irvine.

Turkish-Armenian Relations: Perspectives from Turkey and the Armenian Diaspora

May 10, 2014 By administrator

The Institute for International, Global and Regional Studies (IIGaRS), International Studies Public Forum, and Center for Citizen Peacebuilding Present: “Turkish-Armenian Relations: Perspectives from Turkey and the Armenian Diaspora”

Panel of Speakers:

Fikret Adanir, Professor of History Emeritus, Sabanci University
Etyen Mahçupyan, Advisor to TESEV & Columnist for Zaman Newspaper
Levon Marashlian, Professor of History & Political Science, Glendale Community College
Edvin Minassian, Chairman Ex Officio & Executive Board Member of the Armenian Bar Association

Thursday, May 15, 2014
5:00-6:30 p.m.
Social Science Plaza A, Room 1100
University of California, Irvine
The event will be followed by a reception hosted by the Center for Citizen Peacebuilding in SSPA 2112.
For further information, please contact Sylvia Lotito, slotito@uci.edu or 949-824-3344.

Lecture by Roman Smbatyan UC Irvine, Armenian Studies (Video)

April 23, 2014 By administrator

The Liberation Movement of Armenian in the first half of 18th Century:
Rebellions in Syunik and Karabagh (Artsakh).

A Lecture by Roman Smbatian, visiting Lecturrer of Modern Armenian History, UC Irvine. April 17, 2014, Humanities Gateway University of California, irvine.

The Vahe and Armine Meghrouni Lecture Series in Armenian Studies (School of Humanities, UC Irvine, CA.)

November 4, 2013 By administrator

The Vahe and Armine Meghrouni Lecture Series in Armenian Studies resumes on Thursday, November 21st with “Print as Dialogue Medium on Corporate Identity between the Diaspora and Armenian Plateau in the 17th-18th Centuries,” a lecture by Peter Cowe, Narekatsi Professor of Armenian Studies, UCLA.

Event details:

Thursday, November 21st
6:30 p.m.
1030 Humanities Gateway
School of Humanities, UC Irvine
Irvine, CA 92697-3376

Refreshments provided. Complimentary parking available in Lot 7, adjacent to the Humanities Gateway Building (see attached map.) For more information please contact Marc Kanda at mhkanda@uci.edu or (949) 824-6522. More information to follow.

Emily Stone
Communications Manager
Office of Development and Alumni Relations
School of Humanities, UC Irvine
Irvine, CA 92697-3376
949.824.1605

Armenian Studies Lecture with Stephen Rapp – UC Irvine School of Humanities February 21

February 14, 2013 By administrator

Professor Rapp’s lecture, with a special introduction by newly appointed Dean of the School of Humanities, Georges Van Den Abbeele. Also, be sure to check out the Armenian Studies website, http://sites.uci.edu/armenianstudies/.