For Immediate Release

September 20, 2022

Media Contact:

Mabel Cardec, Communications Manager

University of Florida International Center

Office: 352.273.1515, mcardec@ufic.ufl.edu

UF AFRICAN STUDIES, EUROPEAN STUDIES, AND LATIN AMERICAN STUDIES RECEIVE OVER $5.2 MILLION IN DOE GRANTS

GAINESVILLE, FL – The University of Florida International Center (UFIC) is pleased to announce that the Centers for African Studies (CAS), European Studies (CES), and Latin American Studies (LAS) have collectively received approx. $5,246,560 million from the U.S. Department of Education Title VI program. The three area studies centers will support international research, public programming, and training initiatives in collaboration with faculty across campus and experts across the world. They additionally provide student fellowships over a four-year period (2022-2026). Title VI grants are awarded in recognition of UF’s important contributions to building expertise in world regions and preparing students for international careers in government and the private sector.

All three centers were awarded Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowship grants and CES and LAS renewed their Title VI Comprehensive National Resource Centers (NRC) status. The grants will continue supporting an interdisciplinary examination of crucial regional issues and teaching about these world regions at UF, including the teaching of critical world languages. Grants also help to internationalize K-12 education through teacher education and training initiatives and provide support for outreach about these world regions to other higher education institutions, businesses, media, and the public. “The work of our Title VI Centers is essential to UF’s global mission, and this significant recognition from the Department of Education is an exciting contribution to our international goals,” said Marta L. Wayne, Dean of the UF International Center.

The FLAS fellowship grants from all three centers will support graduate and undergraduate students to pursue advanced proficiency in an array of less-commonly taught languages from the three world regions they respectively support. Contributing to national expertise, these prestigious awards allow students to develop linguistic skills to conduct research and gain an in-depth understanding of cultures and world regions.

UF Center for African Studies (CAS) 

The new FLAS award in the amount of $1,181,184 is a recognition of CAS’ distinctive contribution to the teaching of Akan, Amharic, Swahili, Wolof, Yoruba, and Zulu. This funding enables the center to continue providing undergraduate and graduate students with resources to acquire the necessary linguistic and cultural skills to conduct research and build expertise on the continent in addition to new opportunities for summer and study abroad programs.

Since its establishment in 1964, the Center for African Studies at UF ranks among the leading centers in the US thanks to a committed community of faculty, students, affiliates, collaborators, and staff.  The primary mission of the center is to promote excellence in teaching and research on Africa in all the disciplines across the University of Florida.

The Center also disseminates knowledge about Africa to the wider community through an integrated outreach program to schools, colleges, community groups, and businesses. Central to this mission is sustaining contacts and expanding linkages with individuals and institutions on the African continent. In addition to undergraduate education, the Center promotes and supports graduate studies as essential for the development of a continuing community of Africanist scholars.

UF Center for European Studies (CES)

The federal Title VI National Resource Center (NRC) and Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) grants from the US Department of Education provide critical financial support allowing CES to continue to serve as a central resource for Europe-related teaching and research across UF and in the broader community. 

CES was awarded approx. $2,000,000 for the 2022-2026 grant cycle. The NRC funding covers course development grants, travel grants, outreach to the K-12 community, and more to increase knowledge and awareness of modern Europe. The FLAS provides academic year and summer funding for less-commonly taught European languages, such as Czech, Hungarian, Polish, Modern Greek, Turkish, and more. CES is one of just six comprehensive NRC Centers focused on Europe/Western Europe in the United States. The designation recognizes the excellence of the European Studies programs and associated resources at UF, as well as the success of Europe-related academic and outreach initiatives supported by the Center.

CES is an interdisciplinary area studies center focused on the study of Europe including facilitating the training of scholars and experts in European studies at the University of Florida and beyond. CES was created in 2003 and houses a Jean Monnet Center of Excellence supported by the Erasmus+ program of the European Union. 

Through the Title VI program, CES can support language training in lesser and least commonly taught languages (LCTLs) at the graduate and undergraduate levels, create course development opportunities for faculty and advanced graduate students, and organize academic conferences and public speakers on a wide array of Europe related topics and bring European culture, history, and current events to the public in Gainesville, across Florida and even beyond. As CES looks forward to its 20th anniversary next year, these awards help to underscore the important contributions of the Center's faculty, students, and staff to the broad mission of promoting teaching, research, and outreach activities related to Europe.

The success of the proposal reflects the tremendous efforts of CES staff, core, and affiliate faculty as well as the achievements of CES students past and present. This achievement would also not have been possible without the ongoing support of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, the Office of the Provost, and the UF Office of Research.

UF Center for Latin American Studies (LAS)

LAS was awarded $2,065,376 for the 2022-2026 grant cycle ($1,055,100 of this total is designated for FLAS). The NRC funding covers course development grants, travel grants, outreach to the K-12 community, and more to increase knowledge and awareness of Latin America across the Center’s constituencies. The FLAS provides academic year and summer funding for less-commonly taught languages, such as Portuguese, Haitian Creole, and Kichwa.

Founded in 1931, the Center for Latin American Studies is the first research center in the United States to focus on Latin America and has been continuously funded through Title VI since 1962. The Center’s mission is to advance knowledge about Latin America and the Caribbean and its peoples throughout the Hemisphere and to enhance the scope and quality of research, teaching, and outreach in Latin American, Caribbean, and Latino Studies at the University of Florida.

“I’m so proud that the Center has received Title VI funding for another cycle,” said Center Director Carlos de la Torre. “Not only because of the important educational initiatives it enables us to do, but also because of the innovation and collaboration of the faculty and staff who put together the proposal.”

Thanks to funding from Title VI, the Center will continue offering a wide range of academic and professional opportunities in Latin American Studies, including research travel, teacher outreach programs, career development, community engagement, and language instruction. These efforts, in addition to expanding academic offerings and incorporating innovative technology, maintain the Center’s prominence as a leading institution in the field and cultivate an international network of scholars and professionals focused on Latin America.

To learn more about the Department of Education NRC programs https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/iegps/index.html