Dear ASEEES Members:
As you know, the US State Department's Title VIII program, which has been so crucial for supporting language training and research on Eastern Europe and Eurasia in the US for 30 years, did not receive any funding for the federal fiscal year 2013, which had led to suspension of various fellowship and other programs already. For more information see: http://www.aseees.org/new/title8-alert.php.
On December 11, we sent a letter to Sec. John Kerry, urging him to restore funding to the Title VIII program. The letter was signed by former ambassadors, university presidents, and presidents of leading organizations, as well as past presidents and current board members of ASEEES. You can read the letter here: http://www.aseees.org/Advocacy/TitleVIII_letter_Kerry2013.pdf The letter has led to other organizations, such as JNCL-NCLIS, AIEA, ACTFL, and AIECE, launching a national letter-writing campaign. We are, of course, grateful for their efforts and are joining in the campaign.
Action: If you reside in the US, we are asking you to write TODAY <http://capwiz.com/actfl/issues/alert/?alertid=63032086&PROCESS=Take+Action> to your Senators and Representative, urging them to restore funding for the Title VIII program and to include funding for the program in the fiscal year 2015 appropriations. A template letter is provided, but you can edit the letter (especially the introductory line).
BOTTOM LINE: For many decades, Title VIII has supported the training and research of a remarkably high percentage of our nation's best experts on Eurasian and East European affairs for a relatively tiny sum of money. Shutting down Title VIII will reduce US capacity to understand a crucial region of the world at the worst possible time, rejecting the bipartisan consensus about the program's value and record of success.
The link to the ACTFL letter campaign can also be found at: http://www.aseees.org/new/title8-alert.php.
Regards,
Lynda Park, Executive Director
Association for Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies
203C Bellefield Hall
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, PA 15260-6424 USA
+1 (412) 648-9788 (direct), +1 (412) 648-9911 (main)
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