The MacMillan Center at Yale Awarded $9 Million as the U.S. Department of Education Designates Five Area Councils as National Resource Centers

August 3, 2010. New Haven, CT – Five of the area studies councils (Africa, East Asia, Europe, Latin America, and Middle East) of the Whitney and Betty MacMillan Center for International and Area Studies at Yale have been awarded a total of more than $9 million dollars from the U.S. Department of Education based on the grant applications each submitted in March 2010. Each council has been awarded a four-year grant and been designated as a National Resource Center. The funding also includes Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowships awarded to the Africa, Europe and Middle East councils.

The federal Higher Education Opportunity Act, Title VI program funds 4-year grants to support graduate and undergraduate international, area, and foreign language studies, as well as educational outreach programs for grades K-12, business and the wider public.

The combined grants the councils received will total more than $9 million over AY 2011-2014, including $5.4 million for programs and $3.6 million of fellowships. They will support key activities in four areas:

• Curriculum and program development by supporting faculty research and travel, hosting visiting professors, workshops, conferences, acquiring materials for Yale libraries and supporting library activities, expanding study abroad and Foreign Language Across the Curriculum opportunities.

• 124 academic year and 84 summer fellowships for undergraduate, graduate and professional school students for advanced study of foreign languages.

• Expansion and deepening of Yale’s foreign language programs by supporting new language faculty, DILS (Directed Independent Language Study), cost-effective approaches to proficiency testing and materials development projects.

• Educational, community and business outreach through PIER (Program in International Education Resources), which receive over 25% of overall grant program resources.

Since the inception of Title VI in 1958, Yale has consistently participated in each 3-4 year grant cycle. A review of the five councils’ applications reveals that in the period 2008-2010, more than 650 Yale faculty taught more than 1700 courses with significant (25% or greater) international content.

“We are so pleased to have been awarded this Title VI funding because it will allow the MacMillan Center and its councils to continue the vibrant spectrum of international interdisciplinary teaching and research and language study,” said Ian Shapiro, Henry R. Luce Director, The MacMillan Center. “It is an honor for these five councils to be designated as National Resource Centers, and we look forward to implementing our educational plans even more robustly as a result of this funding.”

The Whitney and Betty MacMillan Center for International and Area Studies at Yale is the University’s focal point for encouraging and coordinating teaching and research on international affairs, societies, and cultures around the world. It draws its strength by tapping the interests and combining the intellectual resources of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and of the professional schools. The Center seeks to make understanding the world outside the borders of the United States, and the role of the United States in the world, an integral part of liberal education and professional training at the University.

Contact Information:

Marilyn Wilkes

The Whitney and Betty MacMillan Center for International and Area Studies at Yale

(203) 432-3413