John Bailyn, Associate Professor in the Department of Linguistics, College of Arts and Sciences, at Stony Brook University, has been appointed SUNY faculty director of the SUNY Russia Programs Network (RPN). The recently formed RPN will coordinate the relationships between the SUNY system and Russian institutions of higher education. SUNY Vice Chancellor for Global Affairs Mitch Leventhal, who announced the appointment, said, “The SUNY Russia Programs Network will allow current programs to flourish with the support of existing and new staff on both the SUNY and Russian sides, while focusing particular attention on the development of new student and faculty initiatives in partnership with Russian institutions.”
Bailyn’s goals for the Russia Programs Network are to increase visibility of SUNY programs in Russia; revitalize current partnerships; attract more Russian students to study at SUNY campuses; and establish new, innovative programs involving Russian institutions. Competitive Visiting Lecturer Awards will be available for SUNY faculty to teach at the New York–St. Petersburg Institute of Linguistics, Cognition, and Culture held every summer in St. Petersburg. Short Visiting Lectureships to Russia will also be regularly available.
“The Russia Programs Network represents an exciting model of cross-campus cooperation within SUNY that will allow students and faculty with an interest in Russia to take advantage of initiatives involving Russia going on throughout the SUNY system that others campuses may be unaware of,” said Bailyn. “One of our central goals for the next few years under RPN involves the revitalization of Russian language and Russian area studies throughout the SUNY system through shared courses, ideally involving Open SUNY and the Language Pact consortium.” Bailyn noted that one of the SUNY Russia Program Network’s primary advantages for campuses involves the creation of tailored summer study programs using the Network’s infrastructure, partnering with institutions in St. Petersburg, Tomsk, Astrakhan, Kaliningrad and other Russian cities.
Bailyn will supervise one SUNY-side dedicated staff member and a small team of local staff in Russia who will facilitate the smooth operations of new and existing programs.
Interested departments or programs are encouraged to contact Bailyn directly at russia.programs@suny.edu to discuss potential projects.
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