MINUTES - MAR. 1, 2002
3:00-5:00 p.m., 151 Hamilton Hall

1. Mission statement/summary proposal: editing the first draft.

• several suggestions for improvement of the first draft were made and the proposal was approved pending circulation of the amended statement.

2. Grant-writing and fund-raising: a status report.

• problems with federal funding: UISFL too small an amount for the paperwork; NSEP too dangerous for our researchers; FIPSE too soon (March 2002 deadline).
  
  
• an opportunity we hadn't considered previously: Title VI Undergraduate-Level National Resource Center. The need was discussed for a part-time staff person or research assistant to assist in the preparation of this application. Perhaps the Dean's office or UCIS might be approached to fund this person?
  
  
• approaching foundations (Rockefeller Humanities Seminars? Mellon-Sawyer Seminars?) with a proposal for a 3-year research seminar on our distinctive theme: the fruitful combination regional and cross-regional approaches. No snappy title was approved at the meeting, but several ideas were floated, including "Decentering Middle East Studies," "The Middle East and Beyond," and "Bridging the Middle East."
  
  
• identifying individuals with connections to North Carolina who might be interested in contributing to the building of our center.

3. Curriculum development: a status report.

• the preliminary course list: please add more, and send me syllabi if you haven't done so already!
  
  
• discussion and approval of an abbreviated list of courses that are offered on a regular basis.
  
  
• discussion and approval of regulations for the proposed Concentration in Middle East Studies in the Curriculum in International and Area Studies, including:
  
  
• a core requirement: HIST 36/RELI 25 (Introduction to Islamic Civilization) or HIST 37/RELI 26 (Later Islamic Civilization and the Modern Muslim World). These courses already incorporate the regional/cross-regional combination that is central to our approach.
  
  
• a recommendation that concentrators split their remaining three required courses between their language-related region and other Muslim civilizations.
  
  
• a recommendation that concentrators consider Study Abroad opportunities at the American University in Cairo, Egypt, or other such opportunities that may be developed in the near future.
  
  
• 6-semester languages: Arabic and Urdu (both of which are included in the geographic scope of the Middle East Studies Association of North America and its flagship publication, the International Journal of Middle East Studies).
  
  
• 2-semester languages: Bengali, Bosnian (Serbo-Croatian), Indonesian, Persian, Swahili.

4. Next steps.

• pursue the idea to invite Egyptian sociology professor and pro-democracy activist Saadeddin Ibrahim to give a major public lecture at UNC.
  
  
• draft strategic plan for the Dean of Arts and Sciences including the abovementioned steps and recommending that in order to offer a full range of courses for the proposed concentration, four new junior faculty be hired over the next two years:
  
  (1) Middle East History, possibly North Africa, with an emphasis on the combination of regional/cross-regional interests. This position will allow us to offer, on a more regular basis that our staffing permits now, a series of courses following from the HIST 36-37 core courses.
  
  (2) Islamic Art History, with an emphasis on the combination of regional/cross-regional interests. We hear that the Art Department is already interested in such a position.
  
  (3) Contemporary Media/Communications/Popular Culture, with an emphasis on the combination of regional/cross-regional interests, position to be offered to any department that finds the best candidate.
  
  (4) Islamic Social and Political Movements, with an emphasis on the combination of regional/cross-regional interests, position to be offered to any department that finds the best candidate.