Curriculum Development Resources at Community Colleges and Minority-Serving Institutions

Six U.S. Department of Education National Resource Centers from across the country are collaborating on a curriculum development program at community colleges and minority-serving institutions. The aim of the program is to broaden access to resources and knowledge about the regions of Eastern Europe and Eurasia. The National Resource Centers are running an annual competition in which faculty from community colleges and minority-serving institutions apply to receive stipends (from $1,000-$3,000) in order to redesign an existing course to have more content about Eastern Europe and Eurasia, or create an entirely new course. Plans are in place for this program to run each year from 2014 to 2017.

 

In its inaugural year, 28 applications were received and ultimately three applicants received stipends. Recipients came from New Mexico State University, a Hispanic Serving Institution, Whatcom Community College, and Yakima Valley Community College. At New Mexico State University, Professor Nathan Brooks designed a new course on Central Asian history, covering early nomad groups in the region, the development of the Silk Road, the Mongol Empire, the expansion of Russia into the region, and the Soviet and Post-Soviet periods. At Whatcom Community College, Professor Montgomery Walker designed a new survey history course that covers Russia from the Middle Ages to the present. Professor Ian Stacy from Yakima Valley Community College redesigned a Russian history course that had not been taught for several years at his institution, bringing new content into the course. These three courses will be taught at the institutions during 2016.