Author Archives: Linda Mayhew

The Tunis Exchange

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The Exchange is a dynamic and intensive program for students, professionals, and post-professionals interested in broadening their understanding and expertise in issues related to the Middle East and North Africa. The four-week course (June 14-July 12) will immerse our participants in the language and politics of the MENA region, with a particular emphasis on direct engagement with leading academic, political, intellectual, and religious figures active across the spectrum in Tunisia. Application deadline is APRIL 20, 2013.

The Exchange is an effort by Mideastwire.com and its partners to promote direct engagement and understanding through a variety of city-focused conferences. Since 2008 we have hosted Exchange programs in multiple cities, including Istanbul, Damascus, and Beirut. This summer marks our third session in Tunis, and an expansion of The Exchange that includes language courses as well as an opening conference with the International Crisis Group (www.crisisgroup.org).

Opening weekend of The Tunis Exchange will begin with a two-day conference (June 15-16) led by more than a dozen country experts, analysts, and directors from the ICG. This opening conference may be attended separately or in conjunction with the month-long politics session. Additionally, we will be conducting formal and Tunisian dialect Arabic classes for all levels throughout The Exchange. For more information, including program details, costs, and media coverage of The Exchange, please visit www.thebeirutexchange.com. To request an application or address any questions, contact info@mideastwire.com. If you have any questions, please contact Katy Hamill at KatyHamill@gmail.com. See attached poster for more info.

$2500 Scholarship for Students Interning in Fort Worth this Summer

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LAH has one $2500 scholarship for a student interning in the Fort Worth are (surrounding area like Grapevine and Midlothian are included) this summer.  If you are interning in the Fort Worth Area, please let Linda know by Friday, April 19th.  Send me a brief description of the internship, its duration, hours worked per week, and whether it is paid or unpaid.  We’ll select a scholarship recipient based on merit and need.

The Fate of the Book with Some Rap

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Just when you were lamenting that TILTS 2012-13 “The Fate of the Book” series had come to an end, we offer you one final, over-the-top, disturbingly loud, end-of-year spectacular!  After the parade of PRESERVERS, ACADEMICS, and TRANSFORMERS, come and listen to a PERFORMER of books:

Baba Brinkman

 “The Canterbury Tales Remixed”

7pm, 30 April 2013  (yes, the last week of classes)

JGB 2.324

Geology Building  (yes, rock out amongst the rocks!)

See and hear Baba Brinkman bring Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales to life through gritty hip-hop storytelling and live turntablism.  Baba will be accompanied by DJ and beat maker Mr. Simmonds.   Their off-Broadway show premiered in 2011 at the Soho Playhouse in New York City, and has been a hit at literature festivals and university campuses around the globe.

All students and faculty welcome, although seating capacity is limited.  Before your final exams, come and help us wrap up the TILTS “The Fate of the Book” year with some serious rap.

About the PERFORMER:

Baba Brinkman is a Canadian rap artist, playwright, and interpreter of Medieval and Renaissance literature.  Since 2003, Baba has made a name for himself as a rap troubadour, with hip-hop theatre shows such as The Rap Canterbury Tales, The Rap Guide to Evolution, and The Rebel Cell.  His innovative shows have enjoyed extended off-Broadway runs.

Fulbright US Student Program

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The 2014-2015 Fulbright U.S. Student competition will open on May 1, 2013.  The Fulbright U.S. Student program is open to graduate students at all levels, undergraduates who will have completed their degree by the beginning of the grant period (for most countries, Sept. 1, 2014) and non-students who hold a bachelor’s degree.  The program is restricted to U.S. citizens.  The grants are for study and research abroad, and are available for most countries.  Grants are awarded for all disciplines, including the sciences, social sciences, humanities, engineering, and the performing and creative arts.  A number of countries also offer grants for those who wish to serve as English teaching assistants.

An information session for prospective applicants will be presented by an Alumni Ambassador from the Institute of International Education on Friday, April 26 from 1:00-2:30 PM in Burdine 136.

Deadlines and Procedures:

1.  Potential applicants must register with us, by sending an email to:

Fulbright@austin.utexas.edu.  The email should give the applicant’s name, contact information, academic status (i.e., undergrad, grad, alumnus), country or region of interest, and area of study or research topic.

2.  The applicant should go to the Fulbright U.S. Student Program website

(http://us.fulbrightonline.org/home.html) for country summaries, information about preparing an application, and, starting May 1, to begin the online application process.

3.  The applicant should also review our campus website:

http://world.utexas.edu/abroad/funding/scholarships/fulbright

4.  Campus Deadline: The applicant must submit copies of all application materials electronically to our office by 2 PM on September 4. Interviews are tentatively scheduled between September 16 and September 27.  While the deadline for final submission to the national office has not yet been announced, my expectation is that it will be around mid-October.

For the most recent statistical year (2012-13), UT applicants received the 6th highest number of awards of all institutions in the nation and can boast the 2nd highest award percentage per applicant pool for the top ten institutions. As a Fulbrighter myself (Brazil, 1990), I can testify to the lifelong value of this extraordinary program, and I am hoping that we can make that experience available to students as well.

Best,

Lindsay Hale, Ph.D.

Department of Religious Studies

Chair, Fulbright U.S. Student Program Campus Committee

DemTex: Student-Led Courses

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Interested in helping to lead UT Austin’s Student-Led Course program? Apply to be a member of the 2013-2014 DemTex Leadership Team! DemTex is a program through which undergraduates to design and lead their very own discussion-based course under the supervision of a faculty sponsor. DemTex is currently seeking applicants to serve on the 2013-2014 Leadership Team in order to make the process for promoting and generating these courses as easy as possible. Positions available are Webmaster, Communications Director, Financial Director, and Recruitment Director. The Webmaster will be responsible for managing DemTex’s social media arm as well as the DemTex website making sure it is up to date and easy to use. Communications Director will be in charge of all other forms of publicity for DemTex especially in terms of designing promotional materials; the DemTex Communications Director will work with Senate’s Communication Director and Multimedia and Press Committee in order to fulfill this task. Financial Director will manage DemTex’s budget as well as work with Senate’s Financial Director and Veronica Cantu, Legislative Student Organization Accounting Clerk. Recruitment Director will be charged with planning tabling event and information sessions about the DemTex program in general and about specific courses as they are introduced, the Recruitment Director will also be responsible for helping to determine target audiences for specific courses as they are created. For more information and to access the application go to http://demtex.org for any questions and to submit the application contact Joey Dominguez or Kevin Boening at utdemtex@gmail.com.

Fall Turkish Language and Culture courses

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TUR 601C (fall) and 611C (spring) allow students to fulfill their language requirement in one year. There are great study abroad opportunities for students who complete this sequence.

Society and Politics in Turkish Film (MES 342 #42375/MEL 321 #42195) – fun for students interested in film, politics, Turkey, and the Middle East in general.

Teach English Abroad Info Session

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Dear UT Student,

Each year, language schools around the globe hire American college students and graduates to teach English simply because they speak it. Wouldn’t it be great to really KNOW how to teach what you speak so well?

UTeach-Liberal Arts and the International Office’s ESL Services have designed a unique six-hour course in June that includes learning to Teach English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) followed by, in July-August, a six-week Internship Abroad as a TESOL intern in China or Mexico.

ENROLLMENT IS LIMITED to 30 Participants: MEXICO (10) CHINA (20)  Apply here!

Summer Session I – In Austin, June 6-29, 2013

  • Principles of Teaching (3 hours daily)
  • Teaching English as a Second Language (3 hours daily)
  • Hands-On Internship in an Austin language school (2 hours daily)

Summer Session II – In China, Mexico, Austin, June 30*-August 9, 2013

  • ·       Internship, Registration by consent of Course Instructor

More info online.