Society

Colombia University promotes Vietnamese studies programme

Columbia University, one of the eight “Ivy League” schools in the US, has opened a Vietnamese studies programme aimed at helping young people not only from the United States but from around the world learn more about Vietnam.
Colombia University promotes Vietnamese studies programme ảnh 1Columbia University is one of the eight“Ivy League” schools in the US. (Source: giaoduc.net.vn)
New York (VNA) – ColumbiaUniversity, one of the eight “Ivy League” schools in the US, has opened aVietnamese studies programme aimed at helping young people not only from theUnited States but from around the world learn more about Vietnam.

It was initiated by Vietnamese-Americanprofessors Lien Hang Nguyen and John Phan.

Their idea for the programme stemmedfrom the fact that knowledge of Vietnam among many Americans is stillassociated with the war, although it ended nearly 50 years ago.

Lien Hang Nguyen, director of the programme, told Vietnam News Agency that the ideacame to her in 2017 when she was invited to teach history, mainly history of America and East Asia, at ColumbiaUniversity. At that time, she focused mainly on the war in Vietnam and itsforeign relations with other countries after the war, while John Phan, hercolleague at the Department of Culture and Language East Asia, specialised inthe study of the pre-modern history of Vietnam, specifically the origin anddevelopment of the Vietnamese language. Their idea subsequently received thesupport of Columbia University, and they started to build a curriculum they jointlyteach.

Colombia University promotes Vietnamese studies programme ảnh 2Professor Lien Hang Nguyen (left) grants an interview to Vietnam News Agency. (Photo: VNA)
According to Lien Hang Nguyen, theprogramme includes both undergraduate and graduate courses on Vietnamese studies,including Vietnamese history and seminars on Vietnam, especially in the fieldsof language and culture. The courses stand out compared to studies on Vietnam offeredat other top US universities.

Before the outbreak ofthe COVID-19 pandemic, Lien Hang Nguyen and her colleagues succeeded in holding twointernational conferences in 2019. The programme was canceled in 2020 but theystill held webinars and other activities for students and those who wereinterested in Vietnamese studies.

This helped ensurethat studies were sustained through those difficult times.

During his visit toNew York to attend the United Nations General Assembly in September 2021,President Nguyen Xuan Phuc acknowledged the contribution of Lien Hang Nguyen and her colleaguesin promoting an understanding of Vietnam in the US.

The meeting withPresident Phuc prompted Lien Hang Nguyen and her colleagues to expand the programme. They have decided to return to Vietnam at the end of July this year to organise twoseminars, one in Hanoi and the other in Ho Chi Minh City, in order to spread theword about the programme./.
VNA
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