Croatia

Anthropology, History, and Modern Culture Program
This short-term study abroad program offers students the opportunity to study the history and culture of Croatia through the lens of Anthropology and to spend twelve days in June 2008 exploring the historica  and cultural sites studied while in Croatia. Students will enroll in Anthropology 294 during Spring Quarter 2008. This course will meet one evening a week and will focus on the history, both ancient and modern, of Croatia including Roman, Turkish, and Greek occupations, Tito’s era and the recent ethnic cleansing of the 20th century, the fossil record of humans in Croatia including the Krapina Neanderthals, and the development of modern anthropological research through the Croatian Anthropological Society.
 

Czech Republic

AIFS Program at Charles University
Prague today is a gathering place for tourists, students, artists, writers, and musicians. Against the backdrop of castles and cathedrals of the Habsburg Empire, and art- nouveau cafes, Prague is a stimulating city to live and study. The city was built from a collection of picturesque towns. From narrow winding streets of medieval Old Town to the wide boulevards of New Town and Wenceslas Square, each area still retains its special character. Outside of Prague, the countryside is full of elegant spa towns, castles with surrounding fields, and picturesque mountain ranges. Prague is within easy reach of Vienna, Budapest, Berlin, and Munich.

FAES Program
The College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences Program at the Czech Agricultural University (CZU) is an intense, six week adventure that will expose students to the dramatic history of this small Eastern European nation. Students will explore agricultural development and economic change from the days of King Charles to the birth of Czechoslovakia under communism, through the peaceful “Velvet Revolution” and into their recent ascent into the European Union. An agriculture background is not a prerequisite, but an interest in agriculture and natural resources is required.
 

Intensive Czech Language Program
This Ohio State Summer Program in Olomouc is a six-week, intensive language and culture program offered at Palacky University. The program provides students with the opportunity to begin and/or increase their language ability and to experience contemporary Czech life and culture. In addition to classroom instruction offered by Palacky University instructors, students will participate in group field trips and have opportunities to explore the city on their own.
 

Prague Theatre Program
The Prague Theatre program is an extension of an Ohio State course (Theatre 694: Group Studies—Czech Theatre and Culture) taught by Professor Joe Brandesky during fall 2009. The course will provide an historical overview of the Czech Republic and the continuing significance of its place in central Europe and world culture. The course will meet twice weekly for two hours during fall quarter. Immediately following fall quarter exams, students will travel as a group to the Czech Republic. While in Prague students will visit DAMU (the Theatre Academy, affiliated by agreement with The Ohio State University Theatre), take guided tours of the National and Vinohrady Theatres and the Theatre of the Estates, as well as the Castle district, Old Town, Josefov (Jewish cemetery, Old and New Synagogues) and other points of interest in Prague. A day trip to Cesky Krumlov will acquaint students with one of the best preserved baroque theatres in the world. On the way back the group will stop in the tiny village of Borotin where students will meet and discuss Czech theatre and culture with world famous scenographer Jaroslav Malina, retired DAMU professor and former Rector of the Academy of Performing Arts (AMU). The group will attend at least two performances in Prague.

Hungary

Hungarian Culture and Society
The Hungarian Culture and Society Program is a continuation of the GEC course Slavic 245: Hungarian Culture, to be offered by the Department of Slavic and East European Languages and Literatures during the spring quarter. The course will introduce students to diverse aspects of Hungarian culture including literature, arts and music, film, folklore, geography, and architecture, as well as everyday Hungarian life such as traditional cuisine, sports, popular culture and politics, in the context of Hungarian history and traditional culture. Following spring quarter, students will travel to Hungary, where they will see firsthand a portrait of life, customs and traditions in present-day Hungary, and acquire a deeper understanding of Hungary and its role within Europe and the world.
 

Poland

Ohio State Summer School in Social Sciences in Warsaw
The Ohio State Summer School in Warsaw is an intensive training and research program offered at the Graduate School of Social Research (GSSR), the Polish Academy of Sciences. Students will engage in (a) four week  of classroom instruction/research in Warsaw (July 3–31, 2008), and (b) individual consultations with the Resident Director upon their return to OSU (August 4-20, 2008). The program contains two tracks, one for undergraduate and one pf  graduate students, to provide students at different academic levels the opportunity to engage first-hand in studying post-communist European countries in comparative perspective. In addition to classroom work with OSU and GSSR instructors, students will visit major international organizations that assess social and political change in the region, such as the United Nations Development Program, and the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, and meet with experts in cross-national research. Field trips and cultural activities will complement classroom work.
 

Social Welfare in Eastern Europe: The Polish Experience
The Ohio State Study Abroad Program in Poland is designed to introduce social work majors and other students to the eastern European system of social welfare, with special attention given to social welfare policy and practice in Poland. This program will also introduce students to the history, culture, and society of Poland. The four week program will consist of two pre-travel meetings in Columbus, Ohio and three weeks of lectures and agency visits in Cracow, Poland. Lectures will be provided in English by faculty from Ohio State and Jagiellonia  University.
 

Russia

American Councils Advanced Russian Language and Area Studies Program (RLASP)
The American Councils Advanced Russian Language and Area Studies Programs (RLASP) are designed to maximize linguistic and cultural immersion in Russian society. The academic program is designed to improve participants’ oral, listening, reading and writing proficiency in Russian language and to develop their knowledge of Russian history, politics, culture and society. The academic year, semester, and summer programs provide approximately twenty hours per week of in-class instruction in Russian grammar, phonetics, conversation, and cultural studies at Moscow International University, the Russian State Pedagogical University (Gertsen Institute) in St. Petersburg, and the KORA Center for Russian Language in Vladimir. One day per week of the academic program is set aside for local cultural excursions.

 
FAES Program in Environment and Development
This intensive summer program offered by the College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences introduces students to Siberia’s environmental issues within the contexts of Russia’s transitional economy and Siberia’s ecosystems and natural resources. Through classes, seminars, laboratories and field trips in and around Tomsk, students will examine the pristine ecosystems (coniferous and deciduous woodlands, cedar woodlands and wetlands) in contrast to industrial and agricultural sites, nuclear manufacturing, and oil exploitation. Students will also study the Russian colonization of Siberia and the interaction of indigenous and Russian culture  and peoples of the region.
 

Intensive Russian Language and Culture Program - Tomsk State University
This Ohio State program in Tomsk is an intensive language and culture program offered at Tomsk State University (TSU). The program provides students with the opportunity to increase their Russian language ability and to experience contemporary Russian life by living with host families. In addition to classroom instruction by Tomsk State University instructors, students will also participate in various cultural and historical immersion activities during their stay. Each student will be paired with a TSU student, who will help with his or her adjustment to a completely Russian language environment. This program includes a cultural program in Moscow, prior to departing for Tomsk, and a field trip in the region around Tomsk.
 

Russian Culture and Society Program
The Russian Culture and Society Program is a continuation of the GEC course Russian 235: Modern Russian Culture, to be offered by the Department of Slavic and East European Languages and Literatures during the Spring Quarter. During the spring quarter, the class will learn about modern Russian culture and society in historical and political context. Immediately following Spring Quarter exams, the students, guided by the Russian 235 instructor and resident director, will travel to Russia to experience everyday life and to visit sites of major artistic, cultural, and historical importance at one of the most beautiful times of the year—the famed White Nights of early summer.