The Ohio University Center for International Studies was founded in 1964, in tandem with the African Studies Program. In the years following, more globally focused programs were added to the center until it became the entity it is today, the one celebrating its 60th anniversary from Nov. 15-20.
Brian Collins is a professor of Indian religion and philosophy and has been a part of CIS for nearly 10 years.
“(CIS) is a way of organizing all the different programs throughout the university that do international studies,” Collins said. “The idea is that we don’t have a central study but we have one little office that coordinates so that people who want to do something in international studies have a place to go.”
Collins recognizes the significance of reaching a 60-year anniversary as a collective of like-minded academic departments.
“It shows a real dedication among people here to keep international studies and the presence of an international profile around,” Collins said.
Haley Duschinski has been the director of CIS for a year, in addition to working as a professor of anthropology for nearly 20 years.
“One of the reasons I came to Ohio University in 2005 was because of the Center for International Studies,” Duschinski said. “Ohio University has historic strengths in International Studies dating back to the late 1950s, especially in African Studies and Southeast Asian Studies, and those strengths really continue to today.”
Duschinski follows in the footsteps of Patrick Barr-Melej, a professor of Latin American history. Barr-Melej directed the center through a globally difficult time of the pandemic and believes the center came out stronger on the other side.
“I think we were at a crossroads a few years ago in terms of what the center was, where it was in the broader scheme of the university and also where the university was in terms of its prioritizing a global footprint,” he said. “I think we’ve made progress on all fronts and the center today really is moving forward under really strong leadership, but it does take a village.”
The changes over recent years continue six decades of evolution. The center was founded during a turning point of globalization, and it has adapted as the state of the world has shifted over 60 years.
“The center was founded at a time in which there was also a lot of global tumult and many questions about where the world was going to go and what our priorities are as human beings, as global citizens,” Barr-Melej said. “It was a moment in which there was much to learn about the world and I think there are parallels today.”
Recent additions to the center include the granting of a Fulbright-Hays award to run a four-week long curriculum development program in Ghana during the summer of 2025, as well as newly initiated weekly research seminars to highlight international research and creative activity.
These developments demonstrate the center’s growth in a way that aligns with its core mission of international awareness, a concept that will be encouraged and instilled during the anniversary celebration.
“It’s not about being self-congratulatory,” Barr-Melej said. “It’s about being aware of all the people and taking full consideration of all the effort put forth over 60 years to get us where we are.”
Many of these people are CIS alumni who exemplify positive global citizenship in their careers. One of the focal points of the upcoming celebration will be highlighting these alumni through a welcome dinner at the Zenner House on Nov. 16 and numerous alumni panels Nov. 18.
“Those discussions are really important for us because it’ll give us an opportunity not only to reflect on the past 60 years of the Center for International Studies but also to look ahead and to engage in important conversations about the future of International Studies at Ohio University,” Duschinski said.
Additional events can be found on the anniversary website, including film screenings, historical excursions and an awards ceremony. Barr-Melej looks forward to seeing the interaction between alumni and current students, which he believes “speaks to the human side of everything we do in international studies.”
In terms of the next 60 years of CIS, Barr-Melej believes higher education as a whole will handle lots of changes, in the form of both opportunity and challenge, a sentiment Collins agrees with.
“I’d like to see more hires and more investment in language,” Collins said. “I think those would really pay off down the line, having established language programs and having people who are tenured faculty. We don’t have a Middle East historian right now and that’s a big vacancy, so I would like to see those kinds of gaps addressed.”
