MSU Tuesday Bulletin, 01/29/08

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Tuesday Bulletin for January 29th, 2008
Topics covered in this issue: Events | Announcements | Other Announcements | Fellowships Events

Farmer Integration of Soil-fertility-enhancing trees in Cropping Systems in Southern Malawi Thursday, February 14, 2008

African Studies Center Brown Bag talk with Tracy Beedy, Advanced Graduate Student (Crop and Soil Sciences, MSU), 12:00 noon, Room 201 International Center.

Urbanization and Health in Africa: Exploring the Interconnections between Poverty, Inequality and the Burden of Disease Friday, February 1, 2008

CASID/WID Friday Forum with Dr. Jacob Songsore, Dean, School of Research & Graduate Studies (Univ. of Ghana), 12:00 noon, Room 201 International Center.

Language Use in Africa: Why Do Speakers Often Codeswitch Between Languages? Thursday, February 7, 2008

African Studies Center Brown Bag talk with Carol Myers-Scotton, Adjunct Faculty (Linguistics, and Visiting Scholar, African Studies Center, MSU), 12:00 noon, Room 201 International Center.

Ethiopian Diasporic Experience as Encapsulated in the Popular Music of the 1910s to 2000 Thursday, January 31, 2008

African Studies Center Brown Bag talk with Solomon Addis Getahun, Faculty, (History, Central Michigan Univ.), 12:00 noon, Room 201 International Center.

Film series

"Bamako" (Mali)
Thursday, January 31,2008 "Bamako" (Mali), will be shown at the Snyder-Phillips residential college theater, 7:30p.m.

Abderrahmane Sissako wrote and directed this offbeat, satiric comedy which imagines how the powers that be in the West might be forced to answer for the damage they've done in the Third World. A handful of powerful international organizations, such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, are put on trial for their crippling effect on the African economy; the evidence is presented which explains how these "friends" of Africa have saddled the nations with debts they can never repay.

Lecture by Julie Mehretu, Internationally known artist Thursday, February 7, 2008
Julie Mehretu, Internationally known artist (born in Ethiopia, grew up in East Lansing), is the guest lecturer for the Art & Art History departments, 7:00 p.m., 118 Psychology Bldg. (See MSU announcements regarding other events with Julie Mehretu).

Film series

"Thomas Sankara: The Upright Man" (Burkina Faso) Thursday, February 14, 2008

"Thomas Sankara: The Upright Man" will be shown at the Snyder-Phillips residential college theater, 7:30 p.m.

As Africa looks desperately for leaders of integrity and vision, the life and ideals of the late Thomas Sankara seems more and more relevant and exemplary with the passage of time. The film recovers for the present a detailed history of Sankara's brief four-year rule and his revolutionary program for African self-reliance as a defiant alternative to the neo-liberal development strategies imposed on Africa by the West, both then and today.

Announcements

Julie Mehretu Events & Exhibition schedule Works on Paper: Julie Mehretu - New Drawings, February 1 – March 16, 2008

Kresge Art Museum is privileged to exhibit recent drawings by Julie Mehretu, whose paintings are featured currently at the Detroit Institute of Arts as their inaugural special exhibition in the newly reopened museum. Mehretu was born in Ethiopia and grew up in East Lansing where her father is on the MSU faculty. She has lived in New York, Rhode Island, Addis Ababa, Dakar, and Berlin and currently is in residence in mid-Michigan.

Mehretu has been described as a truly global artist whose large, abstract paintings explore issues of mobility, social organization, political entanglement, and global competition. The vocabularies of maps, urban planning, and architectural forms join together in her densely layered paintings and drawings. She draws, erases, and redraws details on top of the architectural layers in her paintings. Her drawings are preparatory to her large paintings, and sometimes interim between paintings. The drawings on view are from 2007.

Friends of KAM Fundraiser: Meet Julie Mehretu and Jessica Rankin at Their Studio on February 7, 2008. (Address provided upon reservation), Okemos, MI, 5:30–7:30 p.m. Space is limited and RSVPs for this event must be received no later than Feb. 1, 2008. Reservations can be made by downloading the file: http://www.artmuseum.msu.edu/PDF/KAM-MEHRETU%20Inv.pdf or call the museum at (517) 353-9834.

Julie Mehretu is an internationally-known artist who spent much of her childhood in East Lansing. Her work is currently featured at the Detroit Institue of Arts, and she was the recipient of a 2005 MacArthur Fellowship. Jessica Rankin's work is also widely known, with a 2006 exhibition at P.S. 1 in New York. Mehretu and Rankin share a 7,500 square foot studio in Okemos. This open studio is an extraordinary opportunity to view work in progress by these world-renowned artists.

African Studies Faculty News
Grover M. Hudson to retire Spring 2008

Grover M. Hudson received his bachelor's degree from the University of Texas, Arlington and his M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of California, Los Angeles. He joined the MSU Department of Linguistics, Oriental and African Languages in 1979, which later became the Department of Linguistics and Germanic, Slavic, Asian and African Languages. Professor Hudson is also a member of the African Studies Center Core Faculty.

Dr. Hudson is an internationally known specialist in Ethiopian languages. He published the definitive Highland East Cushitic Dictionary and has written and edited books and numerous articles on African languages, phonology, and language teaching. Dr. Hudson is a member of the Linguistic Society of America, the International Congress of Ethiopian Studies, African Language Teachers Association, and other professional organizations. He was a member of the State of Michigan Executive Council of The American Association of University Professors and president for two years of the Michigan State University chapter.In retirement, Dr. Hudson plans to travel, work on a comparative grammar of Ethiopian Semitic languages, and continue research in Afroasiatic linguistics.

Other Announcements

Hugh Masekela to perform- Feb. 2, 2008, Detroit, MI South African jazz great Hugh Masekela will perform at the Music Hall Center for the Arts in Detroit, Michigan. Following is one of the websites that has information about Masekela and are selling tickets: http://www.zvents.com/detroit-mi/events/show/73114860-hugh-masekela. Also, visit ticketmaster.com to purchase tickets.

Intensive KiSwahili in Tanzania– June 20-August 15, 2008 The Association of African Studies Programs (AASP) and the African Language Teachers Association (ALTA) in cooperation with Michigan State University announce the Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad for Intensive Advanced Kiswahili in Tanzania. The Intensive Advanced Kiswahili Group Project Abroad (GPA) for the summer of 2008 will be held in Tanzania, pending receipt of grant funding from the U.S. Department of Education. The program is scheduled for June 20th - August 15th, 2008. The program is organized by Michigan State University (MSU). MSU in collaboration with the University of Florida and the University of Dar es Salaam, will conduct the program at the MSTraining Centre for Development Co-operation near Arusha Tanzania. With U.S. Department of Education support, candidates who are accepted will be awarded fellowships that will pay all air tickets to Tanzania and ground transport there as well as all expenses for instruction, housing, meals, and extracurricular activities in Tanzania. An additional fee of $1,000 is required of each student participant.

To be eligible, applicants must be 1) U.S. citizens or permanent residents of the United States; 2) A graduate student or junior or senior currently enrolled in an institution of higher education, who is studying in the areas of social sciences, humanities, foreign languages, and/or African Studies.

Applications are available on the MSU African Studies Center website http://africa.msu.edu/kiswahili.php. Applications can be submitted electronically.

Please submit the following:

1) The original plus six copies of the completed two-page application; 2) Original, official academic transcripts from your current college/university. (If your Kiswahili study was done elsewhere, transcripts from that institution should be requested as well). Only original transcripts will be accepted; 3) A letter from your most recent instructor giving a detailed evaluation of your speaking, reading, and writing proficiency in Kiswahili. This evaluation should be mailed by the evaluator directly to Dr. Deo Ngonyani by the deadline of the application; 4) Two letters of recommendation from other current or former instructors. These should also be sent by the recommender directly to Dr. Ngonyani by the deadline.

Dr. Ngonyani will be available to assist you during the preparation of your application. Please contact him for advice or for more information at: Dr. Deo Ngonyani, 614 Wells Hall, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824; Tel: (517) 353-4051; e-mail: ngonyani@msu.edu. The application deadline is February 15, 2008. Please visit http://africa.msu.edu/kiswahili.php for details and the application form.

12th Annual Hilton Head Island Gullah Celebration - February 1 - 29, 2008 Today the descendants of West Africans brought to the coastal islands of South Carolina and Georgia in bondage are striving to preserve a way of life. Gullah is more than simply the language and name of a people. It encompasses the essence of struggle, spirituality, perseverance, and tradition.

The Celebration showcases the rich cultural heritage of the Gullah people and their history on Hilton Head Island. Although it had its origins in slavery, the history and culture of the inhabitants that call Hilton Head Island and the Lowcountry coastal region of South Carolina "home" is an inspiration to all Americans. The original Gullahs were African slaves who were shipped across the Atlantic from West Africa to work the cotton plantations of the South. While plantation owners built their fortunes upon slave labor, the slaves were able to create something of their own – the unique culture that is now known as Gullah. For tickets contact the Gullah Celebration Hotline: (877) 650-0676.

For additional information regarding events, group ticket sales, or hotel and travel information, contact the Gullah the hotline or locally (843) 689-9314 or visit: www.gullahcelebration.com.

New Afrocentric Store - Lansing Mall, Lansing, MI There is a new store in the Lansing Mall! "3rd World Imports Afrovisions." This Afrocentric store sells Shea Butter, African Art, Jewelry, DVD's and more! The location is next to J.B. Jewelry and Macy's. Hours: Mon. - Sat. 10:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m.; Sun. 12:00noon - 6:00 p.m.

Fellowships

Margaret McNamara Memorial Fund (MMMF) – For Female Students from Developing Countries The MMMF annually awards educational grants to women from developing countries whose studies and future plans aim to benefit women and children in their respective regions. Their past achievements and volunteer efforts demonstrate their commitment. These scholarships are for women from developing countries currently enrolled at U.S. or Canadian colleges, universities. This year's nine MMMF recipients are enrolled in U.S. universities in graduate studies ranging from social work to agronomy, from early childhood education to nursing, from women's & gender studies to political science.

The online application for the academic year 2008-09 is available at: www.wbfn.org. The deadline for submission is February 29, 2008.

Pre-Doctoral Fellow in African-New World Studies African-New World Studies Program at Florida International University seeks a Pre-Doctoral Fellow for the Academic year 2008-2009. Applicants must be ABD (have finished their course work and already engaged in the writing of their dissertation): they must be conducting or have conducted research on Africa or/and the African Diaspora. The successful applicant will come from either the social sciences or the humanities. S/he will be expected to teach the undergraduate course "Introduction to African Worlds" during one semester and one other course related to the candidate's expertise during the second semester. The pre-doctoral fellow is also expected to support the academic and outreach activities of the program. Salary will be determined according to accomplishments and experience.

Florida International University is ranked as a Research University in the High Research Activity category, and an EOE institution.

Please send a letter of application, a vitae, one writing sample of not more than 30 pages, and three sealed letters of recommendation by March 14, 2008 to: Director, ANWS, Pre-Doctoral Fellow, Florida International University, African-New World Studies Program, 3000 NE 151 Street, AC1 -162, North Miami, Florida 33181.

Page Editor: Ali B. Ali-Dinar, Ph.D.