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AEF To Honor Richard Hovannisian For Half Century At UCLA

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  • AEF To Honor Richard Hovannisian For Half Century At UCLA

    AEF TO HONOR RICHARD HOVANNISIAN FOR HALF CENTURY AT UCLA

    http://www.reporter.am/index.cfm?objectid=DDCE4F20-D75D-11DF-A6BB0003FF3452C2
    Wednesday October 13, 2010

    Prof. Richard Hovannisian.

    The Armenian Educational Foundation's anniversary celebration will
    mark another momentous milestone -- the fiftieth year of Richard
    Hovannisian's teaching of Armenian History at UCLA.

    Professor Hovannisian will be honored at AEF's 60th Anniversary Banquet
    to be held on Saturday, November 6 at the new Ritz Carlton/JW Marriot
    at LA Live in downtown Los Angeles.

    Al Cabraloff, Chair of AEF's 60th Anniversary Gala Organizing
    Committee, expressed the group's jubilation by noting: "Professor
    Hovannisian is the defining figure in the area of Armenian education,
    both with his 50-year tenure as the Dean of Armenian Studies worldwide
    and with his continuing commitment to our people and nation. It is a
    privilege for us to be able to honor such an incredible and amazing
    person."

    Hovannisian began by teaching UCLA Extension courses in history in
    Fresno in 1960 and then transferred to the Los Angeles campus in 1962,
    where he served as a lecturer while also writing a Ph.D. dissertation
    titled Armenia on the Road to Independence. He taught courses in
    Armenian history and culture as a lecturer until 1969 when he was
    given a tenured position as Associate Professor of Armenian and Near
    Eastern History and was soon advanced to full professor in 1972.

    Starting in 1969 he added graduate level courses to the curriculum and
    developed programs for the M.A. and Ph.D. degree in Armenian history.

    At UCLA, Hovannisian served as Associate Director of the Von Grunebaum
    Center for Near Eastern Studies for many years, represented the State
    of California on the Western Interstate Commission on Higher Education,
    served as a consultant to California State Board of Education and to
    "Facing History and Ourselves" organization that helps classrooms
    and communities worldwide link the past to moral choices today. He
    is the author or editor of more than 25 books, including the magnus
    opum four volume archival study, The Republic of Armenia (1971-1996).

    In order to guarantee the permanence of the position in Armenian
    History at UCLA, Hovannisian encouraged the AEF to sponsor an endowed
    chair through a contract with the university which would commit it
    to maintain the position in Armenian History after Hovannisian's
    retirement. In a very short time, thanks to the leadership of Dro
    Amirian and assistance of attorney Walter Karabian, the AEF raised
    $500,000 to endow the AEF Chair in Modern Armenian History in 1986
    and Richard Hovannisian was selected as the first Chair Holder in 1987.

    The ceremonies marking the Chair's inauguration were attended by many
    dignitaries including His Holiness Karekin II of the Great House of
    Cilicia, Governor George Deukmejian, and university officials.

    "The man-Richard Hovannisian-and the institution-the Armenian
    Educational Foundation-are mirror images of each other, each dedicated
    wholeheartedly to the advancement of Armenian education both in
    the Diaspora and in the Homeland. The 60th Anniversary Gala will be
    our community's way of showing its great pride and appreciation for
    the marvelous work of that very special man and of our very worthy
    organization," added AEF President Vahik Petrossian.

    Hovannisian is regarded as a popular though demanding teacher, with
    large undergraduate classes made up mostly of non-Armenian students.

    With the assistance of the AEF, the nearly 900 Armenian Genocide oral
    history interviews conducted by Hovannisian and his students have
    been transcribed from their original Armenian as well as translated
    into English.

    Through his efforts, Armenian history has been brought to both academic
    and general public through a series of semi-annual conferences on
    historic Armenian cities and provinces, having held twenty such
    conferences since 1997 and interspersing these with conferences on
    the Armenian Genocide and other issues of importance to Armenian
    Studies and the Armenian community.

    Professor Hovannisian is the recipient of the Medal of Mesrop Mashtots
    from His Holiness Karekin II of the Great House of Cilicia in 1982,
    Medal of Saints Sahak and Mesrop from Catholicos of All Armenians
    Garegin II in 2001, and Knight of Cilicia from His Holiness Aram I in
    2001. In 1990, Richard Hovannisian was elected to the Armenian Academy
    of Sciences, becoming the first social scientist living abroad to be
    so honored. He has received honorary doctorates from Yerevan State
    University (1994) and Artsakh State University (1997). In 1998, on the
    occasion of the 80th anniversary of the establishment of the First
    Republic, Professor Hovannisian was presented the Movses Khorenatsi
    medal and award by the President of the Republic of Armenia. In 2002,
    the President of Artsakh on behalf of the people of Nagorno-Karabagh
    personally presented to Professor Hovannisian the Republic's Medal
    of St. Mesrop Mashtots.Hovannisian has now persuaded the UCLA to
    authorize a search for his successor, something that would not have
    occurred without the AEF Chair having been established through the
    foresight of Hovannisian and the enthusiastic support of the AEF.

    The AEF 60th Anniversary Banquet will be held on Saturday, November
    6th at the new Ritz Carlton/JW Marriot at LA Live in downtown Los
    Angeles. For more information, sponsorship opportunities or tickets,
    please contact Diane Cabraloff at (310) 729-1552 or Melody Petrossian
    at (818) 434-1167.




    From: A. Papazian
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