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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
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