Events Scheduled to Commemorate Fulbright Centennial

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — This year marks the 100th birthday of Senator J. William Fulbright, who was born April 9, 1905. Fulbright served as president of the University of Arkansas from 1939 to 1941 before being elected to the U.S. Senate, where he spent 30 years, 15 of them as chair of the Foreign Relations Committee. He was the only senator to vote against funding Joseph McCarthy’s investigating committee, and he introduced legislation that led to the formation of both the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and the United Nations.

He is remembered around the world as the author of the famed Fulbright Scholarship Program, created in 1946 in the aftermath of World War II. The program, intended to increase mutual understanding among nations through the exchange of knowledge and skills, has provided funding for more than 255,000 participants to travel and study abroad.

On Feb. 9, 1995, Senator Fulbright died in Washington. He was buried in Evergreen Cemetery in Fayetteville, his hometown. On July 10, 1982, the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Arkansas was dedicated in his honor.

The following events are part of the year-long celebration to commemorate the Fulbright Centennial. All events, with the exception of the International Student Banquet on April 11, are free.

Monday, April 4

Lecture Panel: “Language & Society”**

Location: Multicultural Center  ARKU 404

Time: 3:30 p.m.

Speakers:  Louise Rozier, Assistant Professor of Italian

  Jenny Xu, Instructor of Chinese

  Tatsuya Fukushima, Assistant Professor of Japanese

Presented by: The Department of Foreign Languages

Sponsored by: The Multicultural Center

Tuesday, April 5

Lecture: “The Qin - From Central Asia to Central China”**

Location: Mullins Library, Room 104

Time: 4 p.m.

Presented by: Bo Lawergren, Hunter College, City University of New York

Sponsored by: The Center for the Study of Early Asian and Middle Eastern Musics

Cultural Documentary: “On the Road to Tang through Cambridge”**

Location: Mullins Library, Room 104

Time: 7:30 p.m.

Covering the works of Laurence Picken and the “Cambridge Group” on Classical Chinese music during the Tang Dynasty and its preservation in Japan.

Sponsored by: Library of Congress and the Center for the Study of Early Asian and Middle Eastern Musics

Thursday, April 7

Seminar: Mulier Fortis -“17th Century Jesuit Drama on Martyrdom in Japan”**

Location: Mullins Library, Room 104

Time: 9 a.m.

Presented by: Dr. Fumiko Niiyama-Kalicki (Vienna)

Sponsored by: The Center for the Study of Early Asian and Middle Eastern Musics

Cultural Documentary: “The Castaway -The Story of Manjiro”**

(Directed by Ayumi Sato)

Location: Mullins Library, Room 104

Time: 3 p.m.

Opening remarks by Dr. Shih-Shan Henry Tsai, Director of Asian Studies Program

Ms. Ayumi Sato, director of the documentary, will be present to discuss the film with the audience.

This film portrays the life of John Manjiro, the 19th-Century Japanese fisherman who was saved by American naval officers after a shipwreck and stayed in the U.S. Manjiro later returned to Japan and contributed to the advancement of the Japan-U.S. diplomatic relationship.

Presented by: Department of Foreign Languages, Japan-America Society of Arkansas

Sponsored by: Consulate-General of Japan, New Orleans

Lecture: “A Fulbright Scholar's Perspective on U.S. - China Relations”

Location:  Kimpel Hall 105

Time: 4 p.m.

Presented by:  Qingsi Li, Fulbright Scholar from China, Assistant Dean and Associate Professor in the School of International Studies, Renmin University, Beijing

Professor Li is currently in the Fulbright-American Political Science Association Congressional Fellowship Program in Washington, D.C., and serving as a visiting Fulbright Scholar at American University.

Sponsored by:  International Relations Club, International Relations Program, and the Fulbright Association

Hoyt Purvis, director of the International Relations Program, will offer opening remarks; in addition, current Fulbright scholars on campus from abroad will be introduced and recognized.

Friday, April 8, 2005

Fulbright Language Festival: Japanese-Chinese-Italian Joint Speech Contests**

Time:  2:45 - 4:30 p.m.: Speech Contests

           5 - 6:30 p.m.: Award Ceremony 

Location: Leflar Law Center

Award Ceremony

. Speeches by Dignitaries
. 
. Music Presentation: Music and Diplomacy
. 
. Award Presentation
. 
. Cake and punch commemorating Senator J. W. Fulbright’s 100th birthday
. 
Sponsored by:  The Center for the Study of Early Asian and Middle Eastern Musics,

Department of Foreign Languages, J. WilliamW. Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences,

Leflar Law Center

Monday, April 11, 2005

2005 International Banquet and Fashion Show

Time: 6 p.m.

Location: Arkansas Union Ballroom

Sponsored by:  International Student Organization

Tickets must be purchased in advance by calling the Office of International Students and Scholars at 575-5003.

** These events have been organized under the umbrella of the UA Cultural Event Series, “From Silk Road to Crossroads.”