PRESS RELEASE
Institute of Armenian Studies
University of Southern California
Taper Hall of Humanities, Suite 252
Los Angeles, California 90089-4015
Tel: 213-821-3943
Email: armenian@college.usc.edu

USC INSTITUTE OF ARMENIAN STUDIES

Dear Friends of USC Institute of Armenian Studies,
We are happy to report that the Institute has successfully ended
another semester. The Fall 2008 semester proved to be very productive
as indicated below:

CURRICULAR INITIATIVE
The Institute was pleased to offer the core course for a planned Minor
in Armenian Studies: MDA 330 — The Armenian Heritage: History, Arts &
Culture. This new course was taught on Mondays and Wednesdays 12-1:45
by Prof. Richard H. Dekmejian, Mr. Vatche Mankerian, and a group of
visiting scholars and artists. The course consisted of a
multidisciplinary exploration of Armenian history and cultural heritage,
its evolution and forms of expression through the ages including
folklore, traditions, religious practices, literature, architecture,
painting, sculpture, music, theater, and film.

LECTURE SERIES FOR MDA 330 AND THE COMMUNITY
A distinguished group of scholars and artists were invited to the MDA
330 class as guest lecturers throughout the semester which allowed the
Institute to present a lecture series in conjunction with the course.
The lectures were well attended by many guests from the campus and the
community. The guest speakers included Prof. Peter Cowe, UCLA; Fr.
Vazken Movsessian, USC student chaplain; Fr. Muron Aznikian, Prelacy of
the Armenian Church; Ruth Thomassian, Project SAVE; Prof. Mihran
Agbabian, USC; Lucina Hubbard-Agbabian, USC Thornton School of Music;
Alidz Agbabian, folklore specialist; film director Hank Saroyan, nephew
of the great author William Saroyan; Harut Sassounian, The Lincy
Foundation; Dr. Garbis Der-Yeghiayan, President of Mashdotz College;
Prof. Donald Miller, USC; artist Seeroon Yeretzian; Myrna Douzjian,
UCLA; Gala Danilova, HALO Trust; and Vartkes Yeghiayan, Esq., author of
a newly published book on Raphael Lemkin.

SAROYAN CENTENNIAL EXHIBIT ` A GREAT SUCCESS
At a gala reception on October 19, the Dickran Tevrizian Fellowship
Program and USC Institute of Armenian Studies celebrated the William
Saroyan Centennial, with the opening of a month long exhibition of
photographs of William Saroyan. The gala reception and exhibition were
hosted by the Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles (NLS-LA), at
their Adams Square Building in Glendale. The exhibit featured a rare
collection of photographs taken by Boghos Boghosian, the official
photographer for many newspapers in Armenia and the Soviet Union, during
Saroyan’s last visits to Armenia in 1976 and 1978.
Over 250 guests, filling the galleries to capacity, were welcomed by
Neal Dudovitz, Esq., NLS-LA Executive Director, and Dr. R. H. Dekmejian,
Director of USC Institute of Armenian Studies. The guest of honor,
Judge Dickran Tevrizian, spoke about the Fellowship, which he
established at the NLS-LA. The Dickran Tevrizian Fellowship supports an
attorney working at Neighborhood Legal Services to address the legal
needs of Southern California’s growing low-income Armenian-American
Community. The program ended with an upbeat speech by Hank Saroyan,
nephew of William Saroyan, who chronicled his fond memories of his uncle
Bill. Due to popular demand, the exhibition was extended through
November.

SAROYAN BOOK PRESENTATION
On December 18, the Institute, in collaboration with Abril Bookstore of
Glendale, presented Boghos Boghosian’s book titled SAROYAN — His Heart
in the Highlands. The newly published volume of photographs and essays
of Saroyan was edited by Varujan Der Simonian and presented by the
renowned photographer Ara Oshagan.

DIRECTOR’S ACTIVITIES
On September 12, Prof. Richard Hrair Dekmejian joined a panel of
scholars to discuss the issues arising from the recent Russian-Georgian
war. The Colloquium was presented by USC College of Letters, Arts &
Sciences.
On September 30, Prof. Dekmejian lectured on `Islamist Terrorism:
Future Trends’ and `The Russian-Georgian Conflict and Armenian Interests’
at United Armenian Congregational Church in Hollywood.
On November 15, Prof. Dekmejian was keynote Speaker at the AAEF Fourth
Anniversary Gala Banquet. AAEF is a philanthropic organization that
supports schools and educational projects in Armenia.

SUPPORT FOR STUDENTS AND ORGANIZATIONS
The Institute continued administering Armenian Proficiency Exams to USC
students; providing advisement and counseling on Armenian Studies and
related subjects; tutoring students interested in Armenian language and
literature; and providing guidance and advisement to the USC Armenian
Student Association, USC Armenian Graduate Student Association and USC
Armenian Alumni Association.

FUTURE PLANS OF THE INSTITUTE ` SPRING 2009 SEMESTER
Ã` New Course Offering, Spring 2009 — Colloquium in Armenian
Studies: Social and Cultural Issues in Globalized Society, MDA 333 —
Mondays 12:00-1:50, taught by Prof. R. H. Dekmejian and V. Mankerian
Ã` Weekly Lecture Series
Ã` Collaboration with NLS in promoting the Dickran Tevrizian
Fellowship Program
Ã` Co-Sponsoring of Society of Armenian Studies 35th Anniversary
Conference to be held at UCLA, March 27-29, 2009
Ã` Institute Book Series Publications ` First volume to appear in
April 2009