Kennesaw State University proudly announces that President Betty Siegel has signed a memorandum of understanding between Kennesaw State University and the Foundation for Educational Exchange between Canada and the United States of America to support an annual Fulbright Visiting Research Scholar in Canadian Studies at Kennesaw State University beginning in 2007. Continuing dialogs over the past year among Dr. Lyndley Black (VP for Academic Affairs), Dr. Michael Hawes (Executive Director of the Canada-US Fulbright Program), Dr. Helen Ridley (Interim Dean, College of Humanities and Social Sciences), and Dr. William Griffin (Chair, Department of Foreign Languages) culminated in the recent signing of the agreement by Dr. Siegel. A group of faculty members committed to extending Canadian studies on the KSU campus will begin reviewing applications shortly and recommend candidates to the Dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences who, in consultation with the Vice-President for Academic Affairs, makes the final selection of the scholar.

The Research Scholar, who will serve in an initial one-semester appointment (beginning spring 2007) with the possibility of renewal, will conduct collaborative research with KSU faculty, present guest lectures by invitation at the graduate and undergraduate levels, and assist the KSU community in providing greater visibility for Canadian Studies on campus and in the region. Additional goals for the Research Scholar include assisting KSU scholars in increasing opportunities for outreach and in developing proposals for external funding in the general area of Canadian Studies. The Research Scholar will teach one course, preferably in a team-teaching arrangement, within one of the departments in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences and will participate in the annual conference of the Southern Association for Canadian Studies.

The appointment of the Canadian Research Scholar comes as a result of the collaborative efforts of many Kennesaw State Canadianist scholars in addition to President Siegel. Among those who deserve particular thanks are Ms. Judith M. Costello (Political, Economic and Academic Relations Officer, Canadian Consulate General), Dr. Christopher Kirkey (Director, Center for the Study of Canada and Institute on Québec Studies, SUNY, Plattsburgh, NY), Dr. Heather Nicol (Director, USG Center for Canadian Studies), and Mr. Brad Hector (Program Officer, Foundation for Educational Exchange between Canada and the United States of America).

The competition for awards to be taken up in 2007/08 will open May 1st and applications from Canadian scholars are due November 15. For more information on the Fulbright Research Scholar Chair at Kennesaw State University , please contact Dr. William Griffin (wgriffin@kennesaw.edu.).