Russia and Eurasia

Duke in the Region

Duke formed its first international partnership with St. Petersburg State University, then called Leningrad State University. This agreement was also the first of its kind between an American university and a Soviet university. In 1988, the first visiting faculty member arrived at Duke from St. Petersburg, and since then, Duke has hosted a visiting faculty member every semester except for fall 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

DukeEngage 

DukeEngage Russia: Supporting individuals with disabilities is a hybrid program with GEO, which means that students attend classes at St. Petersburg State University and the program is two weeks shorter than other DukeEngage experiences. In the afternoons and on free days, participants in the DukeEngage portion of this program work with the St. Petersburg Ministry of Health Rehabilitation Center for the Blind, participating in rehabilitation education, providing “on-the-ground” support for RCB and individual rehabilitants, and helping to improve RCB’s infrastructure. Students are required to have Russian language proficiency and be able to hold conversations with the directors and residents of the center. Duke University has worked with the Russian Ministry of Health Rehabilitation Center for the Non-Sighted since 2007. The residents of the center have stated year after year how much they enjoy working with Duke students and how meaningful their interactions are. 

The entire DukeEngage/study abroad group will be located on Vasilievsky Island in St. Petersburg for the duration of the program. The DukeEngage work site is situated on the Fontanka River near the center of town. 

Center for Slavic, Eurasian and East European Studies 

The Center for Slavic, Eurasian and East European Studies (CSEEES) is devoted to promoting coursework, comparative research, teacher training and graduate and undergraduate student education related to Russia, the former Soviet Union, eastern and central Europe, and Eurasia. 

CSEEES funds course development and scholarly research, organizes lectures and workshops, sponsors visiting faculty from the region, and provides fellowships for students studying the language and cultures of East Europe. 

The center also administers graduate certificates in Slavic, Eurasian and East European Studies and Russian Legal Studies.