180 Uris Hall
(607) 255-2378
SEAP@cornell.edu
seap.einaudi.cornell.edu
Faculty
K. McGowan*, Director (180 Uris Hall); W. Bailey, V. Beard*, A. Blackburn, A. Cohn*, M. Fiskesjö, C. Formichi*, A. Fuhrmann, G. Green, S. Kuruvilla, F. Logevall, T. Loos, A. Mertha, T. Pepinsky*, E. Tagliacozzo*, K. Taylor, M. Welker*, A. Willford*, L. Williams*, Emeritus: R. Barker*, M. Hatch*, S. O’Connor, J. Siegel*, E. Thorbecke*, J. Wolff. Retired: T. Chaloemtiarana; Lecturers: N. Jagacinski, Y. Khaing, C. Miller*, J. Pandin*, H. Phan, T. Savella, T. Tranviet
Program
Cornell’s Southeast Asia Program develops and promotes knowledge about countries in the Southeast Asian region of the world, their languages, literatures, visual and performing arts, histories, societies, economies, governments, international and labor relations, religions, and ideologies, through the support of teaching, research, student degree programs, library and archival resources, specialized publications, and outreach activities. It holds a U.S. Department of Education designation as a National Resource Center (NRC), and is recognized by its peers as a “center of excellence in Southeast Asian language and area studies.” Its alumni teach at renowned institutions throughout the United States and around the world and serve in government, business, and non-profit sectors in the United States and abroad.
The Echols Collection on Southeast Asia attracts visiting scholars from throughout the world and as the library of record on the region makes over 461,000 volumes in 162 languages available to the public.
As a program associated with the Mario Einaudi Center for International Studies, SEAP has faculty and language lecturers within the Department of Asian Studies. A total of 25 core faculty members in the colleges of Arts and Sciences, Business and the Johnson Graduate School of Management, the School of Industrial and Labor Relations, and Agriculture and Life Sciences participate in an interdisciplinary program of teaching and research on the region stretching from Burma through the Philippines. Thirteen faculty (indicated by a * in list) comprise the Cornell Modern Indonesian Project (CMIP). CMIP sponsors research, conferences, and publications on Indonesia and was involved in establishing the American Institute for Indonesian Studies in Jakarta and Solo.
Courses are offered in such fields as anthropology, Asian studies, economics, finance, government, history, history of art, labor relations, linguistics, music, and development sociology. Instruction is offered in six languages: Burmese, Cambodian (Khmer) Indonesian, Tagalog (Pilipino), Thai, and Vietnamese. As a member of six summer intensive language programs: five in the region and the Southeast Asian Studies Summer Institute at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, the program assists students to acquire advanced language skills (intermediate and above) each summer. The Southeast Asia Program provides competitive funding grants for research, travel and internships in the region in collaboration with the Asian Studies department and the Einaudi Center.
Undergraduates may major in Asian Studies with a focus on Southeast Asia and its languages, or they may elect to minor in Southeast Asian studies with any other major by completing 18 credits of course work. Graduate students may work toward an M.A. degree in Southeast Asian studies or pursue a master of professional studies in another school with a concentration in Southeast Asian studies. Ph.D. students specializing in Southeast Asia receive a doctorate in a discipline such as history, history of art, anthropology, government, linguistics, music, economics, finance, labor relations or city and regional planning. As a Comprehensive NRC the Southeast Asia Program is able to offer Foreign Language and Area Studies fellowships (to US citizens or permanent residents) for academic year and summer study programs.
For details on the major, see the department of Asian Studies listing in this volume. Additional information regarding courses focused on Southeast Asia, publications, or outreach opportunities and Program activities reference seap.einaudi.cornell.edu. The SEAP Facebook page also offers insight into activities of the program. We welcome undergraduates or others with new or unexplored interests in Southeast Asia to contact the program office emailing the Associate Director, Thamora Fishel (tfishel@cornell.edu).