June; 2009
Issue
62
In This
Issue:
*Consul General's message
*Library Conference
*Poetry Evening
*Panteon Narodowy
*Summer Law Program
*English Teaching Market
*E-journal
May has certainly brought many tourists to Krakow, and we have also enjoyed seeing American students here in Poland as summer exchange programs and visits begin. We actively encourage partnerships between Polish and American universities, and it is wonderful to see how these programs expand year after year.
May also gave us several opportunities to celebrate the 90th Anniversary of Polish-American diplomatic relations. We opened an exhibition on the 50th Anniversary of NASA at Jagiellonian University’s Collegium Maius that will be run through the end of June. I invite you to visit if you have not already done so--it is a stunning and informative exhibition that both children and adults will enjoy. There is a wonderful lecture series accompanying the exhibition as well. For more information, please visit the International Year of Astronomy’s website at: http://www.as.up.krakow.pl/2009/wystawa12v.pdf
We now also have a special website highlighting the 90th Anniversary and the Polish-American relationship. The website is a product of the cooperation between the U.S. Mission to Poland and the Foreign Affairs Institute Foundation. The website has great historical information and the latest articles, blogs and video on current events in our two countries. To take a look, please visit: http://www.polska-usa.pl/
We had a very successful visit to the Rzeszow area in May to reach out to Poles who may be eligible to receive U.S. Social Security benefits. The U.S. and Poland now have an agreement so that Polish citizens who have worked in the United States or have a spouse or parent who worked in the United States may qualify to reinstate their Social Security benefits or count credits earned in the United States toward their Polish retirement. If you think you may be eligible, please contact our Federal Benefits Assistance Unit at (022) 504-2112 or at krakowfbu@state.gov
This month we look forward to a visit from renowned American poet Yusef Komunyakaa. Mr. Komunyakaa is a Pulitizer Prize winning poet whose work has been translated into Polish. He will be giving readings in Wroclaw, Krakow and Czestochowa. For more information, please read on in this issue of Spotlight or see our website.
We are also planning for several major events that will happen in the beginning of July. After a year and a half of preparation, a major exhibition entitled “American Dream” will open at the National Museum in Krakow on July 1. More details on this exciting multi-media exhibition will be on our website and in our next edition of Spotlight. We also look forward to the Krakow Jazz Festival and New Orleans Jazz Sunday in July as well as a very special concert by America cantors entitled: "An American Songbook." Please check our website in June for more details.
I wish everyone a pleasant and productive spring as we head into the end of the academic year!
Anne Hall
Consul General
Library Conference on Free or Fee Services
The Institute of Information and Library Science of Jagiellonian University and the U.S. Consulate General in Krakow are organizing an international conference on "Libraries and Their Clients: Free or Fee Services Supporting Social Communication in the Digital Era" on June 1-2 at III Campus, ul. Łojasiewicza 4.
The conference program is available at: http://www.inib.uj.edu.pl/eng/confer/jubileo/index.html
The program of the conference includes a webcast with Diane Nester Kresh, the director of the Arlington County, Virginia Public Library on Library Services in a Weak Economy. The worldwide financial crisis pushes libraries to search for more competitive, low-cost solutions in supporting scholarly research and public services using modern technologies. The aim of this digital videoconference is to share new initiatives as well as to highlight the examples of low-cost/free-of-charge digital or print communication services offered and promoted by libraries.
If you would like to participate in this event, please go to http://www.cpcwebcast.com/state/. No registration is needed. Simply sign in and choose "Submit & View Webcast."
Yusef Komunyakaa Poetry Evenings
The U.S. Consulate General in Krakow is pleased to announce a visit from an outstanding American
poet from New York, Yusef Komunyakaa, who is
the author of 14 poetry collections, among those “Neon Vernacular”, awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1993.
We invite all poetry lovers to attend special evenings with the poet in three separate locations: Wroclaw, Krakow and Czestochowa.
The
poetry reading events will be accompanied by
a short jazz concert.
June 4, 18:30 Poetry reading in Wroclaw , Kapitalka Bookshop, Pl. Nankiera, (Ossolineum Building)
June 9, 19:00 Poetry reading in Krakow, Theatre 38 at Jaszczury Club, Rynek 8
June 10, 18:00 Poetry reading in Czestochowa, “Gaude Mater” Center for Culture Promotion, ul.Dabrowskiego 1
“Herbaciarnia Naukowa – Aromaty Wiedzy”
“Herbaciarnia Naukowa – Aromaty Wiedzy”, a program for high school students organized by the Panteon Narodowy na Skalce Foundation, the Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences and Jagiellonian University has invited Consul General Anne Hall to meet with young people on June 4 at the Polish Academy of Sciences, ul. Sławkowska 17. This will be one of a series of meetings addressed to youth in Małopolska. Anne Hall will speak about her career and lessons learned as an American diplomat.
"Herbaciarnia Naukowa" acts under the patronage of the Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences and during the last school year hosted among others Krzysztof Zanussi – Polish world famous film director, Professor Jacek Purchla, director of the International Cultural Center and Professor Stanislaw Waltoś, director of Jagiellonian University Museum.
The eighteenth Annual Summer Law Program, a joint venture of the Columbus School of Law, the Catholic University of America and the Jagiellonian University School of Law will start on June 15 in Collegium Novum. Over a six-week period Polish and American students will receive intensive training in the global aspects of modern trade, comparative perspectives of regulated industries and antitrust laws in the U.S. and the European Union, international business transactions, and other substantive areas of law. Polish and American students will attend classes together, live together and participate in all co-curricular activities. This cross-cultural aspect of the program is unique and has resulted in many lasting friendships and business contacts. The program already has more than 600 alumni who are becoming future leaders of democratic Poland and the United States. It created an international network of colleagues and resources through dialogue between faculty, program guests and lecturers and fellow students. It is fully accredited by the American Bar Association.
English Teaching Market 2009, Stare Jabłonki, June 22-24
Poland’s largest gathering of English teachers is going to be held June 22-24, 2009 in Stare Jabłonki near Ostróda as a part of the Polish-American Freedom Foundation’s “English Teaching Program”. Its purpose is to offer equal educational opportunities to children and youth learning English beyond major metropolitan areas.
Some 500 ESL teachers, mainly from small localities, will participate in workshops on modern and attractive English-teaching methods and attend training seminars and lectures. The event will be an excellent occasion to acquaint teachers with non-governmental organizations and assistance programs enabling schools to obtain additional resources for educational initiatives. The Public Affairs Officer from Krakow Consulate will speak about how to teach tolerance and democracy through the U.S. Constitution and the Educational Adviser will present on the U.S. higher education system and the opportunities to study in the U.S. Finally the teachers will have an opportunity to see presentations of textbooks and teaching aids.
For more information on ETM, please see http://www.englishteaching.org.pl
E-journal- The Global Financial System: Six Experts Look at the Crisis
Experts describe the mechanics of the global financial system presenting their views concerning the cyclical nature of markets, the interdependence of global trade relationships, and the role of regulation.
E-journal available: http://www.america.gov/publications/ejournalusa/
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U.S. Consulate General, ul.
Stolarska 9, Krakow, tel.: 12 424-5100
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