The Cold War is long over, and Russia is no longer the "Evil Empire."  That's good for the Russians, but it has caused problems in the world of Russian studies. During the 1990s, enrollments plummeted all over the nation in college courses on Russian language, literature, history, and culture.

   The decline in Russian language enrollments at Trinity has, if anything, been even sharper than at other comparable institutions, says Katherine Lahti, associate professor of modern languages and coordinator of Russian and Eurasian studies. At the peak of the popularity of Trinity's Russian studies program in the late 1980s, there were about 15 majors per year, Lahti says. The current number is four.

   "Nevertheless, Trinity has a remarkably strong program in Russian studies. There are very few colleges that can match our breadth and depth. Many courses on Russian history and culture are still very popular," she says.  The continuing vitality of Russian studies at Trinity is illustrated by two current initiatives. In characteristic Trinity fashion, one is global and the other local. Next year the College will open a global learning site in Moscow, where it will immerse students in the extraordinary project of rebuilding civil society in Russia. The other is taking place "in the neighborhood," where Trinity is building ties with a sizeable Russian immigrant community in the city.

   Both of these projects depend, however, on the fundamental strength of Trinity's faculty and curriculum in Russian studies. "The range of our faculty is really unusual. Most colleges teach some Russian and have a history or social science course or two. Here we have at least seven faculty members working primarily in Russian studies in language and literature, history, political science, sociology, and economics. Hardly anyone has an economist!" And, of course, each year a large number of non-majors enroll in Russian studies courses as part of their liberal arts education.

   In addition, interesting times create interested students. "It may be true that it's hard to attract many students to the study of Russian, but many of those who try it really fall for it," says Carol Any, associate professor of modern languages. "They're a very passionate group."

   Lahti noted that the "typical" student of Russian has changed over the past decade. Increasingly, they are what we call 'heritage students,' students with some family tie to Russia."

    These students, she says, often have deep connections to Russian culture that their predecessors lacked. "One of my students now, Alexander Oji '04, is the son of a Nigerian father and Russian mother. He grew up with a Russian grandmother, too. He's from New Haven and he looks and sounds like a young African American guy. But when he begins to speak Russian you literally see him transform into a Russian, with characteristically Russian gestures and pace of speech."

   "When my mother immigrated, people told her not to speak Russian with me, so that she would learn English," Oji says. "So I didn't speak it much, although I heard it around the kitchen. But she told me when I went to college that she wanted me to take advantage of the opportunity to learn Russian, so here I am."

   He says he finds his Russian classes challenging and interesting. "I plan to carry on through the advanced level," says the first-year student, who expects to major in educational studies and sociology. Oji says he also aims to explore his African heritage during his time at Trinity, although probably not by taking language courses.

   Many Trinity students also come to Russian after taking courses in history, political science, literature, or other fields. "We always end up with some seniors in the first-year Russian class, students whose curiosity drives them to study Russian, even if they don't have time to master it here," Lahti says.

   Alumni are using their Russian learning in all sorts of ways, Any says. A few, like Professor of History Sam Kassow '66 and Steven Hoch '73, a professor of history at the University of Iowa, have become academic specialists, and many more are involved with businesses and nongovernmental organizations.

   Some, like Joshua Perrin '97 work as financial consultants in Russia. Anastasia Owsiak's '96 fluency in Russian landed her a job with a Connecticut company that trades extensively with Russia. A few, including Nathan Stowell '94, have become emigres with long-term commitments to Russia. Stowell fell in love with a Russian woman while studying in Russia and returned there and married after graduation. "He works for a company that gathers scrap metal in Russia and sells it in Poland," Any said. "That doesn't sound glamorous, but it's a real contribution to the reconstruction of the Russian economy."

    Greg Milbourne '90 is even using his Russian during the course of his graduate training in clinical psychology. "He runs group therapy sessions for Russian immigrants in Philadelphia, where he's in graduate school," Any says.

   Russian studies appeared at Trinity after World War II. Professor Michael Lestz '68, chair of the history department, remembers playing Russian Scrabble with fellow students like his history department colleague Sam Kassow and other students at the home of modern language professor, Walter Leavitt. Trinity's first Russian-speaking historian, Anthony Netting, joined the faculty in 1967.

  The pace of academic development picked up in the 1970s, when Kassow, historian Jay West, and sociologist Michael Sacks joined the faculty. The program expanded in the 1980s, as the College's international studies program developed and Russian studies became an established major for the first time. Carol Any joined the modern languages department in 1984, where she teaches Russian literature, history, and film. Another group of faculty members arrived about 1990, including Lahti, a specialist in Russian literature, theater, and linguistics; Carol Clark of the economics department; and Brigitte Schulz of the political science department. Graduate fellow Michael Pesenson teaches courses in medieval Russian language and literature. Others have been involved, notably Josh Karter, associate professor of theater arts and current director of Trinity's San Francisco program.

   Lahti says that the program still feels the impact of Jay West's retirement in 1995. "He really built the program here. He was a very popular teacher and almost a visionary figure. Lots of students ended up in Russian studies because of his inspiration."

   The program does not, however, rest on its laurels. It has launched several new initiatives to introduce students to Russia and to the profound changes reshaping what is still a critical world actor.

   At the top of the list is the global learning site in Moscow that will begin operation in the spring of 2002. Designed by Trinity faculty members, the program will offer a fast-paced, in-depth introduction to Russian history, society, culture, and language. The special focus for 2002 will be on the challenges of constructing a post-Communist civil society. Students from Trinity and other colleges will enroll in courses at a leading Moscow university, study Russian, and participate in internships with businesses and groups struggling to address social, environmental, cultural, religious, political, and personal issues.

   Moscow itself will be a major part of the experience, Lahti says. "It's not only a city with an amazing historical and cultural heritage; it's also a very exciting place these days. I don't think there's a more exciting city in the world right now. You don't do Moscow, it does you, and it changes you forever."

   Participants will take courses at the Russian State University for the Humanities, one of the leading new post-Soviet institutions of higher learning, and participate in weekly dinner seminars with a group of faculty members from the Gorky Institute for World Literature. Students will also attend theatrical, musical, and cultural events frequently and spend two weeks studying Russian history in St. Petersburg.

   A resident American administrator will supervise the program. And, according to their own wishes, students will live either in the special foreign-student dormitory at the Russian State University or with a Russian family in downtown Moscow.

   "One of the great things we discovered in planning this global site is that there's already a strong Trinity community in Moscow. More than 30 alumni and friends of the College attended a gathering in Moscow to discuss the site," Lahti says. The group included alumni working in Moscow, Russian alumni of exchange programs, and Russian actors who have worked with Josh Karter on College projects. "The Russians are amazingly loyal to Trinity and very enthusiastic about our global site," Lahti says.

   Trinity's other evolving asset in Russian studies is the Hartford area itself. The region in now home to about 6,000 recent Russian immigrants, many of whom are clustered in Hartford's West End and in the neighborhoods of West Hartford just across the city line. It's now common to come upon groups of people speaking Russian on the streets of the city. In addition, a small commercial district with grocery stores, restaurants, and a bookstore has developed.

   "There's also a small Russian Orthodox church within walking distance of the campus," Any says. "The Russian community here is delighted to work with our students. It's a very sophisticated group and they sponsor, on average, about one significant cultural event a week."

   One recent visitor was the famous Moscow Cat Circus, which provided a crucial object lesson about Russia and the Russians, Lahti says. "As I told my students, never count out a culture that's learned how to herd cats."

-- Andrew Walsh '79