Want to study Farsi - a language spoken by millions of people in Iran and across the world - while at Brown? Before this year, you've had to go beyond the course catalog. But with a recent anonymous gift from an Iranian alum, the University will be able to offer classes in Persian language and culture for at least the next three years.
Two year-long courses, in basic and intermediate modern Persian, will be offered beginning this September, said Merle Krueger, associate director of the Center for Language Studies. Beginning in fall 2009, a higher-level course will be offered as well.
The donor, who asked to remain anonymous, was born in Iran and moved to the United States at age 15. Farsi is her first language.
"Given the political break between Iran and the United States, I believe that the only way to bridge the cultural gap between the two countries is through education," she wrote in an e-mail to The Herald. She added that she was already involved with an exchange program that brought Iranian scholars to the United States to promote cultural understanding.
"I was happy to help with this," the donor wrote. "Learning Persian is important for U.S. students' understanding of the Iranian people."
Assistant Provost Shelley Stephenson said the University began seeking donations to support the program in early 2007, The Herald reported in April 2007. Last year, several students studied Farsi through a Group Independent Study Project.
Students were able to preregister for Persian classes at the end of last semester, Krueger said. He said there are nine students currently signed up for PRSN 0100: "Basic Persian," and four for PRSN 0300: "Intermediate Persian Language and Culture."
Most other Ivy League schools already offer Persian classes, Provost David Kertzer '69 P'95 P'98 said. The new program will put Brown in closer touch with the rest of the world, given the current relationship between the United States and Iran, he added.
Kertzer said that when he became provost in 2006, he already saw students petitioning for the start of Persian courses. Atena Asiaii '08 MD'12, founder of Brown's Persian Club, said over 100 students signed a petition stating their interest in studying Persian.
"You can make an argument (to offer courses in) any language," Kertzer said. But in order to justify starting a program, it's ultimately about the number of interested students, he said.
Krueger said establishing a Persian program requires the creation of a new faculty position, which is not easy.
"It's not something you can do easily or lightly or inexpensively," he said.
For now, the class will be taught by Iraj Anvar, a visiting lecturer in language studies, who holds a doctorate in Persian language and literature from New York University. Anvar has taught Persian at the University of Wisconsin and NYU.
In 2006, Asiaii and other interested students drafted a 30-page proposal explaining the need for Persian classes, citing the current political situation with Iran and strong student interest.
Maryam Shariati, an Iranian scholar brought to Brown through the Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant Program, taught 10 students in a Farsi GISP last year.
Through Shariati returned to Iran at the end of the academic year, she has reapplied for a visa to assist in Persian instruction at Brown, according to Krueger. "Our hope is that she will be a TA for the program under Dr. Anvar," Krueger said.
"I think the success of the GISP and the establishment of Persian courses are primarily due to students' demonstrated initiative," said Belinda Navi '09, who helped organize the GISP.
She added that there was significant administrative support for the program.
"I'm very happy that we have managed to respond to student interest by providing ongoing instruction in Persian," said Stephenson, who was involved in establishing the program.
Persian instruction is not the only new program organized by the Center for Language Studies, Krueger said. The Brown community will be able to take non-credit courses in Swahili, Turkish and Hausa, spoken in Nigeria. Swahili has been offered as a non-credit course for the past three years.
Although Brown students can now study Persian, the University does not currently offer a formal undergraduate program in Iran for those looking to study abroad there, said Kendall Brostuen, director of the Office of International Programs.
He added that no American university currently runs such a program.
Brostuen said that although students are not forbidden from participating in unaffiliated programs in Iran, no student has chosen to study there in recent years.
"I hope that someday the situation would be such that we would be able to send students to Iran," Brostuen said.
