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Department Leadership

Ani Kokobobo
Associate Professor, Chair, Slavic Languages & Literatures, Editor of the Tolstoy Studies Journal
785-864-2346
Wescoe Hall, Room 2134
Office Hours:

 

Office Staff: School of Languages, Literatures & Cultures

Samantha Raines
Chief of Staff & Office Manager
785-864-6839
Wescoe Hall, Room 2083
Office Hours:

M – F: 8:00 am to 5:00 pm and by appointment

Christian Beer
Coordinator, Media, Outreach, Recruitment, Events, Development, School of Languages, Literatures & Cultures
785-864-9193
Wescoe Hall, Room 2084
Office Hours:

M – F: 10:00 am to 5:00 pm and by appointment

Cynthia Willingham
Administrative Assistant
785-864-4803
Wescoe Hall, Room 2080
Reception Hours:

M-F, 8:00am to 5:00pm

Student Staff: School of Languages, Literatures & Cultures

Paola Gonzalez
Digital Strategist, Student Assistant
785-864-9250
Wescoe Hall, Room 2071
Reception Hours:

M-F, 8:00am to 5:00pm

Claire Hammack
Lead Graphic Designer, Student Assistant
785-864-9250
Wescoe Hall, Room 2071
Reception Hours:

M-F, 8:00am to 5:00pm

Anastasia Popova
Graphic Designer, Student Assistant
785-864-9250
University of Kansas
Reception Hours:

M-F, 8:00am to 5:00pm

Advising

Aley Pennington
Graduate Academic Advisor, Classics, East Asian Languages & Cultures, French, Francophone & Italian Studies, German Studies, Philosophy, Slavic Languages & Literatures, Spanish & Portuguese
785-864-1528
Wescoe Hall, Room 3107
Office Hours:

M – F: 9:00 am to 4:00 pm and by appointment

Shared Services (HR & Financial)

Jessica Chilcoat
Financial Analyst, School of Languages, Literatures & Cultures
785-864-5242
Strong Hall, Room 50
Office Hours:

M-F, 8:00 am to 5:00 pm

Rachel Fehr
Accounting Specialist
785-864-7330
Strong Hall, Room 50
Office Hours:

By appointment

Vanessa Freeze-Sumner
HR Coordinator, KU School of Languages, Literatures & Cultures
785-864-2347
Strong Hall, Room 50
Office Hours:

M-F, 7:30 am to 4:30 pm 

Robin Holladay
HR Specialist, School of Languages, Literatures & Cultures
785-864-2505
Strong Hall, Room 50

IT Support Staff

Don Allmon
Technology Coordinator, KU IT
785-864-8282
Office Hours:

By appointment

Jeremy Willard
IT Support Technician
785-864-8282
Office Hours:

By appointment


In Memoriam

Reed Rankin ✝ 12/29/2019

The faculty and students in the Department Slavic Languages and Literatures are deeply saddened that one our undergraduate majors, Reed Rankin, passed away last week (12/29) in Fredonia, Kansas. Reed was a beloved student in the department and is fondly remembered by his peers and professors. He began studying Russian as a Freshman and stayed with a challenging but rewarding language for three and a half years, tackling introductory, intermediate, advanced levels, and even continuing his studies into his senior year with Russian for the Professions. We know that he was planning further study in Moscow in the next academic year, prior to matriculation at KU School of Law.

A thoughtful student, Reed often contributed insight and posed challenging questions in class. ​​ Reed’s dedication to the study of Russian language, culture, and history was tremendous and fueled by infectious curiosity. He showed great acumen in translating from Russian into English, always finding English-language equivalents for Russian cultural concepts through skillful use of one-liners from American films. We also treasured his ability to speak in fluid Russian about rural, farm life in Kansas, and the effects that natural phenomena, like floods, on a farming community. He was a pleasure to know and teach, and will be remembered for his kind and polite demeanor. Our thoughts are with Reed’s family at this time

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Department News
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Why KU Slavic?
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KU’s Center for Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies program is one of only 12 federally-funded national resource centers in the US
Only doctoral program in Slavic Languages and Literatures between the Mississippi and the West Coast
100% of graduate students in the Slavic program had funding in academic year 2012-13
KU's Libraries house over 500,000 volumes of Slavic books and electronic editions
Two of the department’s last four doctoral candidates have won a Fulbright grants to conduct dissertation research abroad