CSEAS is Hiring!

The Center for Southeast Asian Studies anticipates having 3 GA positions for the 2024-25 academic year. We are still awaiting news of our Title VI funding levels for next year, so these positions are conditional on funding. To apply for one or more of these positions, please send a cover letter expressing your interest, a GA application form (https://www.niu.edu/hrs/_files/employment/3700-graduate-assistant-application.pdf ), a resume and the names and contact information for two references to: Tiffany Adams (tadam5@niu.edu) for by mail to CSEAS, Northern Illinois University, 520 College View Court, DeKalb, IL 60115. Please note which position(s) you are applying for and put “GA application” in the email subject line. Also please note that while all three of these positions pay a monthly stipend and a tuition waiver, the waiver does not include fees or health insurance costs. Application screening will begin April 8, 2024.

1. Teaching Assistant for SEAS 225: Southeast Asia, Crossroads of the World

CSEAS is accepting graduate student applications to be the Teaching Assistant for SEAS 225, the center’s undergraduate Southeast Asia survey course, for the 2024-25 academic year. The assistantship is a full-time (20 hours per week) position; the class is taught on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 12:30 to 1:45 p.m. Most lectures will be given by NIU’s Southeast Asia faculty in a variety of disciplines. Specific duties include: Develop course syllabus and assessment modules; grade all exams, papers and assignments; keep office hours for student tutoring and guidance on lecture materials; post course material on Blackboard; teach some classes, including overview lectures and presentations relevant to his/her discipline and research interests. Applicants should be advanced in their graduate studies (minimum two years) and must have knowledge of or experience in Southeast Asia, in addition to strong organizational, written and communication skills. Previous TA experience preferable but not essential. Preference will be given to those in the process of completing the graduate certificate in Southeast Asian studies.

2. CSEAS Outreach Graduate Assistant Position

CSEAS is accepting graduate student applications for an Outreach GA position. The applicant must be accepted into a graduate degree program, be enrolled full-time, be in good academic standing, must satisfy the employment-eligibility requirements, and must agree to perform services relevant to the appointment.

Selection Criteria:

• Successful candidates must have substantial course experience in Southeast Asian Studies, preferable of an interdisciplinary nature; OR possess substantial experience living and working in one or more Southeast Asian countries.
• Must have familiarity with the academic programs provided by the Center for Southeast Asian Studies.
• Must be competent in presenting public lectures to schools about various Southeast Asian studies subjects.
• Must speak and write in fluent English.
• Must be willing to work evenings and weekends when outreach events are so scheduled and must be available from 10:30 am—1:30 pm on Fridays.
• Must have familiarity with programs such as Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, and must have working knowledge of Zoom and AV equipment to make meetings/lectures hybrid. Additional computer skills such as Microsoft Publisher and Adobe Photoshop are desirable.
• Duties include:Representing CSEAS at university recruiting and orientation events; Handling communications with visiting speakers; Creating/editing CSEAS promotional and educational materials; Communicating with SEAsian Studies students as needed; Assisting with the set-up of the Friday Brown-bag speaker series; andOther duties as assigned.

3. SEAYLP (Southeast Asia Youth Leadership Program) GA

The person in this position will work on the Southeast Asia Youth Leadership Program (SEAYLP) within the Center for Southeast Asian Studies under the direction of the SEAYLP Director. Admission into a graduate degree program at Northern Illinois University is required. Preference will be given to candidates with a native or learned Southeast Asian language as well as knowledge of and interest in Southeast Asian cultures. For more information on SEAYLP, please see the link https://www.niu.edu/clas/cseas/programs/seaylp.shtml .

Main responsibilities/duties for this graduate assistantship:

• assist with the collection and maintenance of participant information.
• enter and analyze personal information and survey information to assist in the constructions of data-driven projects.
• assist with all national and international travel arrangements, lodging and cultural events.
• communicate with vendors and program facilitators.
• arrange dates and topics for session leaders and oversee creation of resource documents.
• help manage all social media communication for the Program (Twitter, Facebook, etc.).
• monitor progress of students during the duration of the program.
• assist with the data collection and processing related to the SEAYLP programs, including to help write, administer, and analyze evaluation measures.
• communicate with participants and alumni to carry out program activities.

This is a 20 hours per week position for Fall 2024 and Spring 2025. During the program, which will happen in spring, some hours will be outside of the traditional workday and work week.

Philippine Youth Leadership Program (PYLP)

Every spring CSEAS brings 28 young people and adult leaders from conflict-torn Mindanao in the Southern Philippines to NIU for the Philippine Youth Leadership Program (PYLP), a month of leadership training and development. The program prepares youth leaders to become responsible citizens and contributing members of their communities by building skills that will empower them to be actively engaged in addressing issues in their schools and communities and by fostering relationships among youth from diverse backgrounds. While at NIU, participants are engaged in community service, field trips, group projects and an American homestay.

This year’s PYLP will run from April 12 to May 10, 2024. CSEAS is currently recruiting host families for a two-week homestay from April 21 to May 4, 2024. If interested, contact Homestay Coordinator Celia Chabolla at cchabolla@niu.edu.

Southeast Asia Youth Leadership Program (SEAYLP)

Join us! Become a “home-bassador” for the Southeast Asia Youth Leadership Program (SEAYLP). NIU is actively recruiting families and individuals in the DeKalb-Sycamore area to host student or adult leader participants in this U.S. Department of State program for one week, April 27-May 3, 2024. Home-stay hosts provide a place for participants to develop one-on-one relationships with Americans and to understand the diversity of American culture. Year after year, the homestay experience is one of the most meaningful for participants and hosts alike.

Applying online is simple. Let’s keep this program alive and make international connections!

Have any questions? Email host family coordinator, Dr. Trude Jacobsen Gidaszewski at tjacobsen1@niu.edu.

“Empowering Tomorrow: Student-Centered Strategies for the Center for Burma Studies”

This one-day student-led workshop is designed to enable NIU students interested in
Burma and Southeast Asia to reflect on the Center for Burma Studies’ future strategies. In this time of transition for Burma and for the Center ––with the arrival of a new director––it is essential to hear students’ voices and expectations regarding the development of the Center’s activities in the years to come. Participants are invited to discuss and brainstorm ideas in a relaxed, informal atmosphere at the collaborative and innovative 71 North Partnership Studio (Founders Library Lower Level). Participants will then share a delicious Burmese lunch and visit the Burma Art Collection before presenting their views and proposals to a friendly audience.

Monday, April 1, 2024
8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Where 71 North Partnership Studio
Founders Library Lower Level, NIU

Registration required here.

• Engage with peer students from diverse backgrounds but all concerned with
Burma and related issues.
• Brainstorm ideas in small discussion groups and share your vision of the Center for
Burma Studies.
• Explore the Burma Art Collection and resources kept at the Center.
• Impact the development of the Center’s future strategies.

Who should attend:

NIU students interested in and concerned with Burma and Southeast Asia.

Workshop Agenda:

8:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.: Introduction and Discussion session 1
Discuss emerging themes (collected in the pre-workshop survey form) in small groups
(with student-facilitators and scribes)

10:00 a.m. to 10:15 a.m.: Coffee break (provided by the Center)

10:15 a.m. to 12 p.m.: Presentation of Session 1 findings and Discussion session 2
Deepening of the most popular themes, identified as mainly important in Session 1 in
small groups (with student-facilitators and scribes)

12 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.: Lunch break (provided by the Center)

1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.: Visit of the Burma Art Collection (Founders Library) – Small groups of students led through the Burma Art Collection by peer-students involved
in the preservation work of the collection.

2:30 p.m. to 2:45 p.m.: break

2:45 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.: Final discussion, wrap up and public presentation (Campus Life
Building CL100)

Student-speakers present the 2-3 mainly important themes to the public: open session to
faculty and other members of the Burmese community followed by a Q&A.

Sponsors and co-hosts: Center for Burma Studies, 71 North Partnership Studio, Center for Southeast Asian studies, Asian American Resource Center, and the Department of World Languages and Cultures.

“Moments of Silence in Modern Thai History: The Unforgetting of October 6, 1976”

Library of Congress Southeast Asia event

This hybrid event will be held April 4th from 3:00 to 4:30 pm eastern daylight time. The time was chosen to be convenient for people in different US time zones. The event includes a Q/A portion providing an engaging forum for Dr. Thongchai Winichakul to discuss his latest award winning book.

World-famous Asianist Thongchai Winichakul’s work has won numerous prestigious awards and been translated into many languages. Now he explores the silence around the 1976 Thammasat University massacre in Bangkok that killed over 40 students by Thai police, the military, and militias. Thongchai was a student leader at Thammasat at the time. He further examines what he calls the “unforgetting” surrounding the event within Thailand.

It should be an engaging event coming at near the end of the semester, perfect for a last minute extra credit assignment for faculty or as a much needed study break for students.

Please feel free to forward the attached flyer to graduate students, faculty and others in your network.

To attend this event virtually, please use the following Zoom link:

https://loc.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/8017089757182/WN_EQU8v6wiToqdtiRKy-JtLg