Evelyn Demirchian Staff Writer On Thursday, February 11, Armenian community members gathered at Holy Trinity Armenian Apostolic Church to honor Vartanantz, in commemoration of the Battle of Avarayr on June 2, 451. On that day, the Christian Armenians of the Sassanid Persian Empire took arms against their Persian aggressors and the Armenian leader General Vartan Mamigonian became a symbol of ...

Armen Melidonian Staff Writer The Armenian Studies Program offered a course, Armenian Studies 120T-Armenia Today, which covered the history and development of the modern Republic of Armenia, on Friday, February 19 and Saturday, February 20. The course also covered Armenia in the early twentieth century and in the period of the Soviet Union. Events leading to Armenia’s independence nearly two ...

Armen Melidonian Staff Writer The Armenian Students Organization (ASO) began the Spring semester with several changes and plans for an extensive schedule of events. ASO held its first meeting on Wednesday, January 27, holding an election for an opening in the executive. With the graduation of last semester’s President Hagop Ohanessian, the position became vacant and Faten Myaznih-Kassabian, who previously ...

Staff Report 385,488. Did you know that was the official count of Armenians in America according to the 2000 United States census? Some recent estimates have put the number of Armenians in the United States at over 1,000,000, but the number that will count is that reported by the 2010 United States census. Census partnership specialist Anahit Tovmasyan was in ...

Staff report The Armenian Studies Program hosted Ms. Naira Mnatsakanyan, Deputy Head of the International Relations Office of Yerevan State University (YSU), for a weeklong study trip, January 25-29. ASP Coordinator Barlow Der Mugrdechian commented that visits to the United States by YSU faculty and staff is important in maintaining a relationship between the two universities. Mnatsakanyan visited Fresno State ...

Evelyn Demirchian Staff Writer On February 24, the Armenian Studies Program welcomed young graduate student and scholar Konrad Siekierski to Fresno State, to give a power-point presentation on the topic of “Folk Religiosity in Contemporary Armenia.” Sikierski graduated with an M.A. in Ethnology from the Institute of Ethnology and Cultural Anthropology of the University of Warsaw, Poland. He has been ...

Pateel Mekhitarian Editor www.armenianvolunteer.org The internet is a great place for Armenians to find opportunities to become involved in volunteer work. A wonderful website that provides such information is www.armenianvolunteer.org. This special site concentrates on exchanging ideas, values, and experiences between Armenians, who have been widely dispersed throughout the world, due to the Armenian Genocide. The mission statement of AVC ...

Evelyn Demirchian Staff Writer Films showcased at this year’s 11th Annual Armenian Film Festival held Friday, February 26, ranged in form with entries from animated shorts to lengthier documentaries. International directors sent in their works and of the films shown, several struck an emotional chord as they hit at the heart of what the Armenian community will be remembering and ...

Barlow Der Mugrdechian Advisor Two years ago, Richard and Ann Elbrecht donated their archive of 157 photographs of Armenian churches on the historic Armenian homeland to the Armenian Studies Program at Fresno State. Prof. Barlow Der Mugrdechian, Director of the Armenian Studies Program announced that the photographic exhibit, “Churches of Historic Armenia: A Legacy to the World,” is now available ...

Mari Koshkakaryan Staff Writer The Junior Faculty Development Program (JFDP) gives overseas scholars the opportunity for professional development in the United States and to study at an American university. Participants are selected by a merit-based competitive process. Kristine Antonyan from Yerevan, Armenia, demonstrated the capability to excel in the Program, and thus was selected as a recipient of the JFDP ...