News

Staff Report The National Chamber Orchestra of Armenia, under the direction of maestro Aram Gharabekian, performed in concert on Thursday, August 28, as part of the festivities celebrating the 100th birthday of author William Saroyan. The concert featured works by Aram Khachaturian, Komitas, Alan Hovhaness, and Johannes Brahms, among others. The National Chamber Orchestra of Armenia (NCOA) was formed in ...

Ingibjorg Thorisdottir Special to Hye Sharzhoom William Saroyan’s works have been translated into many languages and his centennial is being widely celebrated around the world in 2008. Iceland is no exception. On this little island in the North Atlantic, populated by 300,000 inhabitants, some of Saroyan’s works have been translated into Icelandic. The first translations are from the 1940s when ...

Staff Report Dr. George Bournoutian, Professor of History at Iona College in New York, has been appointed as the seventh Henry Khanzadian Kazan Visiting Professor of Armenian Studies for the Spring 2009 semester. Dr. Bournoutian is an internationally recognized teacher and scholar, who will be teaching a three-unit course on “The Armenian Diaspora and Genocide.” The course will be offered ...

Staff Report This past May, Dr. Matthew A. Jendian was awarded the “Provost’s Award for Faculty Service,” one of five faculty awards presented by Dr. Jeronima Echeverria, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, to honor those faculty who set new standards of excellence at California State University, Fresno. In receiving this award, Dr. Jendian was recognized for his outstanding ...

Staff Report “We will be watching you.” These were the words audience members were greeted to at the beginning of the play “Slaughter of the Innocents,” which was performed at Fresno State in the John Wright Theater October 3-5, and 7-11. The play is about the horrific dealings that occur when government anarchy takes complete control of its citizen’s lives. ...

Staff Report Barlow Der Mugrdechian was appointed Coordinator of the Armenian Studies Program and Director of the Center for Armenian Studies at Fresno State and began his duties in the Fall semester, having responsibility to coordinate the Program’s activities and to administer the Program’s community outreach. He has been with the Program for the past twenty-four years, teaching a variety ...

Staff Report Dr. Dickran Kouymjian and the Armenian Studies Program would like to thank the donors, authors, and publishers for the following books, periodicals, videos, and archival gifts either offered personally or to the program. Davit Muradyan, Zharangutyan Iravunk (Yerevan: 2005). Gift of the author. Samvel Karapetyan, William Saroyan (Los Angeles: 2002). Gift of the author. Herand Markarian, ed., Contemporary ...

Staff Report Name: Gayane Frnzyan Major: Criminology-Pre-Law Minor: Armenian Studies Why did you pursue an Armenian Studies Minor? I decided to pursue an Armenian Studies Minor to find out more about my culture, ethnicity, and language. What Armenian Studies class or classes influenced you the most and why? The Armenian Studies classes that influenced me the most were the Armenian ...

Anoush Ekparian Staff Writer Two weeks before Armenian Martyrs Day, students gathered on April 11-12 for an intensive course study on the Armenian Genocide, in the Science II building at California State University Fresno. Armenian Studies professor Barlow Der Mugrdechian asked students to bring in five questions concerning anything about the Armenian Genocide, as a catalyst for discussion. Questions that ...

Jennifer Torosian Staff Writer The Fresno community filled the seats of the Leon and Pete Peters Educational Center Wednesday night, April 16, to watch the screening of the movie “Screamers,” which takes a look into Genocide and focuses more specifically on the Armenian Genocide. The film follows lead singer Serj Tankian, of the popular American band, “System of a Down,” ...