News

Ani Sargsyan Staff Writer “It is really fun to perform with the students, because I love the music. They love the music – it is written well,” said Dr. Arsen Jamkotchian. Dr. Jamkotchian is a newly hired collaborative pianist in Fresno State’s Department of Music. He was born and raised in Glendale, California, and moved to Fresno in February of ...

Natalie Agazarian Editor Alfred Hitchcock once famously claimed: “In feature films the director is God; in documentary films, God is the director.” Director Inna Sahakyan of Bars Media referenced Hitchcock’s words when introducing her New York Times Critic’s Pick documentary “Aurora’s Sunrise” at the Fresno premier screening, which took place on Friday, September 1, before an audience of more two ...

Eddy Thurber Staff Writer Hye Sharzhoom welcomes Dr. Michael Krikorian, one of Fresno State’s newest music professors. Dr. Krikorian was born and raised in Fresno, graduating from University High School and receiving his Bachelor’s degree in Piano Performance from Fresno State, where he took a number of Armenian Studies courses. He now serves as Assistant Professor of Piano and Music ...

Hannah Paloutzian Staff Writer “How can I get students to read the book?” said Dr. Katia Karageuzian during a discussion of her new book, Forbidden Homeland: Story of a Diasporan. Her presentation was part of the Armenian Studies Program Fall Lecture Series and was held on Friday, September 8, 2023, with many Fresno State students in attendance. At her presentation, ...

Sosse Baloian Yanez Special to Hye Sharzhoom In the last year, I have had the privilege of joining the Armenian Studies Program staff as a research assistant working with the Program’s Library and Archive. The first collection I worked on was the George Injajikian Personal Papers donated to the Program in 2018 by George Injajikian’s daughter, Gina Injayan. The collection ...

Joel D. Hirst, Vienna, VA, for a copy of his book, An Excess of Nationalism: A Novel about Armenia (2023), 115pp., in English. Vatche Ghazarian, Ph.D., Portsmouth, RI, for a copy of The Post WWI Rise of Turkish Nationalism and Resumption of Genocidal Policies (Portsmouth, RI: Mayreni Publishing, 2023), 586pp., in Armenian and English. The book is a collection of ...

  Angela Soghomonian Biochemistry Minor in Armenian Studies What encouraged you to take an Armenian Studies course? I enjoy history and wanted to learn about the historical events relevant to the Armenians. What was your favorite Armenian Studies class, activity, or event? I enjoyed the Armenian language classes, because it gave me an opportunity to practice speaking. What are your plans ...

Careen Derkalousdian Staff Writer On Friday, March 3, 2023, Dr. Taner Akçam, director of the Armenian Genocide Research Program at The UCLA Promise Institute, presented his new findings regarding the first decision to eradicate the Armenian population in the Ottoman Empire at the beginning of the twentieth century. The lecture, “The First Decision of the Armenian Genocide and the Role ...

Staff Report Dr. Christina Maranci, Mashtots Chair of Armenian Studies at Harvard University, gave the inaugural Grace and Paul Shahinian Armenian Christian Art Series on Saturday, April 15, 2023, at Fresno State. Her talk was on “Armenia Art: Current Directions and Future Goals” and was held at the Smittcamp Alumni House on the Fresno State campus. A reception took place ...

Staff Report It is common to hear the exciting announcement of students graduating from Fresno State with a degree in biology, business, engineering, or nursing. Andrew Hagopian, however, decided on a different path, becoming the first student at Fresno State to receive a Bachelor of Arts degree in Armenian and Middle Eastern Studies. With the help of advisor Prof. Barlow ...