Czech and Slovak Cultural Center

After presenting his credentials to the President of the Slovak Republic today Ambassador Sedgwick released the following statement: “I am extremely excited and privileged to be here in Slovakia to represent President Obama. I had a cordial and productive conversation with President Gašparovič and Foreign Minister Dzurinda this morning on the wide range of issues upon which our nations cooperate. I believe that there is a nexus of opportunity in this new era of relations for increased cooperation between the Slovak Republic and the United States of America. Some of those opportunities include common goals in the fields of business and trade development, transparency and rule of law, and education and cultural exchange

Ambassador Theodore Sedgwick grew up in Cleveland, Ohio. He graduated with honors from Harvard College, cum laude, where he majored in Ottoman History.

This announcement is provided by the Slovak Embassy in the United States,  Donald Pafko – Honorary Consul for the Slovak Republic in Minnesota.

April 29 & 30, May 1 & 2, 2010, Saint Paul RiverCentre, Saint Paul, MN

At the 2010 Festival of Nations, 90 different ethnic groups from around the world will share their foods, crafts and traditions that form the mosaic of our American culture. At the Festival of Nations, we are able to renew a sense of dignity in our respective ethnic heritages. At the same time we have the opportunity to develop an appreciation, rather than just toleration, of the culture of others as we build for the future together. The Festival of Nations has been an event of the people, created as a celebration of ethnic diversity and a vehicle for preserving culture and family values. As a result, differences ultimately become less significant because barriers to understanding are removed. http://www.festivalofnations.com

We would like to promote following performances:

Lipa Slovak Folk Dancers

Friday April 30th – 5:00 pm Main Auditorium & 8:00 pm Cafe Stage
Saturday May 1st – 2:30 pm Main Auditorium

SlovCzech Trio

Friday April 30th – 6:00 pm Cafe stage & 8:30 pm Bazaar stage
Saturday May 1st – 3:30 pm Bazaar stage & 5:00 pm Cafe stage
Sunday May 2nd – 12:00 pm Bazaar stage, 2:00 pm Bazaar stage & 4:00 pm Cafe stage

We would like to bring to your attention that six outstanding Czech and Slovak films will be featured at the upcoming Minneapolis/St. Paul International Film Festival April 15-30, 2010.  All of these films will be shown in St. Anthony Main Theatre (115 Main Street SE, Minneapolis, tel. 612-331-4723).  We recommend purchasing tickets in advance as they might sell out (tickets can be purchased online on the Festival website www.mspfilmfest.org).  The Czech and Slovak Cultural Center of Minnesota is the co-organizer and co-sponsor of the Czech and Slovak film screenings.

Read the rest of this entry →

The Department of German, Scandinavian & Dutch (GSD) at the University of Minnesota and the students of German 4040 are pleased to announce their stage production of Der Tod des Orpheus (The Death of Orpheus), written in the Terezín/Theresienstadt ghetto by prisoner Georg Kafka in 1943. Juliette Brungs, Ph.D. candidate in GSD, has directed the play, which will be performed in German by students and staff of the department and presented in the Student Center on the U of MN St. Paul campus (click here for directions). Show dates and times are:

April 23th at 11:00 am (matinee)
April 24th at 8:00 pm and
April 25th at 7:00 pm.

Admission is $6 ($3 for University of Minnesota students).

See below for more information about the author, and click here for the flyer: Orpheus.pdf

Read the rest of this entry →

Learn how Easter (Velikonoce / Veľká Noc) is celebrated in the Czech and Slovak Republics with a special Family Day on Saturday, April 3, 2010. Families are invited to come to CSPS (Sokol) Hall at 10:00 am to 1:00 pm to learn how to make spring whips (pomlazka/bič), decorate eggs, and enjoy traditional games and food (potluck lunch). This event is co-sponsored by Czech and Slovak Sokol Minnesota, West 7th Neighbors, and Czech and Slovak Cultural Center (Mom’s Club) who will share their wonderful Easter and spring traditions with all attending families.

A $10 donation per family for those who are not members of either CSCC or Sokol; $5 donation per family members would be appreciated.

Location: CSPS (Sokol) Hall, 383 Michigan Street, Saint Paul, MN 55102
Information via Email: info@cs-center.org
Information via Phone: (651) 293-3999

NAFSA’s Teaching, Learning, and Scholarship (TLS) Knowledge Community is very excited to announce the creation of a new award honoring research excellence.

The “Award for Innovative Research and Scholarship in Internationalization” will be given for the first time by TLS at the 2010 Annual Conference in Kansas City. The inaugural award winner will be Prof. Josef A. Mestenhauser, distinguished international professor emeritus at the University of Minnesota and former NAFSA President (1987-88).

Prof. Mestenhauser will be giving a short talk on the “state of research innovation” in international education.

Read the rest of this entry →

The Census Bureau workers will deliver the form packages between March 1 and April 30, 2010 to every household in the U.S.A. I would like to highlight, that the census form should be filled out by everyone regardless of immigration or citizenship status including foreigners temporarily staying in the U.S.A. and illegal immigrants. Title 13 section 221 of the U.S. Code requires that the Census Bureau keep respondent’s answers confidential and do not reveal any personal data about individuals or households to any federal agency including immigration authorities. In the context of the Census 2010 we would like to encourage everyone Slovak national or people with Slovak origin/roots to indicate “race” in question No. 9 of the census form by filling out “Slovak” in this space. It would eventually provide us with official demographic data about the Slovak population living in the United States. In this connection we created the Facebook page SLOVÁCI V USA…koľko nás tu je? to provide basic information about the Census 2010. The page provides essential information regarding the Census 2010 (direct link to http://2010.census.gov/2010census) emphasizing a possibility to indicate “race” (Slovak) in question No. 9 of the census form. More information on the Census 2010 could be found on the website:  http://2010.census.gov/2010census/how/interactive-form.php

Read the rest of this entry →

Prestigious “Studia Academica Slovaca” (SAS) is for 46 years organized by Comenius University in Bratislava. This year lasting from August 1st to August 21st 2010, the course is aimed at all those studying Slovak language and culture and at all Slavists in general. This intensive program is offered especially to university or college professors, experienced teachers, postgraduates and advanced undergraduates of Slovak and Slavonic studies, to writers, translators and all others interested in Slovak language and culture. However, the course offers opportunity to study Slovak language basically at any level of proficiency, including beginners. The aim of the course is to enable students to improve and extend their Slovak language competence, as well as increase their level of expertise in Slovak literature and culture.  More information about the course is available at www.fphil.uniba.sk/sas

Read the rest of this entry →