As our mission statement indicates, the Center advances innovative use-inspired research and teaching on the languages, societies, and geopolitics of greater Eurasia. The Center’s core mission is to enhance contextual expertise and cultural awareness in the communities it serves, through partnerships across disciplinary, ideological, and geographical borders. To pursue this mission, the Center draws on the commitment of its core professional staff, the expertise of over eighty faculty and graduate student affiliates, and the resources of a world-class research University. In alignment with ASU’s eight design aspirations, the Melikian Center focuses in particular on enabling student success, engaging globally, and supporting problem-based cross-disciplinary collaborations. A flagship initiative is the Critical Languages Institute, which since 1991 has provided intensive summer instruction in less commonly taught East European and Eurasian languages for a diverse community of learners from across North America and beyond. CLI focuses on building proficiency and intercultural competence; all programs are taught by experienced native-speaker instructors, and all students beyond the introductory level get first-hand in-country experience.
