CFP: Between Harmony and Chaos: Studies on Confucius Institutes in the United States (Edited Volume)

JEFF KYONG-MCCLAIN Announcement
Location
Idaho, United States
Subject Fields
Chinese History / Studies, Teaching and Learning, Political Science, Diplomacy and International Relations, American History / Studies

 

Editors: Jeff Kyong-McClain (University of Idaho) and Joseph Tse-Hei Lee (Pace University)

In 2020, the University of Maryland shuttered what had been the longest-running Confucius Institute in the United States. After first defending the Institute, the University President decided to discontinue the CI partnership in light of the National Defense Authorization Act for FY19, which specifically forbid universities with CIs from receiving Defense Department funding for language instruction. The University of Maryland was hardly alone, as dozens of American university administrations have been and are now taking a close look at the relative cost vs. benefit of maintaining CIs. When CIs first appeared on American campuses in 2004, although some faculty members expressed trepidation, particularly over questions related to faculty governance and academic freedom (Marshall Sahlins’ tract is a notable example), overall, they were welcomed, and politicians from both U.S. political parties, university administrators, and local community members (especially those associated with public schools, who were now able to offer Chinese for the first time) heralded their arrival and the promise of greater school/community/state engagement with China. In light of the initial positive reception, CIs exploded across the U.S., peaking at over one hundred Institutes. Today, however, the tables have turned, and CIs are on the defensive, subject to a wide range of criticisms (some reasoned, some hysterical), often lobbed from high-profile political leaders. 

 

In light of these developments, now is a good time for scholars to take stock of the experience of CIs in the United States. Although there has been some serious  scholarship on CIs (especially work by Jennifer Hubbert and Falk Hartig), still, given the current high level of debate, there is urgent need for much more attention, both in order to provide a base for future scholarship and potentially to help guide the current public debate, which, without such will tend toward the extremes of apologetics or fearmongering. This volume aims to make a significant contribution to the study of CIs and their place in American politics, education, university administration, public diplomacy, and like issues, by providing a venue for theoretically informed and data rich scholarship from a variety of disciplines. 

 

The editors welcome contributions from scholars (both those holding faculty positions and PhD candidates) working in the humanities and social science disciplines. Note that the editors are looking only for studies of CI’s in the U.S. context. Although global perspectives and comparison certainly deserve further exploration, at this point, so little is known of the experience of the U.S. that broadening the reach may result in dilution of product. 

 

We are interested in the experiences and practices of CIs, which emerged as cross-cultural academic brokers in U.S.-China cultural exchange, and which developed workable intellectual, administrative, and public outreach strategies in the communication of specific knowledge, ideas, and practices about China for diverse American audiences. In analyzing the unique conditions of cross-cultural encounters, we strive to explore the ways in which both Americann and Chinese operators of the CIs, self-concioussly and willingly, formulated their actions to address potential analogies and diversities in cross-cultural academic exchange. The scope of the academic and public outreach programs often went beyond the original intentions of the CI operators. 

 

We are not generally interested in whether or not CI’s are a part of China’s soft power efforts or examples of public diplomacy (we take both as a given), but ask “so what?” and seek concrete studies that analyze what it means in the U.S. For example, how did the experience of confronting new realities and concerns in the U.S. affect the operating strategies, whereby the American and Chinese CI operators adapted and adjusted their everyday programs? How did the exposure to academic freedom, faculty governance and student-/individual-centered learning change and transform the values and pedagogies of Chinese CI visiting scholars? What were the immediate and long-term repercussions of these encounters in the domain of U.S.-China university exchange and perhaps even U.S.-China relations more broadly? How were CI’s received by host institutions, communities, states and various interest groups and how and why did reception change over time?

 

This project sets out to draw on the diverse CI experiences and practices in the U.S. to transcend the Sinocentric and Eurocentric attitudes toward the study of Chinese-American engagement in the sphere of higher education. In doing, so, this project facilitates a dialogue between traditional global and area studies and the latest research on cross-cultural encounters and soft-power diplomacy. 

 

We are looking for chapters of 6,000-8,000 words (including notes). Please send an abstract of 300-500 words and a CV with contact info (all in English) to Jeff Kyong-McClain (jeffkm@uidaho.edu) and Joseph Tse-Hei Lee (jlee@pace.edu) by March 30, 2021. Notification of preliminary acceptance will be made by April 30, 2021. Full chapters will be due by August 30, 2021.

Contact Information

Jeff Kyong-McClain (jeffkm@uidaho.edu) and Joseph Tse-Hei Lee (jlee@pace.edu)

Contact Email
jeffkm@uidaho.edu