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Over 200 students are currently enrolled in interdisciplinary REES bachelor's and master's degree programs, undergraduate minors, graduate certificate program, a concurrent bachelor's/master's degree program, graduate-level dual degree programs with professional schools, and departmental graduate-level programs with a REES focus.

Monica Sendor, REES/psychology concentrator and U.S. Department of State intern (L), holds the portfolio of Ambassador William Joseph Burns as Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice walks out of a breakfast meeting with civil society leaders at the Ambassador's official residence in Moscow, March 2008.

New REES Master's and Dual Degree Students

In Fall 2007, we welcomed the following new REES master's and dual degree students:

An M.A. student in REES, Ryan Aiken is interested in examining the continuously evolving relationship between Russia and the world. He is especially keen to explore the manner in which Russia could use its massive endowment of natural resources to coerce its former Cold War-era satellites back into its orbit. Ryan earned his B.A. at Brigham Young University and studied Russian at the Defense Language Institute at Monterey. He spent the last five years as a Russian Linguist in the U.S. Marine Corps; prior to that he worked for Representative Tom Lantos in his Washington office. Ryan is being supported with a CREES tuition fellowship.

A dual degree student in REES and Law, Brett Burnham is interested in the rule of law in Russia (or the lack thereof), and in Russian legal reform. He is also interested in the creation of constitutions in former communist states. Brett has an undergraduate degree in Russian and English from Brigham Young University and is beginning his second year at the U-M Law School.

An M.A. student in REES, Elizabeth Everson is interested primarily in Russian and Soviet music, specifically composers' responses to changes in the political climate, the emergence of "mass music" in the 20th century, and the limitations placed upon musicians by the government. Particularly drawn to the works of Shostakovich, she even came to U-M in 2006 for the Shostakovich Centennial Festival. She studied Russian and music at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota.

An M.A. student in REES, Deborah Jones is interested in sociolinguistics and language policy during the Soviet and post-Soviet era. At Michigan, she will initially be studying Ukrainian, its contact with other languages (especially Russian), and its role in recent nationalistic movements. Deborah received her undergraduate degree in Russian from Middlebury College and has done graduate study in linguistics at UC Berkeley. She has worked and studied in Russia, and taught English at a school in Irkutsk. Deborah has a 2007-08 FLAS Fellowship to study Ukrainian.

An M.A. student in REES, Arielle Sokol is interested in Poland, Eastern Europe, 1917-1989, communism/socialism, WW II and the Holocaust, Judaic studies, history, sociology, and Yiddish/Polish/Russian languages. Arielle is from New York and graduated from the University of Denver as a history major with a minor in Judaic studies. Arielle has a 2007-08 Copernicus Fellowship.

A dual degree student in Public Policy and REES, Milena Todorova is interested in studying, analyzing, and creating economic policy strategies to promote the competitiveness of the East European economies with respect to one another, and together as a bloc vis-à-vis the rest of the world. She would like to study the different factors that affect the course of social, political, and economic development of East European countries. Milena is a Bulgarian citizen who graduated from Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Georgia. Milena has a Cuny Fellowship in Southeast European Studies for 2007-08 and 2008-09.

An M.A. student in REES, Renee Underwood is interested in culture, history, and politics of the FSU, particularly Central Asia and the Caucasus. She would like to network with others who have experience and interest in the region. Renee is originally from Michigan and is entering the REES program as a Foreign Area Officer (FAO) for the U.S. Army. She graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and studied Russian at the Defense Language Institute at Monterey. She was most recently stationed in Germany.