The ultimate aim is to get these trained graduates back into cambodian universities

http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2009061826542/Education-and-Career/Elite-research-school-eyes-growth-as-dark-clouds-loom.html

Elite research school eyes growth as dark clouds loom
Written by Eleanor Ainge Roy
Thursday, 18 June 2009

The Centre for Khmer Studies is building a new research centre and
library as part of a plan to raise its international profile and
expand its resources

The Center for Khmer Studies (CKS) is situated on the lush grounds of
Wat Damnak, in central Siem Reap.

At any time of the day students can be found nestled in the cool of
its library, talking quietly beneath the shady trees, or taking walks
around the peaceful gardens.

It is a setting perfectly suited to rigorous scholarship - which is
exactly what the Centre for Khmer Studies is hoping to foster among
Cambodia's postgraduate students.

More broadly, the centre aims to promote Cambodia and Southeast Asia
as a destination for international scholars and academics.

But black clouds are gathering on the horizon for the centre, with
three of their major grants expiring. CKS director Michael Sullivan
thinks that with the economic crisis it is unlikely they will be
renewed.

"We are going to stick with our model, as we believe it's a good one,"
said Sullivan. "We are taking a top-down approach, and the ultimate
aim is to get these trained graduates back into Cambodian universities
and build up a research culture in Cambodian universities, which is
presently lacking."


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The ultimate aim is to get these trained graduates back into cambodian
universities.
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CKS is a nongovernmental organisation founded in 1999 with support
from the Rockefeller Centre, among other donors.

It has two bases in Cambodia, one in Phnom Penh and one in Siem Reap,
as well as an office in New York and a support office in Paris.

"The centre is the only overseas American research centre in South
East Asia, and it has two main goals," said Sullivan. "Firstly it
promotes education and scholarly exchange in the social sciences and
humanities in terms of Khmer studies and Southeast Asian studies, and
it also sets out to build capacity in the higher education sector."

Foremost among its activities is the junior faculty training (JFT)
programme, which runs twice a year for six months and develops
international-standard research and study skills among an elite pool
of Cambodian graduates.

"Entry to the course is competitive," says Sullivan. "A high standard
of English is required and students must be very competent, as it is
an intensive course, with thorough training from an international
professor, usually from the West."

In the past five years the programme has trained 80 Cambodian
graduates in the fully funded course which includes a small allowance
for the participants. The current course is focused on political
science.

Planning ahead
However, if the grants are not renewed, the centre will have to scale
back the programme, although a planned library and research centre
will go ahead.

While the centre already has the largest public library outside Phnom
Penh, a larger library and research centre are being built.

The original library is a beautifully crafted space, with high
ceilings, vibrant murals, and more than 5,000 monographs, books,
journals and public computers.

"The existing library is just so popular, we are short of space for
books and short of space for people," said Sullivan. "So the board
decided that in spite of the financial crisis, we would dig deep to
fund this new venture."

The new library and research center will be used primarily as a
professional space for local, national, regional and international
researchers.

Sullivan hopes to build CKS's collection of English, Khmer and French
books up to 20,000, with a special focus on developing Khmer
materials.

JFT students translate course materials and books, such as David
Chandler's famous work A History of Cambodia.
On June 24 the centre will roll out its second translated history,
Milton Osborne's South-East Asia: An Introductory History.
Sullivan is determined to see widespread distribution of the book and
other texts.

"What we haven't done in the past is to make a consolidated effort to
get all of these materials out, and we've also been poor at raising
the profile of CKS," he said.
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