All of UW PSEC’s activities are funded through private donations. Thanks to the generosity of our donors, we have been able to achieve many successes and are hoping that your donations will allow us to achieve many more! Please give generously! DZIĘKUJEMY!
Mission
Bridging Cultures through Education about Poland by sharing Polish intellectual, scientific, and artistic accomplishments.
Vision
The vision of the UW Polish Studies Endowment Committee is to create a leading West Coast Polish Studies Center at the University of Washington. In pursuit of this goal, we have established an Endowment Fund, we sponsor a Distinguished Polish Speakers Series, provide student scholarships, attract visiting scholars to the UW, and build partnerships with community organizations in the Pacific Northwest.
History
In 2003 the Slavic Department at the University of Washington (UW) celebrated the 50th anniversary of teaching Polish by organizing a lecture series entitled 50 Years of Polish at the UW: Celebrating Polish-American Heritage. The series featured internationally renowned speakers of Polish origin. Following the success of the lectures, a group of UW alumni, faculty, staff, students, and members of Seattle’s Polish-American community formed the University of Washington Polish Studies Endowment Committee (UW PSEC).
Distinguished Polish Speakers' Series
In 2004 a private donation from Andrzej and Izabella Turski enabled us to continue our series of public lectures under the new name of the Distinguished Polish Speakers’ Series. Each year we bring a number of experts on a variety of topics related to Polish culture, art, literature, economy, and politics to the UW campus.
Endowment Fund
In June 2005, after our first UW PSEC auction, we officially established the Polish Studies Endowment Fund at the University of Washington, the first step toward creating an endowed Chair of Polish Studies. Three successive auctions and other fundraising efforts added to the growth of the Fund. Thanks to the generosity of our supporters and community, we have also created the Fulbright Lecturer and Student Scholarship Funds.
Fulbright Lecturers
Since 2006, in cooperation with the Polish-US Fulbright Commission, UW PSEC has financially co-sponsored Polish Fulbright lecturers who teach and conduct research at the UW. This very successful program enables us to enrich the Polish Studies and REECAS curricula and to attract new students.
Student Scholarships
Following the success of our 2007 auction, we established a Student Scholarship Fund to award financial aid to UW students interested in pursuing studies in Poland.
Community
We continuously look for projects that will enrich Polish Studies and increase Poland’s visibility in our community through collaboration with other organizations in the Seattle area and with various departments at the UW. A permanent center at our university will not only lead to a better understanding of Polish issues in the Pacific Northwest, but will also assist future generations of Polish immigrants and their children in maintaining ties with Poland.