KU for Ukraine: Support for Students & Scholars at Risk

The present destruction of Ukraine by Russian military has disrupted life for millions of people, including many university students and scholars, something that we value deeply at the University of Kansas and in Lawrence. KU has a strong Ukrainian tradition, having taught Ukrainian languages and culture for many years, along with being home to great Ukrainian scholars and students. In the past weeks, current days, and coming months, Ukrainian higher education will need support and help to survive, resettle, and rebuild. We at the University of Kansas aim to aid and support them in this endeavor.  

The KU Department of Slavic and Eurasian Languages & Literatures, in conjunction with KU International Affairs and the KU Center for Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies have set up a dedicated fund within the International Affairs office. Donations to this effort will enable us to provide support for Ukrainian students at KU and enable KU to host displaced Ukrainian scholars and students on our campus. KU is collaborating with an emerging consortium of higher education institutions in Ukraine (Ukrainian Global University) to identify needs and hosting opportunities.

As part of our efforts, we are hosting a fundraising event on Monday, April 18^th at Maceli’s Banquet Hall & Catering, located at 1031 New Hampshire St., Lawrence, KS 66044. The event will start at 7:00pm, with doors opening at 6:30pm, and will run for approximately 75 minutes. The program for the event will include personal accounts of Ukrainian life from KU faculty, Ukrainian poetry translated by KU Faculty and performed by students and faculty from KU Theatre and Dance, and Ukrainian music jointly performed by members of KU School of Music with Ukrainian musicians from the broader community. 

We hope that this will be a night of community and tangible support for Ukrainians. Maceli’s will host a cash bar, where all profits will be donated to this fund. Additionally, through KU Endowment we will be accepting donations from the community at the event. 

Thank you for your support. With your help, a life can be positively transformed.

For questions about the event, please contact Wyatt Haywood (whaywood@ku.edu). 

For questions about the fund, please contact Charlie Bankart (cbankart@ku.edu). 

The Department of Slavic and Eurasian Languages & Literatures is part of the KU College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and has been teaching Ukrainian language and culture for many years. For more information about the department, please visit https://slavic.ku.edu/.