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NEWS

Window on America Centers: A Project of the US Embassy in Ukraine

The Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv supports a network of public access resource centers throughout Ukraine. This network includes the Information Resource Center (IRC) and American Library in Kyiv and 22 "Window on America" Centers in regional cities throughout Ukraine. Each Window on America Center is a partnership between the United States Government and a Ukrainian regional public library.

Like American Corner programs elsewhere in the region, the Window on America Centers are designed to provide up-to-date information on the United States and to augment the English-language collections of the host libraries. The mission of each center is to promote mutual understanding between the United States and Ukraine. The Centers accomplish this by: providing information about U.S. history, government, society, and values to Ukrainian audiences; providing access to Internet resources; and serving as focal points for U.S. assistance and exchange programs.

The U.S. Embassy has allocated more than $450,000 to establish Window on America Centers in libraries throughout Ukraine. The regional libraries provide the space and English-speaking staff members. The U.S. Government provides the start-up capital to purchase a basic set of books, CD-ROMs and video collection of documentaries and classic American films. The libraries also receive a grant for furniture and equipment, including computers with Internet access, a printer, copy machine, TV, and DVD player. Each of the centers is made up of five key information modules: U.S. government, U.S. reference materials, business, English-language teaching, and education.

The Embassy also provides local training for librarians of Window on America Centers. In 2002, 6 librarians -- heads of Window on America Centers -- visited the U.S. on the State Department's International Visitor Program. During their tour, the librarians learned about the organization and administration of libraries in the United States, while studying current trends in reference sources and the uses of technology in the field. Participation in this program gave them first-hand experience living in America and helped them to organize more effective and innovative resource centers.

Activities

Each Window on America Center hosts a variety of events designed to bring Americans and Ukrainians closer together. Regular talks by U.S. Speakers, Embassy staff, Fulbright scholars, Peace Corps Volunteers, and other Americans allow U.S. and Ukrainian citizens to interact. The Window on America Centers also provide a venue for the Embassy's outreach activities, offering a distribution point for the Department of State's Office of International Information Programs (IIP) publications, a meeting place for USG-program alumni, and a host for photo exhibits, visiting speakers, film series, and other events that promote a better understanding of the U.S.

The centers are already showing their potential to reach a wide range of Ukrainian audiences. On their own initiative, the Windows have organized dozens of events - lectures, seminars, trivia contests - that gave Ukrainians an opportunity to learn more about the United States. Several centers have also hosted the photo exhibit "Ukraine through the Eyes of an American Peace Corps Volunteer," a collection of over 50 photos that highlight the cooperation between Ukrainians and American Peace Corps Volunteers.

Locations and addresses of Window on America Centers in Ukraine:

American Library at Kyiv Mohyla Academy / Vinnytsya Oblast Research Library / Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Research Library / Donetsk Oblast Research Library/ Zakarpatska Oblast Research Library  / Zhytomyr Oblast Research Library / Kirovohrad Oblast Research Library / Luhansk Oblast Research Library / Lviv Oblast Library for Youth / Mykolaiv Oblast Research Library / Odesa Gorky Library / Rivne Oblast Research Library / Crimean Engineering Pedagogical University/ Poltava Oblast Research Library/ Sumy Oblast Research Library  / Ternopil Oblast Research Library / Central Scientific Library of Kharkiv V.N. Karazin National University / Kherson Oblast Research Library / Chernivtsi Oblast Research Library/ Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast Research Library / Chernihiv Oblast Research Library / Volyn Oblast Research Library

Download "Window on America" brochure
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