Canisius College

BUFFALO, NY – Christopher R. Lee, PhD, is the recipient of a Fulbright-Hays Faculty Research Abroad Fellowship. The program funds fellowships to faculty members to conduct research abroad in modern foreign languages and area studies to improve their languages skills and knowledge of the culture of the people of these countries.

Associate professor of religious studies and theology at Canisius College, Lee will use his 12-month Fulbright-Hays fellowship to study how the Urdu language mushaira (poetry recital) impacts globalization and transnational processes on two South Asian Muslim communities: working class silk weavers in Varansi, India and South Asian expatriates in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Lee’s areas of expertise include anthropology of religion, religion in South Asia, Islam and Hinduism. He holds PhD and MA degrees in anthropology from Syracuse University and a BA in humanities from the State University of New York College at Oneonta.

Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education, the Fulbright-Hays Program is designed to contribute to the development and improvement of modern foreign language and area studies in the U.S. by providing opportunities for scholars to conduct research abroad. Recipients are provided with tuition, fees, travel and research funds for periods of three - 12 months.

Lee is one of three Canisius College professors to receive Fulbright award for the 2009-2010 academic year. Ronald M. Rivas, PhD, associate professor of management, is the recipient of a Fulbright Senior Specialist Grant. He will use his grant to teach for six weeks at the Universidad del Pacifico in Lima, Peru during summer 2009. Click here to learn more. Sandra P. Cookson, PhD, chair and professor of English, is the recipient of a Traditional Fulbright Scholar Award. She will use her 10-month Fulbright grant to teach American poetry courses at Udmurt State University in Izhevsk, Russia. Click here to learn more.

To learn more about the religious studies and theology program at Canisius, click here.

Canisius is one of 28 Jesuit colleges in the nation and the premier private college in Western New York. Canisius prepares leaders – intelligent, caring, faithful individuals – able to pursue and promote excellence in their professions, their communities and their service to humanity.

Date released: 4/21/2009