Kasit Piromya
by Tom Parisi
Thailand Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya brought a gift along on his visit to NIU last week: a check for $96,000.
During a Sept. 28 luncheon in his honor, the foreign minister presented the check to NIU President John Peters. The grant will support the Thai Studies fund established recently for the Center for Southeast Asian Studies.
The post of Thailand foreign minister is equivalent to the post of secretary of state in the United States. During his visit, Piromya gave a public talk on the continuing cooperation between Thailand and the United States in the areas of education, economics and foreign affairs. He was accompanied by eight Thai ambassadors, along with consuls-general from Chicago, Los Angeles, New York and Vancouver.
The Royal Government of Thailand first established the Thai Studies fund with a $110,000 grant late last year to the Center for Southeast Asian Studies. The fund is being used to further support the university’s education, research and exchange programs focused on Thailand.
“We are grateful for the continuing support of the Thai government for our research and scholarship fund,” said Jim Collins, director of the Center for Southeast Asian Studies. The center is hosting an international Thai Studies conference Friday, Oct. 23, and Saturday, Oct. 24.
“This gift underlines the importance of Thai Studies at NIU and the commitment that the university has made to the study of Thailand since the founding of the center in 1963,” Collins added.
Collins also singled out the work of NIU Political Scientist Danny Unger, a specialist in Thailand and faculty associate of the center who did “yeoman’s work” setting up the research and scholarship fund.
Unger said the Royal Government of Thailand funding will specifically support Thai conferences, Thai language learning, NIU faculty and student research in Thailand, an extended stay at NIU by a Thai scholar, the establishment of awards to be presented at Thai studies conferences and the continued development of an alumni network in Thailand.