Dr. Paul Crutcher, assistant professor of English at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, has received a grant from the Freeman Foundation to teach the Consortium for Teaching about Asia program to Arkansas teachers. 

Crutcher has received more than $15,000 to host the program, which is a multi-year initiative to encourage and facilitate teaching and learning about East Asia in elementary and secondary schools nationwide.

He collaborated with Dr. Jeff Kyong-McClain, associate professor of history at UA Little Rock,  building on their shared experiences in China and East Asia and teaching in the Donaghey Scholars Program, and led professional development sessions throughout July 2017.

“I’m delighted to show Arkansas teachers, staff, and administrators how Japanese cosplay relates to Confucius, how the Deathnote manga relates to Buddhism, or how bushido impacted contemporary border disputes in East Asia,” Crutcher said. “The NCTA mission is one I wholly endorse.”

The Arkansas NCTA has been active for about 15 years and has hosted week-long workshops around the state along with day-long seminars at many of Arkansas’ Education Service Cooperatives.