research to life in Irvine by enabling me to invite artists to campus for talks and art exhibitions,” said Kashani. Kashani and Ph.D. candidate in history Soodabeh Malekzadeh are the center’s first Elahé Omidyar Mir-Djalali Fellows. Founded in 2000 by Elahé Omidyar Mir-Djalali, Ph.D., Roshan Cultural Heritage Institute is a private foundation that promotes the preservation, transmission and instruction of Persian language and culture. The Institute has provided grants and established numerous endowments at some of the most prestigious universities in the United States - including UCI - and abroad, to support and expand Persian Studies programs, faculty positions, and academic programming activities. Dr. Mir-Djalali is also recognized for her pioneering efforts in nurturing the next generation of Persian studies specialists. Under her leadership, the Institute has awarded hundreds of Fellowships and Scholarships for Excellence in Persian Studies for innovative research, publications, digitalization, translations, doctoral dissertations and other scholarly activities. With Director and historian Touraj Daryaee at the helm, the Jordan Center began a new role as a publication house earlier this year, with a series including books, music and poetry. Recently, the center published two volumes of poetry from the 1970’s, originally read by the author, Ahmad Shamlou, at the Iran-America Society. The art went missing 35 years ago, but members of the center were able to resurrect and republish the works. Additionally, the latest edition of the center’s online peer-reviewed journal, Dabir, boasted international scholarship from Tajikistan, Italy, New York, London, Bologna, and Berlin. In the 2016-17 academic year, the Jordan Center hosted 35 public events, including the Mehregan Conference. In partnership with the Farhang Foundation, the goal of this conference was to provide motivating and relatable examples of spirituality in literature and the powerful voices of women authors.
Elahé Omidyar Mir-Djalali, Ph.D., founder of Roshan Cultural Heritage Institute
majoring in religious studies, found encouragement from the center’s events and programs to pursue a minor in Persian studies. “I began to keep up with the Jordan Center’s events and was very excited to see that the theme of this year’s Mehregan Conference was Persian poetry and literature. My parents are ethnically Iranian and although they were raised in America, they exposed me early on to Persian literature and history, just as their parents had, so that I would not lose a connection with my heritage,” she said. This generational effect is a part of the inspiring programs at UCI, encompassing all historical empires of the Iranian landscape. The center is also focused on illuminating the minds of the children in the Orange County community. Classes on Persian painting and history are currently being held every Sunday at the center. While each student’s story is unique, their messages are universal. Kashani, Malekzadeh and Taghiei are continuing their family legacies by discovering new landscapes for the art, literature, and history of their culture. The art and history an individual is exposed to is pinnacle to the thesis of their lives. These students are creating the content themselves with the help of the Jordan Center along the way. For more information on the UCI Jordan Center, visit: http://bit.ly/UCIJordanCenter Pictured on the left: Deanna Kashani and Soodabeh Malekzadeh
It is events like these that give UCI students the opportunity to connect with an international community of scholars, writers and artists. Atiyeh Taghiei, a junior 9