Dear Colleagues,
I am thankful for this opportunity to briefly introduce myself and my research. But first, I wish to thank director Marissa Moorman for her service in the past two years and congratulate her on her writing year at Princeton, which is quite the honor. Her work leading the program and especially running the excellent Festival of Ideas celebrating Fifty Years of Independence in Lusophone Africa has been outstanding. I hope to step in and continue the great work she has started and maintain the longstanding tradition of a vital African Studies Program at UW-Madison. We have strong leadership in our African Studies staff and steering committee and in the International Division where Dean Fran Vavrus and Associate Dean Lesley Bartlett are doing their best to help us navigate these uncertain times.
I’m Jeremy Foltz, a Professor of Agricultural and Applied Economics and a member of the UW faculty for the past 23 years. My PhD is also from UW, with a minor in African Studies. My research work on economic development in African countries has covered the African continent including Tunisia, Mali, Ethiopia, and Zambia. I speak French and Bambara well and have a passing knowledge of Arabic gained here in UW’s Arabic language program. Over the years, I am most proud of training some of the best African applied economists, who now dot the continent bringing the Wisconsin idea to their countries and communities.
We are entering a very difficult moment for Area Studies Programs. The federal funds that have been our lifeblood are under serious threat for next year and future years. As a program we are already cutting back on outside speakers this fall, which shows both the budgetary problems and our adaptability as a collective to maintain our excellence and culture.
For we are a staunch, dedicated group with a strong culture of community. It is this community that will keep us a relevant viable academic program dedicated to fostering learning about the countries of the African continent and the African diaspora. The next year will ask a lot of us in our roles in and out of the university. I will work to make sure that we preserve the African Studies community and the vital research, teaching, and outreach we do. I hope you will join me in preserving and strengthening the African Studies Program.
Best,
Jeremy
