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About the Center
Hours
Currently the Center is staffed by trained volunteers and is open when those volunteers are present. These volunteers are at the Center almost every day of the week, but please email or call ahead (503.280.8507 or 503.493.6460) to make an appointment and ensure that someone will be there.
Location
The Center for Volga German Studies is located in Suite 300 of the Concordia University Library at 2800 NE Liberty St., Portland, OR 97211.
Mailing Address: Functions of the Center
The CVGS accomplishes its stated purposes through five complimentary and inter-related components:
Collections The Center preserves and exhibits these collections as far as it is practicable. The Center operates and maintains a central archive of these materials. The Collections of the CVGS are open to the public, but do not circulate. >>learn More
Publishing
Clearinghouse Services
Education
Collaboration Governing Structure
The Center for Volga German Studies is owned and operated by Concordia University - Portland. It is managed by a director who is appointed by the provost of Concordia University.
The Center has two advisory groups: (1) the Advisory Council, which assists the Director with planning and decision making about the day to day functions and activities of the Center; and (2) the Board of Academic Advisors, which advises the Center on academic matters. Founding of the Center
Discussions about the establishment of an academic entity that would focus on the study of "all things Volga German" began in 2004 during a lunch meeting attended by Ed Wagner, Steve Schreiber, and Brent Mai in Portland, Oregon. During several subsequent meetings, it was agreed that the name for this entity would be The Center for Volga German Studies and that the place for such academic study could be at Concordia University in Portland. Documents were drawn up outlining the function and components of such a center and the rationale for having it at Concordia University in Portland. A study of the "competitive landscape" identified several other organizations, groups, and institutions involved in the study of and/or preservation of Volga German culture and heritage, but it was determined that none of them had the level of academic focus toward scholarly investigation that was intended by the CVGS. The relationship between Portland's historical Volga German community and Concordia University was explored. Presentations were made to the faculty and administration at Concordia and it was agreed that Concordia was indeed the appropriate place for a center to study the Volga Germans.
With the opening of the new Concordia University Library in 2009, the CVGS moved to Suite 300 of that building. The Grand Opening of this new space was held on 24-25 October 2009. Staff
Last updated 1 December 2015.
2014 Volunteer Report
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