Curriculum Vitae: Victoria R. (Vika) Gardner
Index

Education | Honors and Scholarships |
Teaching Experience |
Presentations | Publications |
Other Work Experience | Skills |
Community Service | Affiliations

Ann Arbor Address Permenant Address
P.O. Box 7843
Ann Arbor, MI 48107-7843
29 School Street
Vergennes, VT 05491
vika@umich.edu (no email)

Education

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI

Ph.D. program, Department of Near Eastern Studies. Expected graduation Aug. 2006. 
Working dissertation title: Majmu’a-i Makhdum-i A’zam: The Thought and World of a Sixteenth-Century Khwajagan/Naqshbandi Shaykh in Central Asia.

Prelim fields: Sufism, Medieval Islamic History, Gender in Medieval Islamic History, Persian

A.M., Modern Middle Eastern and North African Studies, 1996.

A.M., Russian and East European Studies, 1996.

Thesis: Identity in Nineteenth Century Turkestan: The Sarts through the Eyes of Travelers.

Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, summer 1994, 1996-1998.

Department of Central Eurasian Studies: Central Eurasian History, Central Eurasian Sufi orders with Prof. Yuri Bregel and Prof. Devin DeWeese.

Temple University, Philadelphia, PA

B.A., summa cum laude, 1993. 3.8 GPA, President's Scholar, Phi Beta Kappa, Phi Theta Omega

Major: History. Topics in Middle Eastern, Russian and Soviet history and political science; Islam; American foreign policy; Russian language.

Middlebury College, Middlebury, VT

Summer Russian program, 1987, 1988.

 

Honors and Awards

Outstanding Graduate Student Instructor
Rackham School of Graduate Studies, University of Michigan, 2005

Michigan Teaching Fellow
Center for Learning and Teaching, University of Michigan, 2002.

 

Scholarships and Fellowships

U.S. Department of Education, Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad Fellowship,
Tashkent, Uzbekistan, July 2000-December 2001.

International Research and Exchanges Board (IREX) Individual Advanced Research Opportunities grant,
Sharqshunoslik instituti, Tashkent Uzbekistan, September 2000-May 2001.

University of Michigan, Department of Near Eastern Studies
George and Celeste Hourani Memorial Fellowship, Fall 1998, Fall 1999.

Indiana University, Inner Asian and Uralic National Resource Center
Graduate Assistantship, 1997-98.

Indiana University, Office of International Programs
Pre-Dissertation Travel Grant, Summer 1997.

Indiana University, Department of Central Eurasian Studies
Departmental Recruitment scholarship, 1996-97.

University of Michigan, Center for Middle Eastern & North African Studies
Rackham Merit Scholarship, 1994, 1995.
Foreign Language Area Study (FLAS) fellowship, Winter term 1995, for study in Uzbek, Turkish, and Persian languages.
FLAS, Summer 1995, for study in the Persian language.

University of Michigan, Center for Russian & East European Studies
Foreign Language Area Study (FLAS) fellowship, Summer 1994, for study in the Uzbek language.
FLAS, School year 1995-96, for study in the Uzbek language.
FLAS, Summer 1996, for study in the Russian language.

Ohio State University
Foreign Language Enhancement Program (FLEP) scholarship, Summer 1994, for study of the Uzbek language at Indiana University.

Teaching Experience

University of Michigan, Dept. of Near Eastern Studies, Fall Term 2004, Fall Term 2005.  "World Religions:  Judaism, Christianity, Islam."  Head Graduate Student Instructor for Professors Ralph Williams, Elliot Ginsburg and Sherman Jackson (F04) and Professors Ralph Williams, Alexander Knysh and Yaron Eliav (F05). 

University of Michigan, Sch. of Education, Winter Term 2003, Fall Term 2003, Fall 2004.  "Earth Odyssey:  Uzbekistan" (with high school students via the web, university undergraduates and graduate students in the classroom).  Co-Instructor with Dr. Jeffrey Stanzler.

University of Michigan, Dept. of English, Winter Term 1999, Winter Term 2003.  "The Bible in English."  Graduate Student Instructor for Prof. Ralph Williams. 

University of Michigan, Dept. of Near Eastern Studies, Winter Term 2000.  "Introduction to Islam."  Graduate Student Instructor for Prof. Sherman Jackson. 

Indiana University, Center for the Study of Global Change, Summer 1998.  English as a Foreign Language to Russian high school students from Siberia.

Tashkent State Economic Institute, Tashkent Uzbekistan, Summer 1997.  English as a Foreign Language.

 

Presentations

"The Russian Empire and Relations with Iran, 19th Century", for Russian and Eastern European Studies 395 class, University of Michigan, September 29, 2005.

"Women in Uzbekistan: Diverse Adaptations of Muslim Women to Everyday Life" and "The Sunnat in Bukhara: Keeping Tradition / Making Tradition in 21st Century Uzbekistan." Diversity Day, Oakland County Schools, Michigan, September 27, 2004.

"Debating Religious Stances in Turkistan: A 16th-Century Naqshbandi Argues Against Religious Scholars." Turkish Studies Colloquium, Ann Arbor, MI, November 13, 2003.

"Is Listening to Music (Samâ‘) Allowed in the Khwâjagân / Naqshbandiyya: A Sixteenth-century answer in Mawarannahr." Central Eurasian Studies Society conference, Cambridge, MA, October 3, 2003.

"Muslim Women: The Complex Lives of Muslim Women in Uzbekistan." Telluride Association, Ann Arbor, MI, July 22, 2003.

"Central Asia: Important Consequences for the Rest of the World." With Elizabeth Barlow. Michigan Council for the Social Studies/National Council for the Social Studies Great Lakes Regional Conference, Grand Rapids, Michigan, March 31, 2000. [Presentation of curriculum unit on Central and Inner Eurasia.]

"Queers in Tashkent: Ideas about Same-Sex Love in Uzbekistan." Colloquium in Inner Asian and Uralic Studies, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, March 23, 1998.

Presentations on present-day Central Asia to 7, 8, 9th-graders at Vergennes Union High School, Vergennes Vermont, March 16-19, 1998.

"Miscellany in Central Asia: A Closer Look at the Material Text." Fifth Annual Central Eurasian Studies Conference, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, February 21, 1998.

"European and American Conceptualizations of Central Asian Identity: The Sarts as Represented in 19th and 20th Century Travel Literature." Fourth Annual Central Eurasian Studies Conference, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, February 8, 1997.

"Perceptions of Identity in Nineteenth Century Turkestan through the Eyes of Travelers." Turkish Studies Colloquium, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, February 22, 1996.

Publications

Polishing the Mirror: A Curriculum Unit on Central and Inner Eurasia. With R.T. Steponaitis. Ann Arbor: Center for Middle Eastern and North African Studies, University of Michigan, 2000. [350-page, 11-chapter unit on geography, history and cultural of Central and Inner Eurasia.]

Book Review: Pnina Werbner, Pilgrims of Love: The Anthropology of a Global Sufi Cult, in Journal of the American Oriental Society, forthcoming.

Book Review: Richard A.J. McGregor, Sanctity and Mysticism in Medieval Egypt: The Wafâ‘ Sufi Order and the Legacy of Ibn ‘Arabi, in Journal of the American Oriental Society, forthcoming.

Book Review: Jo-ann Gross and Asom Urunbaev, The Letters of Khwâja ‘Ubayd Allâh Ahrâr and his Associates, in Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, forthcoming,

“Earth Odyssey: Uzbekistan. Using the Web to Connect American High School and University Students with Personal Experiences in Uzbekistan.” (with Jeff Stanzler) Central Asian Studies Review, 3/2 (Spring 2004): 41-44.

Book Review: Roald Sagdeev and Susan Eisenhower, eds., Islam and Central Asia: An Enduring Legacy or an Evolving Threat?, in Central Asian Studies Review, 3/2 (Spring 2004): 30-33.

"Uzbekistan." In Issues in Major Islamic Nations: A Reference Guide. Ed. Kathryn M. Coughlin. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing, forthcoming.

"Polishing the Mirror: A Teaching Unit on Central and Inner Eurasia" (description), Central Asian Studies Review, 1/1 (2002): 34-35.

"Adventures in Uzbekistan: Queer Woman Puts Away Labyris to ‘Pass’" and "More Adventures in Uzbekistan: Looking for Queer Folk." The Bloomington Beacon I/6 (Mar. 1998): 6 and I/7 (Apr. 1998): 8. Republished in LESBIGAY SIGnals, NAFSA: Association of International Educators 4/2 (Spring 1998): 6-7.

Editor, with Marshall Gilbert. Annual Central Eurasian Studies Conference. Abstracts of Papers. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University, 1998.

"Book Review: Cracks in the Iron Closet: Travels in Gay and Lesbian Russia and Out of the Blue: Russia’s Hidden Gay Literature: An Anthology." The Bloomington Beacon I/2 (Oct. 1997): 14.

"European and American Conceptualizations of Central Asian Identity: The Sarts as Represented in 19th and 20th Century Travel Literature." In Annual Central Eurasian Studies Conference. Abstracts of Papers. Edited by Johan Elverskog and Alexandr Naymark. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University, 1997.

 

Other Work Experience

Graduate Research Assistant
Dept. of Near Eastern Studies, Ann Arbor MI 48109-1285

Winter Term 2002, Summer 2002, Fall Term 2002, Fall Term 2003, Winter Term 2004, Spring/Summer 2004

Prepare bibliographies, edit text as assigned by Prof. Alexander Knysh.  Help to provide Central Eurasian content in a variety of classroom contexts.

Technical Assistant
Dept. of Near Eastern Studies, Ann Arbor MI 48109-1285

Winter Term 2004

Assist faculty in AAPTIS 492 (Cartography) to implement Coursetool-New Generation web site.  Scan and upload materials (text and graphics) as needed.

Grader
Dept. of History, Ann Arbor MI 48109-1003

Fall 2002, Summer 2003

Grade exams and papers for "History of Astronomy" (Fall 2002) and "Europe through the Reformation" (Summer 2003) for Prof. Rudi Lindner.

Graduate Assistant
Dept. of History, Ann Arbor MI 48109

Summer 2000

Worked with Prof. Rudi Lindner to create an Access database/input system for cataloguing coins and manuscripts.

Web Programmer
Language Resource Center/Dept. of Near Eastern Studies, Ann Arbor MI 48109-1285

Summer 2000, Summer 1999

Develop a Hebrew 101 web site from scratch with instructor Doron Lamm; format the NES 100 web site for Fall 2000, including restructuring the entire three-year project for efficiency, adding a few final images and maps, and working on getting permissions for the materials used.

Assistant to Outreach Coordinator
Center for Middle Eastern and North African Studies, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1106

September 1998-August 1999.

Co-wrote a curriculum unit on Central Asia to be published through the Center. Assisted the Outreach Coordinator with NEH summer institute. Created databases for texts and videotapes for WorldReach web project.

Graduate Assistant
Inner Asian and Uralic National Resource Center, 157 Goodbody Hall, Bloomington, IN 47405

Academic year 1997-98

Developed Web site for Center and for the Department of Central Eurasian Studies. Planned and implemented "Teaching English Abroad" workshop with presenters from Center for English Language Training at IU. Planned and implemented weekly brown-bag lecture series with speakers from both IU and outside the University. Prepared an annotated bibliography on post-Soviet Central Asia for non-specialists.

Reader Room Supervisor
Services for Students with Disabilities, University of Michigan,
G625 Haven Hall, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1065

June 1994 - May 1995.

Created, implemented and managed new volunteer in-house reader program for print-disabled students. Created and implemented tape library. Designed and wrote training package and forms to handle efficiently input and output of reading. Trained volunteer student readers. Hired and supervised student workers. Provided one-on-one counseling for students concerning services. Provided one-on-one reading as needed.

Coordinator/Reader
Reader Services, Disabled Student Services, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA 19122

Academic year 1988-89.

Managed reading program for visually impaired students. Worked with faculty to adapt coursework for print-impaired students. Created system to catalogue audio and Braille holdings. Read textbooks and other material for Law and graduate students.

Manager

Telefund, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA 19122

March 1989 - August 1993.

Recruited, trained, and maintained a staff of from 30 to 100 part-time students and one full-time person to raise $1.4 million dollars per year in pledges over the telephone.  Developed and implemented motivation programs; directly supervised calling sessions 5-7 times per week.  Responsible for solicitation programÕs cost-effectiveness and accuracy of statistics.  Purchased and implemented computerized calling system. 

Programmer/Analyst

Office of Computer-Based Instruction, University of Delaware, Newark, DE 19716

October 1981 - January 1986.

Worked closely with faculty to develop educational software on the PLATO system.  Programmed database-driven courseware for French; revised existing programs in Spanish and Latin; supervised student-programmers.  Lead programmer for intensive French verb drill which conjugated and drilled with corrections and help every verb in the language.  Programmed package to permit students to perform sewing pattern alterations on PLATO and judge whether it had been done correctly, as well as a teacher module to permit the instructor to view students’ work. Taught "Beginning TUTOR" and "MicroTUTOR" programming courses (noncredit).

Skills

Languages:

Foreign: Russian (speak & read), French (speak & read); three years of Uzbek; four years of Persian (Modern and Classical); two years of Turkish; two terms of Chaghatay; reading knowledge of German.

Some knowledge of Italian, Spanish, Latin.

Computer: HTML, TUTOR, MicroTUTOR, BASIC, C.

Other: Proficient in grade 1 Braille, some knowledge of grade 2 Braille.

Computer:

Software packages:

Expert level user of a wide variety of word-processing programs (Word, NisusWriter, WordPerfect) and spreadsheet/database programs (Excell, Access) on a variety of platforms and operating systems.

Excellent knowledge of Photoshop and Acrobat on a variety of platforms.

Working knowledge of Powerpoint and a variety of web-page creation software packages.

 

Community Service

Michigan Mentorships, Summer 2003, Summer 2004 (working with gifted area high school student to develop knowledge about the Middle East).

Rackham Interdisciplinary Student Group, steering committee, 2003.

Co-Facilitator, Lambda Grads student group, Rackham Graduate School, UM 1999.

President, Department of Near Eastern Studies graduate student group, 1998-99.

Volunteer Note-taker, Services for Students with Disabilities, UM, Fall 1998.

Advertising Manager, Bloomington Beacon, September 1997 - September 1998.

Organizing committee, 5th Annual Central Eurasian Studies Conference, Bloomington, 1997-1998.

Peer Supporter, Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual Support Services, Indiana University, school year 1997-1998.

Sponsor for a citizen of Uzbekistan during his stay in the United States, May 1996 - October 1996.

Volunteer Interviewer, Crossing Bridges Oral History Project, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual Programs Office, University of Michigan, 1996.

Member, Rackham Disciplinary Board, University of Michigan, 1996.

Member, Search Committee for the Director of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual Programs Office, University of Michigan, 1994.

AIDS Activist, "Gay Liberation", Ann Arbor, MI, Fall 1993.

Clerk, Internet consultant, Giovanni’s Room, Gay, Lesbian, Feminist book store, Philadelphia, PA, 1989-96.

Reader for Mahmoud Ayoub, Professor of Religion, Temple University, 1988-1992.

Reader for Stephen L. Mikochik, Professor of Law, Temple University, 1986-1992.

English Tutor, two Romanian students at Temple U., 1986-1987.

Volunteer Note-taker, Office of Disabled Student Services, Temple University, 1986.

 

Affiliations

Phi Beta Kappa
Association for Central Eurasian Studies
Society for Iranian Studies
American Academy of Religion
Middle East Medievalists
North American Association for the Study of Religion