Schedule: June 1-2, 2005

Tuesday, June 1

11:00 Words of Welcome and Opening Remarks

Prof. Dr. Guram Chikovani

Rector, Tbilisi Institute of Asia and Africa

George Dennison, Ph.D.

President, The University of Montana

The Honorable Richard Miles

U.S. Ambassador to Republic of Georgia

Academician Thomas Gamkrelidze

Acad. G. Tsereteli Institute of Oriental Studies, Georgian Academy of Sciences

Lois Muir, Ph.D.

Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, The University of Montana

Archil Gegeshidze

Vice President, Georgian Foundation for Strategic and International Studies

Mehrdad Kia, Ph.D.

Assistant Vice President for Research and Director, Central Asia & Caspian Basin Program, The University of Montana

13:00 Opening Ceremony of "Montana Room - Center for American Studies"

Wednesday, June 2

11:00 - 11:15 Introduction to Conference

Lois Muir, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, UM

11:15 - 13:00 Session 1 - Political, Legal and Cultural Dimensions

Dr. Levan Mataradze, Professor of International Law, TIAA

"The New World Order and Georgia "

Mehrdad Kia, Assistant Vice President for Research and Director, Central Asia and Caspian Basin Program, UM

"U.S.-Georgian Relations"

George Katsitadze, Ph.D., Dean, TIAA

"Geopolitics in the Post-Soviet Caucasus"

Jeffrey Renz, J.D., Professor of Law

"Rule of Law in Emerging Democracies: Lessons from American History"

David Abesadze, Department of Political Science, TIAA

"Religious-Political Movements in the Black Sea Region"

Otto Koester, Coordinator, Central Asia and Caspian Basin Program, UM

"Managing Ethnopolitical Conflicts: International Perspectives"

Archil Gegeshidze, Vice President, Georgian Foundation for Strategic and International Studies

"Challenges and Opportunities for Georgian Development"

13:00 - 14:00 Lunch

14:00 - 16:00 Session 2 Educational Dimensions

George Mchedlishvili, Department of International Relations, TIAA

"U.S. Educational Assistance, Building Human Capital and Democracy"

Lois Muir, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, UM

"U.S. Higher Education: The Changes and Their Implications"

Richard Fletcher, Ph.D., Professor of Biology, UM

"Distance Education in the U.S.: College Biology"

Lynne Sanford Koester, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology, UM

"Service Learning and Intercultural Education"

Conrad W. Snyder, Professor of Education, UM

"Improving K-12 Math and Science Education"

Robert Hausmann, Ph.D., Professor of Linguistics

"English Language Education: Cases from Eastern Europe and Implications for Georgia"

20:00 Banquet