|
[[ImageFile:LogoBierton rscoutside..jpg|thumb|150px|right|LogoStreetview Roosevelttowards Studythe Centerlibrary]]
The '''Roosevelt StudyInstitute Centerfor American Studies''' ('''RIAS''') is a research institute, graduate school, conference center, and library onfor twentieth-centurythe Americanstudy of US history locatedand transatlantic relations in the twelfth-centurymodern era located in Zeeuws Archief, in [[Abbey ofMiddelburg, Zeeland|Middelburg]], the Netherlands. ItUp to 2017, it was known as the '''Roosevelt Study Center'''. The Institute is named after three famous Americans, whose ancestors emigrated from [[Zeeland]], the Netherlands, to the [[United States]] in the seventeenth century: President [[Theodore Roosevelt]] (1858–1919), President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] (1882–1945), and [[Eleanor Roosevelt]] (1884–1962).
==History and activities==
The lateroots of the Institute date back to 1982, when [[Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr.]], noted American historian, and [[William J. vanden Heuvel]], then president of the [[Roosevelt Institute|Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute]] in Hyde Park, New York, werelaunched the Foundinginitiative Fathersto of the Roosevelt Study Center (RSC). They thought that Middelburg, capital city of Zeeland, was an excellent place for the establishment ofestablish a European research facility specialized in twentieth-century American history in Middelburg, the capital of Zeeland. Their initiative, discussed with the Provincial Government of Zeeland in the years 1982-19841982–1984, resulted in the opening of the Roosevelt Study Center in 1986. The RSC is subsidized by the Provincial Government of Zeeland and the [[Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences]]. Private corporations and institutions sponsor particular programs of the RSC.
In 2016, 30 years after its founding, the Center entered into a partnership with the University of Leiden. Consequently, the Center was renamed to the Roosevelt Institute for American Studies, and acquired a new set of activities, including the establishment of a graduate school for US history. The RIAS is subsidized by the Provincial Government of Zeeland and the Ministry of Education, Culture, and Science. Private corporations and institutions sponsor particular programs of the RIAS.
The RSC cooperates with Dutch universities in research projects, as well as with the [[Theodore Roosevelt Association]] and the Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute in various ways. The center, for instance, annually awards the best Master Thesis on American History with the Theodore Roosevelt American History Award (TRAHA), which grants the winner a trip to the key sites of interest of the Roosevelts.<ref>http://www.roosevelt.nl/en/activities/awards/</ref> ▼
▲The RSCRIAS cooperates with Dutch universities in research projects, as well as with the [[Theodore Roosevelt Association]] and the Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute in various ways. The center, for instance, annually awards the best Master Thesis on American History with the Theodore Roosevelt American History Award (TRAHA), which grants the winner a trip to the key sites of interest of the Roosevelts. <ref>http://www.roosevelt.nl/en/activities/awards/</ref>
Furthermore, the RSC is also regularly organizer and host of conferences and lectures on U.S. history and culture as well as on European-U.S. relations.<ref>http://www.roosevelt.nl/en/activities/conferences/</ref>
The RIAS regularly organizes and hosts conferences and lectures on U.S. history and culture and on European-U.S. relations. It also publishes an annual newsletter in December, The Roosevelt.
The RSC is a founding member of the American Studies Network, a cooperation of the twenty outstanding American Studies Centers <br />in Europe.<ref>http://www.eaas.eu/asn.htm</ref> It has an annual newsletter, ''The Roosevelt Herald'', and an inhouse publications series. Monographs written by RSC staff and collections of essays based on RSC conferences edited by RSC staff have been published over the years by publishing houses in Europe and the United States.
==Collections and research==
The RIAS has an extensive library collection on American and transatlantic history, including both secondary and primary sources. While the extensive book collection, with more than 9500 entries, can be searched by use of an online catalogue, the institute also owns more than a hundred [[microfilm]] collections and digital resources. These include, among others, copies of the papers of President Theodore Roosevelt; the presidential Office Files of Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry S. Truman, Dwight D. Eisenhower, and John F. Kennedy; the papers of W.E.B. Du Bois; and Dutch-American diplomatic correspondence (dating back to 1784).
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[Image:Library Roosevelt Study Center Wikipedia.JPG|thumb|200px|right|Roosevelt Study Center Library|{{pufc|1=Library Roosevelt Study Center Wikipedia.JPG|log=15 April 2009}}]] -->
While the extensive book collection, with more than 8500 entries, can be searched by use of an online catalogue,<ref>http://opac.zebi.nl/webopac/Vubis.csp?SearchT1=&Index1=Index201&Database=2&OpacLanguage=eng&Profile=Profile_42</ref> the Roosevelt Study Center also owns more than a hundred [[microfilm]] collections and digital resources, which are listed on the Center's homepage under the "Collections" section.<ref>http://www.roosevelt.nl/en/collections/</ref>
The RIAS library is freely accessible to any interested researchers in American history, culture, or Dutch-American relations.
Researchers in American History, Culture, or Dutch-American relations, are strongly advised to contact the RSC to make an appointment for visiting the library. The Roosevelt Study Center offers two kinds of grants for stimulating research in Middelburg:<ref>http://www.roosevelt.nl/en/research_grants/</ref> the Fulbright Distinguished Research Chair is meant for American scholars, while the RSC research grants enable European scholars and students to research various topics related to U.S. history at the Roosevelt Study Center without crossing the Atlantic. European graduate students can also apply for a travel grant at the European Association for American Studies, the EAAS travel grant.<ref>http://www.eaas.eu/travel_grants.htm</ref>
It also offers two kinds of grants for stimulating research in Middelburg: the Roosevelt Visiting Professorship and research grants provided by the institute itself. The former is meant for American scholars, while latter enables European scholars and students to research various topics related to U.S. history at the Roosevelt Institute for American studies without crossing the Atlantic.
==Four Freedoms Awards==
Since 1982, the year that commemorated the centennial of President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]]'s birth and the bicentennial of diplomatic relations between the United States and the Netherlands, The Franklin D. Roosevelt [[Four Freedoms Award#Freedom Medal|Four Freedoms Medals]] are awarded in even-numbered years in Middelburg's Abbey and in odd-numbered years in Hyde Park, New York. These prestigious medals are awarded to men and women who have demonstrated an enduring commitment to the four principle freedoms as expressed by President Franklin Roosevelt in his State of the Union Message of January 6, 1941: [[Freedom of Speech|Freedom of Speech and Expression]],
[[Freedom of Religion|Freedom of Worship]],
[[Freedom from want]], and
[[Freedom from fear]]. <br />
The laureates of the [[Four Freedoms Awards]]<ref>http://www.roosevelt.nl/en/four_freedoms/</ref> in Middelburg include:
* H.R.H. [[Princess Juliana]] of [[the Netherlands]]
* His Holiness [[The Dalai Lama]]
* [[Václav Havel]]
* The Most Reverend [[Desmond Tutu]]
* [[Nelson Mandela]]
* [[Kofi Annan]]
* [[Mohammed ElBaradei]]
For more information, visit the Roosevelt Stichting's website.<ref>http://www.fourfreedoms.nl</ref>
==References==
{{Reflist|40em}}
==External links==
*[httphttps://www.roosevelt.nl/ Website Roosevelt StudyInstitute for American CenterStudies]
*[http://www.fourfreedoms.nl Website Four Freedom Awards]
{{Theodore Roosevelt}}
{{Franklin D. Roosevelt}}
{{Eleanor Roosevelt}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:Middelburg, Zeeland]]
[[Category:Organisations based in Zeeland]]
[[Category:Education in Zeeland]]
| 