At Home Abroad House: Slavic, Francophone and Italian Cultures and Languages Theme

Do you watch Senegalese films in French, read Russian novels set in Ukraine, follow Italian fashion, listen to Arabic music, play Korean video games, or discuss Brazilian politics? Do you study or speak a language other than English? Come live abroad, right from the comfort of campus! Travel across five continents, immerse yourself in different cultures, and learn to cook food from around the world all while discovering cinema and literatures that speak of diasporic journeys, migrations, empires and post-colonial re-imaginings, ethnic and national identities, and mythologies

More About At Home Abroad House

Do you watch Senegalese films in French, read Russian novels set in Ukraine, follow Italian fashion, listen to Arabic music, play Korean video games, or discuss Brazilian politics? Do you study or speak a language other than English? Come live abroad, right from the comfort of campus! Travel across five continents, immerse yourself in different cultures, and learn to cook food from around the world all while discovering cinema and literatures that speak of diasporic journeys, migrations, empires and post-colonial re-imaginings, ethnic and national identities, and mythologies.

Located in Yost, AHA House is an intellectual and cultural crossroads where students engage in interactive, transcultural learning and acquire the tools necessary to confront the complexity of our contemporary world. Building on the legacies of Stanford houses that hosted language tables in French, Italian, and Russian, AHA House is a vibrant, diverse community that offers students an opportunity to explore languages and cultures beyond the English-speaking world. We welcome any and all students interested in creating a space for conversations about foreign films, music, food, and international issues.

Through a wide range of activities, residents have a chance to broaden their awareness and understanding of the incredible range of experiences, ideas, and non-English idioms that each house resident brings.

Make meaningful friendships and connections that extend beyond borders, and come join us in this At Home Abroad experience.

Access AHA Website

Opportunities to Engage

Dinners and conversations with faculty, artists, and scholars from around the world
Seminars on timely, international issues featuring special guest speakers
Specially designed programs emphasizing cross-cultural interaction with intellectual and social dimensions
Language tables that give residents an opportunity to practice their language skills outside of class in a casual setting
Cooking classes featuring global recipes and cuisines
Screenings of foreign films and documentaries portraying diverse cultures and regions of the world
Resident-led events and activities that promote language and cultural exchange
Off-campus excursions to museums, historic sites, arts and culture events, restaurants, and more!

Leadership

Jovana Lazić Knežević, Ph.D., Associate Director, Center for Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies; Resident Fellow, At Home Abroad House (Yost)
Cécile Alduy, Chair, Division of Literatures, Cultures, and Languages and Professor, French Literature and Culture
Michael McFaul, Director, Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies and Ken Olivier and Angela Nomellini Professor of International Studies, Department of Political Science
Jisha Menon, Sakurako and William Fisher Family Director, Stanford Global Studies Division and Associate Professor in Theatre and Performance Studies
Aron Rodrigue, Burke Family Director of the Bing Overseas Studies Program and Daniel E. Koshland Professor in Jewish Culture and History
Gabriella Safran, Senior Associate Dean, Humanities and Arts, Eva Chernov Lokey Professor of Jewish Studies, Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures
Kathryn Starkey, Professor of German Studies
Laura Wittman, Director, Department of French and Italian and Associate Professor of French and Italian
Katherine Kuhns, Ph.D. Executive Director, Stanford Global Studies Division
Evan Alterman, At Home Abroad Affiliated Graduate Student Fellow, 2021-22, PhD Candidate, Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures
Maria Massucco, At Home Abroad Affiliated Graduate Student Fellow, 2021-22, PhD Candidate, Italian Studies
Katherine Crandell ’23 (Computer Science/Slavic), At Home Abroad Resident Assistant, 2021-22
Michael McDermott ’23 (Mechanical Engineering/Italian), At Home Abroad Resident Assistant, 2021-22

Theme Requirements

Residents of the At Home Abroad (AHA) house participate for two quarters in the house seminar, led by the Resident Fellow and graduate affiliates. All residents attend the fall seminar, an International Film Series (DLCL/GLOBAL 50), and then the Global Gastronomies and Multicultural Cooking Class (DLCL/GLOBAL 50C) in either winter or spring quarters, depending on scheduling preferences. Residents earn up to 2 academic units per quarter for participating in the seminars. In addition to the seminar, residents will organize one presentation over the course of the year, either individually or as part of a group, on cultural, historical or political topics of interest related to any part of the world, to share with other residents as part of weekly gatherings. Residents also are welcome to attend weekly language tables and organize additional theme-related social events and activities.