Asia Center
The Asia Center, a Title VI National Resource Center for Asian and Pacific Studies, serves as a hub for
Asia-related activities at the University of Utah involving teaching, research, and outreach to K-12
schools and the community. The center supports Asian studies broadly, incorporating the languages and
countries of the core regions of east, south, southeast, and central Asia, as well as Russia, the Pacific,
and West Asia. It houses an interdisciplinary Asian Studies program offering bachelor’s and master’s
degrees with tracks focused on east, south, southeast, and central Asia, Russia, and the Pacific. The
center has also received funding from the Japan Foundation, Henry Luce Foundation, Korea Foundation,
and Chiang Ching-kuo Foundation.
With over 100 affiliated faculty from 28 departments and 11 colleges, the Asia Center works with a
network of units across the university to facilitate the development of Asia-related curriculum,
conferences, lectures, cultural events, learning abroad and internship opportunities, and community
programs. These include the Office of Global Engagement, College of Humanities, College of Social and
Behavioral Science, Hinckley Institute of Politics, College of Social Work, College of Education, S.J.
Quinney College of Law, Global Health Initiative, and University Neighborhood Partners.
In 2010, the University of Utah Asia Center and the Asian Studies program at Brigham Young University
formed the Intermountain Consortium for Asian and Pacific Studies (IMCAPS) to facilitate the formation
of a statewide K-16 pipeline for Asian language and area studies education. IMCAPS works with the Utah
State Office of Education, Salt Lake Community College, Utah Valley University, Dixie State University,
and school districts across Utah to expand and improve K-16 Asia curriculum aimed to produce fully
bilingual or multilingual college graduates prepared to use their language and cultural skills in the
professional world.
