In Spring, 2002, the faculty members of the Russian and Eastern European Studies (REES) Concentration unanimously voted to restructure the concentration. Henceforth it will be called the Russian, Central and Eastern European Studies (RCEES) Concentration. The restructured concentration aims to reflect changes in the field, and to recognize developments in the Grinnell College curriculum. The revised RCEES concentration now has a third track focusing on Central and Eastern Europe in addition to the Russian Literature/Culture and the Russian History/Culture Tracks.

Check out the Central and Eastern European Research Portal--a new website devoted to this area of the world.

The Russian Department, often in conjunction with RCEES (Russian and Central Eastern European Studies), organizes one or two day-long excursions per year to numerous area sites of interest, or to events in nearby metropolitan areas that are connected in some way to our academic program. Often these excursions are arranged in connection with first-year tutorials taught in the department, but are usually designed to include our majors and friends of the department as well. We have traveled to Chicago, Minneapolis, Kansas City, Cedar Rapids, St. Louis, and other cities on numerous occasions to visit art exhibits, attend important plays, visit local ethic communities, or participate in scholarly conferences.