Asia Minor Travel Seminar
A guided study journey through the landscapes, monuments, and living faith of Pontus and Asia Minor.
A cohort on the road
Every two years, the Center sponsors the Asia Minor Travel Seminar in collaboration with the Dean C. and Zoë S. Pappas Interdisciplinary Center for Hellenic Studies of Stockton University, and the Centre for Asia Minor Studies in Athens, Greece.
Graduate and undergraduate students travel with faculty to Athens and Asia Minor to learn about the vibrant Greek Orthodox Christian community that existed in a Muslim Ottoman society before 1923, examine the physical locations that were once home to the Greek Orthodox population, and gain experience working with oral histories at a major Greek archive — the Centre for Asia Minor Studies.
Cadence
Held every two years; the hallmark program of the Center.
Credit
May be taken for undergraduate or graduate credit through HCHC.
Language
Instruction in English; advanced reading knowledge of Modern Greek required.
Partners
The Pappas Center at Stockton University & the Centre for Asia Minor Studies, Athens.
The 2025 Seminar — Greek Orthodox Christians of Asia Minor
The seminar introduced undergraduate and graduate students to the history of the Christian communities that existed in late Ottoman Asia Minor. The first portion was set in the Centre for Asia Minor Studies, under the direction of Prof. Paschalis Kitromilides, with a focus on the oral-history accounts of refugees recounting life in their Asia Minor villages prior to their uprooting by the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923.
The second portion was a trip to the Black Sea coast of Asia Minor (Turkey): Trabzon (Trapezounda), Gumushhane (Argyroupolis), Ordu (Kotyora), Giresun (Kerasunda), Samsun (Amisos), Amasya (Amaseia), and Istanbul (Constantinople) — visiting Greek Orthodox settlements and villages encountered in the archives, and examining the physical remains of churches and residences. Led by Travel Seminar Director Professor Tom Papademetriou.
Attendance and daily preparation
Presentations on readings
Archival and village presentations
Participation in a group exhibition
Completion of a research agenda of oral-history material
Collection and translation of files; summaries and abstracts
Three-credit students: a 25-page historical paper based on oral-history sources
Fellowship & costs
Most participant expenses are covered by the New York Life Center. The Summer Fellowship is worth approximately $6,000 and includes shared hotel accommodation, some meals, round-trip travel from Athens to the Black Sea coast, and tours.
Each participant receives up to $1,500 reimbursement for international (US–Athens) travel; a final $250 is released on submission of the final paper.
Each accepted Summer Fellow pays a $750 registration fee. International travel to and from Athens is the participant’s responsibility. All participants comply with the standards of the Stockton University Office of Global Engagement.
Professor Tom Papademetriou
Director of the Travel Seminar · Department of Historical Studies, Stockton University
apapadem@stockton.edu · +1 609-626-6093
Professor Paschalis Kitromilides
Faculty of Political Science, University of Athens
pkitrom@eie.gr
Applications for the 2025 cycle closed March 1, 2025. Accepted participants register through the Stockton University Office of Global Engagement.