{"id":27191,"date":"2019-04-25T12:00:18","date_gmt":"2019-04-25T17:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.discoverclarksville.com\/articles\/?p=27191"},"modified":"2019-04-25T10:37:19","modified_gmt":"2019-04-25T15:37:19","slug":"apsu-professor-dr-christophe-konkobo-awarded-fulbright-scholar-grant","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.discoverclarksville.com\/articles\/2019\/04\/25\/apsu-professor-dr-christophe-konkobo-awarded-fulbright-scholar-grant\/","title":{"rendered":"APSU professor Dr. Christophe Konkobo awarded Fulbright Scholar grant"},"content":{"rendered":"

Austin Peay State University (APSU)<\/h2>\n

\"AustinClarksville, TN<\/strong> – For the second time in four years, the U.S. Department of State has picked an Austin Peay State University (APSU) professor for its Fulbright Scholar Program.<\/p>\n

By winning the award, French and Francophone studies associate professor Dr. Christophe Konkobo will spend the 2019-20 academic year teaching and conducting research in the West African country Burkina Faso<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Austin<\/a>

Austin Peay State University professor Dr. Christophe Konkobo. (APSU)<\/p><\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

Music professor Ann Silverberg won a Fulbright Scholar grant in 2015<\/a> and spent nearly a year in China studying that country\u2019s musical past.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am extremely proud of Dr. Konkobo,\u201d Barry Jones, dean of the College of Arts and Letters, said. \u201cWinning a Fulbright is an amazing compliment, and it validates what we already knew in the College of Arts and Letters, that Dr. Konkobo is a high-level scholar who has made and will continue to make important contributions to the study of Francophone literature and cinema.\u201d<\/p>\n

Konkobo will teach African American pop culture, film and theater, and he\u2019ll research African acting and filmmaking. He has taught in APSU\u2019s Department of Languages and Literature for six years.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think Austin Peay made this story possible because, for instance, my chair, Dr. David Guest, has been supportive,\u201d he said. \u201cOnce I decided I wanted to do this, I knew that I would have the backing of the institution. That makes a difference.\u201d<\/p>\n

Teaching ‘American Civilization’<\/h3>\n

Konkobo will return to the University of Ouagadougou<\/a>, where he earned his first two degrees (he also has master\u2019s and doctorate degrees from the University of Iowa).<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll teach what is known as American culture, they call it more specifically \u2018American Civilization,\u2019 and my niche in that particular field is African American pop culture, film and theater,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The title of the class will be \u201cDo the Right Thing,\u201d a name he borrowed from the celebrated 1989 Spike Lee movie.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe bulk of the films and the work that students will be examining is about African Americans, about how they portray the lives and the struggles and the culture of the African American community,\u201d Konkobo said. \u201cThat\u2019s one part of it, I have a theater part too.\u201d<\/p>\n

[320left]He also thinks developing curriculum for the University of Ouagadougou will benefit students at Austin Peay.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile I am glad to be able to fulfill the pedagogical needs of the host university, I am also looking forward eventually to revising the same course syllabi and teaching them to benefit our students minoring in African American studies at Austin Peay,\u201d Konkobo wrote in his Fulbright application.<\/p>\n

Researching African Acting, Films<\/h3>\n

Konkobo\u2019s research during the Fulbright will focus on acting and filmmaking in French-speaking (Francophone) Sub-Saharan countries. His goal is to write a book on the topic, following up on his book about theater in Burkina Faso titled \u201cLa Pratique du The\u0301a\u0302tre Moderne au Burkina Faso<\/a>\u201d (\u201cThe Practice of Modern Theatre in Burkina Faso\u201d).<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile examining theatre, I found interest in studying acting and actors in cinema,\u201d Konkobo wrote in his Fulbright application. \u201cMy research project examines and analyzes acting and the use of actors in Sub-Saharan Francophone films from the colonial era to contemporary times.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a recent interview, he added: \u201cI\u2019ll be looking at that period and examining how Africans were portrayed \u2013 not as actors, not as subjects, but as objects \u2013 and then fast-forwarding to post-colonial times when we have both actors and filmmakers getting together to create their own stories and portraying their own realities.\u201d<\/p>\n

Living in Burkina Faso as a Fulbright Scholar will give Konkobo ample resources for his research. The capital city, Ouagadougou, hosts one of the world\u2019s largest and oldest film festivals, the Pan-African Cinema Festival of Ouagadougou<\/a>, and has established itself as the home of African cinema.<\/p>\n

Konkobo plans to interview several film producers, actors and directors, and visit The African Film Library of Ouagadougou<\/a> during his research.<\/p>\n

What Is The Fulbright?<\/h3>\n

The Fulbright Program, the flagship international educational program of the U.S. government, provides participants the \u201copportunity to study, teach and conduct research, exchange ideas and contribute to finding solutions to shared international concerns,\u201d according to the Department of State website.<\/p>\n

[320right]The Fulbright Program awards about 1,200 U.S. scholar and 1,900 U.S. student grants each year. The program also brings international scholars and students to the United States. Congress and other participating countries provide funding and support for the program.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think for my personal development, as a scholar, as a researcher, as a teacher, it really gives me a lot more confidence that I\u2019m doing the right thing,\u201d Konkobo said. \u201cThat colleagues from different backgrounds and different subject matters decided my topic was worthwhile, and the government decided they would fund me to research and teach on behalf of the United States.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is really something important.\u201d<\/p>\n

To Learn More<\/h3>\n