On July 1, David Blaylock, the coordinator of the Asian studies minor at Eastern Kentucky University (EKU), will be retiring, leaving the program without a head.
Blaylock is a professor in EKU’s Department of History, Philosophy, and Religious Studies and has been the coordinator of the Asian studies minor since 2023, but has always been involved with the program, he said. Blaylock took the place of past coordinator Abraham Velez, and teaches one class a semester that students can apply to their Asian studies minor, and he serves as a mentor for the Japanese Club. Some of his classes cover East Asia, China, and Japan.
The Asian studies minor is an 18-hour requirement that includes classes covering Asian religion, language, history, and culture. Minh Nguyen, a past EKU professor and creator of the minor, was adamant about receiving funding for the program. But once Nguyen left in 2019 the money floated around to different units until Blaylock and Jennifer Spock, the advisor for the minor, requested the funding again, Blaylock said.
Currently, the program is small; the operating budget of the History, Philosophy, and Religious Studies department, of which the minor is housed, was $30,006 for the 2023-2024 year. This stayed consistent for the 2022-2023 year as well.
With Blaylock leaving, there are questions of if his position will be filled, and who will take it.
“Up through this year, we’ve had enough courses for students to really do the minor and finish it in a reasonable time. With (Dr.)Blaylock leaving, we’ll be able to take care of students for a little while and then we’ll have to see if the university is committed to making sure students have the opportunity to really understand the Far East,” Spock said. “If we didn’t have someone in a department somewhere that specialized in it, there’s a real…
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