A Tibetan Introduces History Of India In American University
New York, 2 August: Thanks to the initiatives of a Tibetan teacher from Darjeeling, the Grand Valley State University (GVSU) in Allendale, Michigan, today has a full-fledged program in the history of India.
Exactly one year ago, Yosay Wangdi created a history for Tibet by becoming the first Tibetan woman professor in the United States.
Joining the history department of GVSU as Assistant Professor in August 2003, Wangdi immediately set out to introduce courses in the history of India, followed by a course in Buddhism in the university’s “East Asian Religion” class.
The next project on Wangdi’s list is to develop courses in the history of Tibet.
“I am a Tibetan, the second generation to be born outside of Tibet, in the town of Kurseong in Darjeeling district,” Wangdi said.
“Having had the privilege of being trained in two distinct traditions, my cross-cultural background has provided me with a powerful metaphor for the classroom.”
Wangdi went to St. Helen’s Covent in Kurseong, a school run by Irish Jesuit nuns, and later joined Jadavpur University in Calcutta, from where she obtained an M.Phil in history.
In 1999 Wangdi completed her MS degree program in Economics, going on to earn a Ph.D. in History in 2003–both from the University of Nevada at Reno.
Before embarking on her doctoral training in 1996, Wangdi said she had “extensive teaching experiences” in India.
As a Lecturer of History in Kurseong College, she taught the history of Delhi Sultanate, Mughal Empire, and modern Asia, covering countries like China, Japan, South East Asia, Tibet and Nepal.
“I developed a broad range of pedagogic approaches designed to inspire students to become interested in the subject matter, and not just view their studies as leading to a degree,” Wangdi said.
“From Fall 1996 to Spring 2002, I worked as a teaching assistant in the Department of History and Western Traditions at the University of Nevada, Reno, participating in a wide variety of courses as a teaching assistant in courses ranging from the history of east Asia and the history of Science to American, European and Latin civilizations.”
Yosay Wangdi’s late father, Kunchok Wangdi, was one of the early Tibetans to join the Indian police force, working his way through the ranks to become Deputy Superintendent of Police.
“As a Tibetan officer, he was called upon by the Indian Government to liaise with and to assist the many thousands of Tibetan refugees who were entering India from Tibet with His Holiness the Dalai Lama.”
Wangdi’s maternal grandfather, who hailed from the Ba region of Kham in eastern Tibet, revolutionized the transport in the hills of Darjeeling by introducing motor cars and becoming the sole owner of taxi service in the early part of the 20th century.
“He is well known in the region as the founder of Tashi Choeling Monastery in Kurseong which was built in 1919,” Wangdi said.
Report courtesy : OoT, New York