About the EU Center
The EU Center (EUC) at the University of Washington has developed, since 1998, a well-earned reputation for implementing innovative teaching, outreach, and research programs in the study of the EU, its institutions and policies, and EU-US relations. Its activities are funded by the European Commission’s Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence grant, under the leadership of Dr. James Caporaso, Professor of Political Science and a leading US expert on EU integration.
The Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence Grant
The Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence grant encompasses an integrated set of activities designed to further strengthen EU Studies on our campus and across the US. The Center’s project, “Changing Landscapes: Climate, Gender, and Equity in the EU,” is designed to attract US high school and university students to EU Studies, while also training graduate students who will be the next generation of EU academic experts.
The core of the Changing Landscapes project is a set of novel and interdisciplinary learning activities that engage students with EU Studies in ways not typically available at their home institutions, including the following events:
- The Annual West Coast Model EU, held at the University of Washington since 2005, brings approximately 75 students and faculty from a dozen universities across the country to learn about the EU through a dynamic and interactive simulation of contemporary EU decision-making.
- The Western US Graduate Research Workshop on the EU provides graduate students from across the US the opportunity to share and develop their EU-focused research in an interdisciplinary setting designed to encourage cross-fertilization between academic disciplines while building a strong sense of shared project and commitment to EU Studies.
- The Pacific Northwest Regional Euro Challenge competition gathers 9th and 10th graders from across the region for a national economic policy competition, the winners of which compete against teams from across the country in New York City.
- The Annual Educator Summer Workshop is designed to provide area high school and community college instructors with the curriculum tools and materials they need to teach the EU in their classrooms. Through this activity, the center reaches hundreds of students across the region.
