AMES, Iowa – James Andrews, professor of history at Iowa State University, has been awarded a Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars grant by the U.S. Department of State. Andrews will be a senior policy expert in Eurasian studies this summer in Washington, D.C., at the George F. Kennan Institute for Advanced Studies of Russia, Eurasia and the Former Soviet Union.
Andrews will conduct research for his newest book, entitled “Subterranean Metropolitans,” which looks at Moscow’s vast and ornate subway system called the Metro. He will be able to interact with other scholars and use the resources at the Library of Congress.
"I will have great access at the Library of Congress to Soviet-era newspapers and journals,” said Andrews.
Moscow has been a second home to Andrews since his days as a college student. An expert in Russian history and fluent in the language, he has been researching the Moscow Metro system for several years. Moscow Metro stations are highly functional and also are elaborate and unique areas of art that reflect the history of the country, said Andrews.
“The metro has rich meaning to the people of Moscow. They are very proud of it. The Metro to them is like the Eiffel Tower to the French,” he explained.
Andrews is also director of Iowa State’s Center for Excellence in the Arts and Humanities. The CEAH supports ISU faculty research and scholarship in the arts and humanities. Part of its mission is to provide grants to ISU faculty. As a result, Andrews is looking forward to the opportunity to interact with and learning from people in Washington who also award grants.
“It’s good to lead by example,” he said, “and I will get to experience a sense of what people are seeking. It will be great to pass advice along to my Iowa State colleagues.”
Andrews has produced two books related to Soviet space exploration. He authored 2009’s “Red Cosmos: K.E. Tsiolkovskii, Grandfather of Soviet Rocketry,” which looks at the cultural and political roots of Russian rocketry. In 2011 he co-edited the book “Space Exploration and Soviet Culture,” which deals with the space age from the 1950s to the 1970s.
Iowa State’s Department of History is an academic unit in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. -30-
About Liberal Arts and Sciences The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences is a world-class learning and research community. Iowa State’s most academically diverse college, LAS educates students to become global citizens, providing rigorous academic programs in the sciences, humanities and social sciences within a supportive personalized learning environment. College faculty design new materials, unravel biological structures, care for the environment, and explore social and behavioral issues. From fundamental research to technology transfer and artistic expression, the college supports people in Iowa and around the world.
NEWS RELEASE College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Iowa State University
Contacts: James Andrews, History, (515) 294-3828, andrewsj@iastate.edu Paige Berg, Liberal Arts & Sciences Communication, (515) 294-0461, pmberg@iastate.edu Steve Jones, Liberal Arts & Sciences Communication, (515) 294-0461, jones@iastate.edu