Keene State College is partnering with the Auschwitz Institute for Peace and Reconciliation in New York to welcome a visiting international scholar focusing on genocide studies this fall. Hikmet Karcic is on campus through December and will speak on the Bosnian genocide at Keene's public library on Thursday.
Karcic, from the city of Sarajevo in Bosnia and Herzegovina, is working toward a PhD on the use of concentration camps in his country in the 90s.
He was drawn to the fellowship at Keene State, which offers the only undergraduate degree program in holocaust and genocide studies in the world, by the school’s relevant library collection and opportunities for advising.
He’s also interested in observing how genocide is taught outside of Europe.
In addition to his research, he’s auditing four courses during the semester and offering guest lectures. It’s important to take a comparative approach to genocide studies, he said, not just focus on one example or one time period.
“We need to be aware that genocide can be conducted by anyone, anywhere, at anytime," he said.
So far, he said he's been impressed by the depth of relevant curricula and resources at Keene, and he's enjoying his time in southern New Hampshire. Plus, he said, he's learning to love Domino's pizza.