Elizabeth Cullen Dunn named Jean Monnet Chair of Migration and Refugee Studies
Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence
EURO Associate Director Colton Ames said, “Our goal for these grants was to find innovative and engaging places around campus and the community to inject the opportunity to learn about the EU. From the arts to cybersecurity to K-12 education, we really tried to expand our network so more folks could learn about who we are and what we do.”
These efforts will focus on academic training, events and outreach, and mobility.
Academic training
The Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence grant will support academic training including workshops for K-12 educators and the development of an undergraduate cybersecurity clinic.
EURO will partner with Vesna Dimitrieska, coordinator for global education initiatives at the Hamilton Lugar School and the IU School of Education, to provide an annual “Teaching the EU” workshop for K-12 educators. The workshop will equip the educators with strategies to teach their students about the European Union.
In addition, EURO will partner with the IU Cybersecurity and Global Policy program to develop a hands-on practicum course for undergraduate students to learn about the EU through a lens of cybersecurity and data protection policy. The Cybersecurity and Global Policy program is a joint effort between the Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies and the Luddy School of Informatics, Engineering, and Computing.
Events & Outreach
The Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence grant will fund a variety of events and outreach efforts, including:
Support for the Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art to develop a new exhibit on provenance research being conducted by the European art curators at the Eskenazi. EURO and the Eskenazi Museum of Art will also partner to develop a virtual self-guided tour to introduce guests to European provenance research and efforts within the EU to preserve its cultural heritage.
Development of a new “Security in the EU” annual lecture series to which will feature experts addressing a variety of topics related to the European Union.
Co-organization of a cybersecurity workshop in partnership with IU’s Cybersecurity and Global Policy Program. The workshop will bring together scholars, industry leaders, and civil servants around Indiana, the United States, and the European Union in spring 2026.
Partnership with the University of Pittsburgh and the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill to create a European traveling film festival to bring select European films and filmmakers for a tour around the United States.
As EURO approaches the 30th year of sponsoring Midwest Model EU simulations, the Centre of Excellence funds will support the development of training videos to help students prepare for their roles as delegates to EU institutions. These videos will be posted on EURO’s new Midwest Model EU website.
Mobility
The Centre for Excellence grants will support a variety of efforts to promote mobility between the European Union and the United States, including:
Support for early-career faculty & graduate student travel for research or conference presentations on topics related to the European Union.
Continued support for the School of Education’s Global Gateway for Teachers, including funds to open a new placement site within the EU, and scholarships to support students who choose to complete their student teaching in an EU country.
Jean Monnet Chair of Migration and Refugee Studies
In addition to the Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence Grant, the Erasmus+ commission also funded the creation of the Jean Monnet Chair of Migration and Refugee Studies for Elizabeth Cullen Dunn, EURO’s new director. This lump sum award will support Dunn’s scholarship, teaching, and outreach on the topic of refugees and migration as they pertain to the European Union. The funds will be used to support teaching, workshops, scholarship, and outreach.
Teaching
As Jean Monnet Chair, Dunn plans to teach courses including:
- Migrant Workers in the EU
- Infrastructures of Arrival: The EU and Migrant Reception
- War and Migration: Refugees and Asylum Seekers in the U.S. and Europe
- Ukraine: The War Reshaping Europe
Workshops
Dunn expects to offer workshops on:
- The Weaponized Earth: Terrain, Landscape, and Migration Deterrence
- Infrastructures of Arrival
- States of Emergency and Sustainable Futures
Scholarship
The Jean Monnet Chair funds will support Dunn’s scholarship which will include:
- “Volunteer Humanitarianism in the EU: Donated Aid to Ukraine” (journal article)
- Tactical Humanitarianism (book project)
- The Crowdsourced War (book project)
- Working with Refugees: Ethical Practice in Forced Migration Research (book project)
Outreach
Dunn’s Jean Monnet Chair funds will support outreach efforts including:
- The creation of a new website for the Center for Refugee Studies
- Establishment of a refugee studies faculty/doctoral student reading group
- Creation of a refugee studies podcast
- Development of workshops for K-12 Teachers
About the awards
Erasmus+ is the EU’s program to support education, training, youth, and sport in Europe. Within the program, Jean Monnet initiatives are designed to promote excellence in worldwide teaching and research in European Studies and foster dialogue between academics and policymakers. The initiatives are named after Jean Monnet (1888-1979), a French politician and economic advisor who is considered one of the ‘founding fathers’ of the European Union.
