Herman Van Olphen
Herman Van Olphen is the Director of the Hindi Urdu Flagship and a Professor in the Department of Asian Studies. A leading Hindi educator, Van Olphen has been the driving force behind the development of the Hindi language program at UT. He is recognized for his participation in the field of evaluating language proficiency, materials design, and teaching Hindi at all levels. He was involved in the initial establishment and subsequent enhancement of the guidelines of the American Council of Teachers of Foreign Languages (ACTFL), which are the accepted standard for evaluating proficiency in Hindi. As Chair of the American Institute of Indian Studies (AIIS) Advanced Language Programs in India for almost a decade, he was responsible for overall structure and evaluation of the programs—giving him a direct hand in the language education of a generation of American scholars of India. Van Olphen has taught courses in Advanced Hindi; the Hindi Short Story; the Hindi Novel; Language in Society in Asia; as well as many other courses where the students are exposed to a variety of Hindi genres.
Rupert Snell
Rupert Snell is HUF's Associate Director for Hindi and an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Asian Studies. Before moving to Texas he taught at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, for three decades. Snell is a recipient of the prestigious Sir George Grierson Hindi Sevi Sammaan Award given by the President of India in 1997 in recognition of his services to the Hindi language. Known worldwide for his textbooks in the 'Teach Yourself' series, he teaches Hindi language at all levels. His research interests lie primarily in 16th and 17th century poetry; publications in the field include The Eighty-Four Hymns of Hita Harivamsha (a little-known devotional text) and The Hindi Classical Tradition: A Braj Bhasa Reader (an expanded edition of which is currently under preparation, together with a sister volume on the Awadhi Ramcharitmanas of Tulsidas). His study Hindi and Urdu since 1800: a Common Reader, co-written with Christopher Shackle in 1990, is available in full under the Resources section of our website. A book that has received much acclaim is Snell’s translation of the autobiography of the 20th-century Hindi poet Harivansh Rai Bachchan, published in 1998 under the title In the Afternoon of Time. Snell has also edited several volumes of papers, including According to Tradition: Hagiographical Writing in India (with Winand Callewaert) and Classics of Modern South Asian Literature (with Ian Raeside). Current projects include a volume of papers on ‘Hinglish’ (with Rita Kothari of MICA, Ahmedabad), and, in collaboration with Laura Brueck of the University of Colorado, a study of the stylistics of 20th-century Hindi writing.
Syed Akbar Hyder
Akbar Hyder is HUF's Associate Director for Urdu and an Associate Professor in the Department of Asian Studies. Beloved among colleagues, staff, and students alike, Hyder's dynamic approach to teaching has captivated students throughout the years. Hyder is the coordinator for the Urdu program at UT. Hyder's language courses are oriented around particular themes such as "Female Voices in Urdu Literature" and "Progressive Urdu Literature". Hyder's research interests center on Indo-Muslim culture, history, literature, and language. His book, Reliving Karbala: Martyrdom in South Asian Memory, underscores the complexity that religious symbols carry in varying contexts. Hyder reveals multiple, and often conflicting interpretations of the Karbala story, and he investigates the varying ways in which the story is used for personal and communal identity in South Asia. His second book, A'iye Urdu Parhen: Let's Study Urdu, was co-authored with Ali Asani, Professor of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at Harvard. This textbook for beginning Urdu students has received significant acclaim as an effective and authoritative tool for teaching Urdu.
Sarah Green
Sarah Houston Green is the Flagship's Associate Director for Administration and Student Programs. From 2004-2007 she served as the Associate Director of UT's South Asia Institute, which is a National Resource Center for South Asia. While at the Institute, Green played a pivotal role in initiating the new Flagship Program. In spring 2008 she received her Ph.D. from UT with a dissertation titled, "The Individual in the Nation: Locating Identity at the Transition from Didactic Nationalism to the Lyrical in Early Twentieth-Century Hindi Poetry." She also holds an M.A. in Asian Cultures and Languages with a focus on 19th-century Hindi literature (Bharatendu Harishcandra's dramas) and a B.A. in English. Her current research as a Hindi scholar is focused on the Dvivedi and Chayavad Eras of modern Khari Boli poetry. Other areas of research include the nationalist dispute between Mahatma Gandhi and Rabindranath Tagore and the uses of nature to define India as a nation. Publications include articles and book reviews, most recently in the Journal of Asian Studies. Her primary concerns in the Flagship Program are to oversee administrative aspects of the program and assure the best possible learning environment for Flagship students―both in the UT classroom and during the study abroad period. She also works with national and local organizations to disseminate information about the Flagship Program and advance the Flagship's mandate to enhance Hindi and Urdu pedagogy through the development of innovative curricula.
Jishnu Shankar
Jishnu Shankar is the Flagship's Senior Lecturer in Hindi. Shankar arrived at UT in 2007 after serving as an instructor of South Asian Languages and Literatures at Syracuse University. He holds an M.A. from Syracuse University (1988) and an M.A. from Delhi School of Economics (1986), a Post-Graduate Diploma in Journalism, Indian Institute of Mass Communication (1984), and a B.A. from Delhi University (1983). Shankar is a pioneer in web-based Hindi Urdu instruction. His earlier work with online Hindi Urdu lessons has served as the basis for many current web-based Hindi Urdu projects. Aside from Hindi pedagogy, Shankar's current research centers on the Kinaram Tradition. He has field work experience in India and his major publications include a work on Aghor Vachan Shastra, Sri Sarveshwari Samooh, Varanasi, India, 1990.
Martha Berry
Martha J. Berry is the Program Assistant for the Flagship. Her focus is on students of all ages and stages of interaction with HUF from K-12 and outreach, to navigating the application process with prospective students and advising current students throughout their careers in HUF. She has also worked for the UT's Division of Housing and Food service as a Resident Assistant and Assistant Hall Coordinator in Kinsolving, Whitis Court, Jester and Littlefield Residence Halls. Martha has been a student at UT on and off since 1999. She earned her BA in Asian Studies with emphasis on ancient India and religion. In December 2008, Martha received her Master's degree from UT in Asian Cultures and Languages with a focus on Indian films. Her Master's thesis is entitled "The Legacy and Continued Impact of Raj Kapoor on the Society and Film Industry of India and Beyond." Martha's research continues to focus on Raj Kapoor and the so-called Golden Age of Indian Cinema.
Jonathan Seefeldt
Jonathan Seefeldt is the Media Coordinator for the Hindi Urdu Flagship. His work focuses on the development of language media projects that merge the Flagship's linguistic and pedagogical expertise with accessible web-based media technologies. Born in Delhi, Jonathan spent his childhood in north India. His research interests include modern Hindi poetry and fiction. He is intermittently a graduate student in UT's Asian Cultures and Languages program.
Elise Abernethy
Elise Abernethy is the Administrative Assistant/Accountant for the Hindi Urdu Flagship. She came to the University of Texas at Austin from the Detroit, Michigan area where she had spent her working career in the Automotive Industry in various customer service, program management and sales positions. She obtained her undergraduate degrees from Hope College in Holland, Michigan in the areas of Political Science and Communication. During that time, she was able to travel to Japan and became extremely interested in foreign languages and foreign cultures, which led her to obtain a Master's Degree in International Business. Ms. Abernethy is currently owned by a Pug and has dabbled in the dog show world with a Briard. Additionally, she was a certified dog trainer and taught many individuals the art of being smarter that their pets. She is very happy to be out of the cold and looking forward to a long and rewarding career at the Hindi Urdu Flagship.
