NEWS

Stoff returns from researching in Russia

Oct 6, 2011 | Liberal Arts

Participation of Russian women in medical services in World War I is the current topic of research for Laurie Stoff, assistant professor of history and director of graduate studies, at Louisiana Tech. Stoff recently returned to Ruston after continuing her studies while living in Moscow, Russia for three months.  She is the author of “They Fought for the Motherland: Russia’s Women Soldiers in World War I and the Revolution,” which details the experiences of the women who served as combatants during World War I in Russia, and currently serves as the associate executive editor for Minerva Journal of Women and War. Upon the completion of her new research project, Stoff said she plans to write her second book on the participation of women in medical services in Russia during World War I.  Throughout her time in Russia, Stoff said she was mostly working in the Russian State Military Historical Archives. “I was collecting information about the participation of women who served as nurses in the Russian Red Cross and other auxiliary organizations during World War I,” she said. Another place of research Stoff said she visited was the Russian State Library, which is similar to the Library of Congress in the USA where they have a vast collection of materials.  The opportunity arose after she said she applied for a grant from the American Councils for International Education among other organizations. ACIE funded her research while she was studying abroad. “I have spent a lot of time in Russia, especially over the last few years since the fall of Communism,” Stoff said. “I have found that now it is very expensive to live in Moscow.” According to www.citymayors.com, Moscow is currently the fourth most expensive city in the world. Written by Haley Kraemer for the Louisiana Tech News Bureau