University of New Orleans history professor and Center Austria director Guenter Bischof was honored earlier this month by his home state of Vorarlberg, Austria with the “Scholar of the Year Award.”
Bischof grew up in the Alpine village of Mellau on the Swiss border. From skiing and playing soccer as a youngster, Bischof says he has graduated to swimming and hiking in his beloved Alps.
The award is in recognition for Bischof’s work in Austria and for his work bringing students from the University of Innsbruck to UNO on a regular basis through Center Austria.
Founded in 1997, Center Austria is a research and discourse hub for Austrian and European studies at UNO and in New Orleans. The center advances understanding of Austrian and Central European culture through scholarly and artistic activities, and academic partnerships.
The award was bestowed by Vorarlberg governor Markus Wallner during a ceremony at the state capitol in Bregenz, Austria.
“To me this award indicates that my work on Austrian-American relations and our Center Austria work to bring students from the University of Innsbruck to UNO—1,000 or so since 1998—is much appreciated in Austria and not taken for granted,” Bischof said.
Bischof, who received his master’s degree in history from the University of New Orleans, enjoys teaching at UNO’s international summer schools in Innsbruck and Prague. He has been a visiting professor at the Universities of Munich, Innsbruck, Salzburg, Vienna, the Economics University in Prague and the State University for the Humanities in Moscow.
