Coastal Carolina University continued its collaboration with Russian State Social University (RSSU) by co-publishing a third book, "Youth and the Socio-Cultural Environment: Russia and the USA - A Cross-Cultural Analysis," a collection of essays from different cultural and academic perspectives. The book was released on May 21, and the essays were written by a combination of the CCU and RSSU faculties.

CCU Executive Vice President Edgar Dyer and Darla Domke-Damonte, executive director of global initiatives, traveled to Moscow, joining RSSU President Lydia Fedyakina in signing a second five-year agreement of cooperation between the universities. This agreement has allowed these faculties to connect and share ideas. Students from both institutions have also been able to cooperate through technology-mediated conferences and study abroad exchanges.

CCU Associate Professor of Psychology William Hills has been in Russia since January as a Fulbright scholar. He has been instrumental in building this cultural bridge from East to West. He acted as a co-coordinator and co-editor of the new book, and he has provided numerous lectures and presentations to RSSU students, faculty and community members. He has worked with Ruslan Khairullin and Lev Mardakhaev, two Ph.D.s and faculty from RSSU's Department of Social and Family Pedagogy.

All three published books have been jointly released in the United States and Russia and printed in both the Russian and English languages. The two previous books yielded from this partnership were "Teaching at the University Level: Cross-Cultural Perspectives from the United States and Russia" in 2005 and "Family and Childrearing: Russia and the USA, A Cross-Cultural Analysis" in 2008. Two more collaborative books have been planned for future.

Established in 1991, RSSU is one of the largest public universities in the Russian Federation with more than 100,000 students on more than 40 branch campuses around the country. Currently, RSSU is the only accredited institution in the Russian Federation that specializes and offers undergraduate and graduate programs in the social sciences.

For further information, contact Domke-Damonte, at 843-349-2129 or ddamonte@coastal.edu.