ictoria Hasko, director of the University of Georgia’s Russian Flagship Program, has been named the recipient of the 2026 Richard Reiff Award for Campus Internationalization. Presented annually by the Office of Global Engagement, the award recognizes full-time faculty who have made exceptional contributions to global education at UGA. Since 2018, Hasko has directed the flagship program and worked to expand access to international learning opportunities for students across disciplines.

Hasko, an associate professor of applied linguistics and Slavic studies, holds a joint appointment in the department of Germanic and Slavic studies and the department of linguistics in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences.

“Through thoughtfully designed language instruction and distinctive opportunities abroad, Dr. Hasko has broadly advanced student success and contributed to the achievements of some of our most outstanding students,” said Martin Kagel, UGA associate provost for global engagement. “The Reiff Award is a fitting recognition of her exceptional leadership and the lasting impact the Russian Flagship Program has had on our campus.”

Under Hasko’s leadership, the Russian Flagship Program has grown into one of the largest and most successful programs of its kind in the country. Initially funded by the Defense Language and National Security Education Office in 2018, the program has served students from more than 30 majors and minors, and its alumni include two recent Rhodes Scholars, a 2025 Truman Scholar and recipients of Boren awards, Fulbright grants and the Critical Language Scholarship.

The program is built around intensive language instruction, weekly tutoring at all levels and a curriculum designed to produce high-proficiency outcomes. A defining feature of the program is its focus on professionalizing Russian language study. Career readiness, scholarship advisement and professional development are woven into each level of the student experience. Russian students and faculty involved with the department come from across campus, including the School of Public and International Affairs, Terry College of Business and departments ranging from art history and chemistry to history and mathematics.

“This is not just a program to study Russian,” Hasko said. “This program fosters global competence. I sincerely believe that the students who come to us are future global leaders.”

Since taking on the director role, Hasko has secured more than $7 million in federal funding for global education initiatives at UGA. That funding has supported a range of programming including the Immersion in the Russian Language, Cultures and Communities in the Baltics program, which sends students to Riga, Latvia, for advanced coursework and internships. Hasko also coordinated University of Georgia’s capstone partnership with American Councils and the Al-Farabi Kazakh National University in Almaty, Kazakhstan. UGA has been recognized as one of the largest providers of Russian study abroad opportunities nationwide since 2023.

On campus, Hasko has reshaped the Russian language curriculum. She established a Russian language Living-Learning Community in Rutherford Hall and expanded extracurricular programming to two weekly conversation sessions. Cohorts function as active academic communities that extend well beyond the classroom with domestic trips to sites including the Kennedy Space Center and Washington, D.C.

“Our students spend time with each other in classes and in almost daily activities,” Hasko said. “We have scholars who come and present, conversation hours and international graduate students who represent their countries. It’s wonderful when ambitious students share that kind of core experience with each other. They inspire each other to keep going.”

Alumni of the programs Hasko directs have gone on to positions with the National Security Agency, U.S. Department of War, U.S. Department of State, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, military intelligence units and consulting firms. She currently mentors more than 90 students in the program and has served as chair of the national Language Flagship Directors’ Council.

“No matter the task, Dr. Hasko consistently creates meaningful opportunities for students to engage in Russian studies and develop the global expertise needed to better understand this complex region,” said Mercedes Bengs, a graduate of the Russian Flagship Program, 2025 Truman Scholar and Boren Scholar. “Having just completed the Russian Flagship Program, I can confidently say that she prepared me not only linguistically, but also culturally and professionally to work in Russian-speaking contexts.”

For more information about the Richard Reiff Award for Campus Internationalization, visit globalengagement.uga.edu/richardreiffaward. For more information about the Russian Flagship Program at UGA, please visit russianflagship.uga.edu.