Officials from the Socialist Republic of Vietnam on Wednesday awarded James Reckner an honorary medal for the cause of Vietnam Archives – making him the first American to receive such an honor from the United States’ former enemy.Reckner, executive director of the Institute for Modern Conflict, Diplomacy and Reconciliation, has played an instrumental role in growing the Vietnam Center into one of the world’s foremost Vietnam-related archival and diplomatic instruments. Reckner said the award is a reflection of the continuing process of reconciliation between former enemies, and reflects the importance of the work of the Vietnam Center. “Cooperation in archival matters as well as cooperation in developing joint education programs, such as the ones currently being discussed by the delegation now in Vietnam, are the sort of activities that help heal the wounds of a war that concluded 33 years ago,” Reckner said.

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The Vietnam Archive is pleased to announce that Dr. Kelly Crager has joined the Vietnam Archive as the new Head of the Oral History Project. Dr. Crager will coordinate and manage all aspects of the project, to include outreach, interviewing, transcription, and other administrative duties.

Dr. Crager earned a B.A. in Political Science and an M.A. in History from Pittsburgh State University in Pittsburgh, Kansas. He completed his Ph.D. in History at the University of North Texas. While at UNT, he worked under Dr. Rob Marcello in the Oral History Program. Dr. Crager comes to the Vietnam Archive from Texas A&M University, where he taught United States History and American Foreign Relations. His forthcoming book, Hell under the Rising Sun: Texan POWs and the Building of the Burma-Thailand Death Railway, will be published by Texas A&M Press later this year.

The Summer and Fall combined issue of the Friends of the Vietnam Center newsletter is now available for download on the Vietnam Center newsletters page.

Friends of the Vietnam Center Newsletters Page