Join Alan Elrod (Pulaski Institution), Dr. Hyo-Won Shin (Political Scientist), and Samnang Lep (Cambodian American Association of Arkansas) to screen the award-winning film, Meeting with Pol Pot, gaining crucial insights into the Khmer Rouge regime and its devastating impact on Cambodia.
Following the film, educators will engage in a panel discussion that brings together academic expertise, regional perspectives, and community knowledge to discuss how students can better understand complex topics like authoritarianism and genocide, as well as their ongoing impacts in the region. Lunch will be provided following the post-film panel.
Event Details
Format: In-person
Audience: Grade 5 – 12 Teachers
When: March 14, 2026 from 9am-12pm
Where: University of Central Arkansas, Conway, AR
Stanley Russ Hall, room 103
Speakers
Alan Elrod is the co-founder, along with the inaugural board, of the Pulaski Institution. He was raised in Searcy, Arkansas and received his undergraduate degree in history at Harding University. Alan received his master’s at New York University’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study, where he designed his degree around nationalism and submitted a thesis on the comparative role of territorial currencies in the national identities of Scotland and Hungary. Alan is a former faculty member at The Arkansas Governor’s School and currently teaches courses in political science and history at Arkansas State University-Beebe, a community college in rural Central Arkansas. He is interested in economic institutions, their social and cultural roles, and understanding the dynamics of modern national identity and nationalism.
Dr. Hyo-Won Shin is an assistant professor in the Government, Public Service, and International Studies department at the University of Central Arkansas. Although a native South Korean, Dr. Shin spent most of her child in Myanmar and completed her elementary to high school education at the International School of Yangon. For her undergraduate and master’s degree she attended Yonsei University in Seoul, Korea and received her PhD in Political Science from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Her research focuses on democratization in countries where ethnic identities are important. In particular, she is interested in how trust across ethnic groups can encourage people to vote for candidates from different ethnic groups. In her free time, she loves to spend time with her 15-month old daughter and dance to early 2000s pop music.
Samnang Lep is a founding board member of the Cambodian American Association of Arkansas, which is an association created with the objective of promoting and perpetuating Khmer culture in Arkansas.
