The Southeast Asia Studies Program at SAIS is creating a world-class program on Southeast Asia in keeping with the school's mandate to offer the best international relations education in the United States. SAIS anticipates the future need for Southeast Asia experts in the public and private sectors and appreciates the necessity to foster greater communication and interaction between the region and the United States. The Southeast Asia Studies Program has evolved over its ten-year history. Prior to 1997, emphasis was placed on examination of the upward curve of the region's rapid economic and social development. The 1997 economic crisis brought about the need to study why and how these dynamic economies stumbled into economic malaise and to examine the reforms initiated by governments to promote sustained recovery. The events of September 11, 2001 have raised new issues for the program's traditional study of United States foreign policy toward Southeast Asia, and have highlighted the problem of international terrorism in the region. The program continues to examine the interplay of multilateral organizations as well as the enduring questions of China, Japan, and India as major regional powers. Special attention is given to the region's ongoing democratization process and the economic, political, and social issues raised by this trend. Over 50 graduate students enroll each year in courses offered by the Southeast Asia Studies Program. These include mid-career M.I.P.P. students, as well as M.A. and Ph.D. candidates. Students supplement formal classroom training with special evening lectures, brown-bag lunches, and conferences on Southeast Asia. During the academic year 2005-2006, conferences on Thailand, Malaysia and East Timor were held. During the current year, conferences on the Philippines and Indonesia are planned. | 
