ARS Eastern USA “Norian” Youth Connect Program brings together young Armenians to explore history and identity at Columbia University
The morning of Saturday, March 1 was a beautiful one at Columbia University. The sky was cloudless, birds were chirping, and students were scattered around campus, basking in the sun after months of New York winter.
It was a particularly beautiful morning because, near the back of campus, in the university’s business and economics building, over 50 Armenian students and young professionals from across the United States and Canada had gathered for a day of engaging lectures and socializing as part of the Armenian Relief Society’s annual “Norian” Youth Connect Program. The program aims to expose youth to the work of Armenian professionals and engage them in Armenian studies.
24-year-old medical school student Ani Arzoumanian has participated in Youth Connect since she was 17. Though her schedule is now packed with academic work, she always makes time to attend. “It attracts Armenians who are devoted to lifelong learning as well as the Armenian cause and culture. I’ve made some of my best friends through Youth Connect,” she said. “It’s cool to be a Youth Connect ‘regular.’”
The day kicked off with a highlight of Armenian Relief Society Eastern USA programs and projects in the United States and around the world, presented by the ARS Eastern USA Regional Executive Board member Ungerouhi Margaret Babikian Medina.
The first lecturer was George Aghjayan, Director of Archives at the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) and Chairman of the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA). Aghjayan has dedicated much of his career to helping Armenian families piece together their histories through genetic testing and archival research.
His presentation, titled “Armenian Genealogy: Research Strategies and Resources,” took attendees through Aghjayan’s quest to unearth his own family’s genealogy—one that led him to Turkey, where he found cousins who, to his surprise, were well aware of their Armenian heritage. This experience opened up a whole new world for Aghjayan, prompting him to travel across eastern Turkey in search of small Armenian communities that had remained after the Armenian Genocide. Aghjayan unpacked the history of this forgotten group of Armenians, underscoring the importance of asking questions about one’s origins, especially because genealogical data does not last forever.
For participant David Donoian, a recent Northeastern University graduate, Aghjayan’s presentation was his favorite of the day. “It was just so unique compared to others I’ve heard at educational events. And it was a nice blend of history and context on the kidnappings, Turkification of women and children, etc., combined with his actual present-day work and what he’s found,” Donoian said.
The morning session continued with a presentation by Reverend Paul Haidostian, President of Haigazian University, the only Armenian university in the diaspora, located in Beirut. Rev. Haidostian flew all the way from Lebanon to speak at three different events at Columbia that weekend, including Youth Connect. His talk, titled “Symbols and Stories: The Hidden Architects of Who We Are,” explored the significance of symbols in preserving memories, both in his personal life and within the Armenian community. He took the audience through significant stages of his life, each represented by an object. “A people with no meaningful stories and symbols cannot last,” he said.
One of the symbols he shared—a rocket made by students at the Haigazian University Rocket Society in 1961—seemed to particularly capture the audience’s attention. Haidostian explained how this small group of students at Haigazian, in the thick of the Cold War Space Race, set out to build and launch their own rocket. Despite starting the initiative with just 750 Lebanese pounds, the students were successful, and in 1962, the Lebanese government started funding their work. This inspiring story emphasized the importance of perseverance and risk-taking.
After a networking lunch, attendees were immersed in music by a variety of Armenian artists—from Sevak Amroyan to System of a Down—courtesy of the third speaker of the day, Assistant Professor of Music Theory at Columbia University Knar Abrahamyan. Her presentation, titled “Sonic Mobilization: Armenian Popular Music and the Artsakh War(s),” encouraged participants to think critically about the militaristic themes often present in Armenian music.
Dr. Abrahamyan’s inspiration for exploring this subject stemmed from witnessing a young boy perform “My Brother and I” in 2019 in Hadrut, Artsakh. “I was struck by the idea that a child was so nonchalantly professing a willingness to die in war through the song’s lyrics. Since then, I’ve been thinking about the valence of popular music in mobilization and patriotism rhetoric,” she said.
Her presentation touched on a topic that Youth Connect participants had clearly thought about but never fully explored. After Dr. Abrahamyan played her last song, she was hit with an impressive stream of questions from the audience. Conversation about music continued into the short break following her presentation.
While Dr. Abrahamyan’s presentation examined familiar cultural elements through a new lens, the day’s final speaker introduced attendees to a lesser-known topic in Armenian history. Dr. Elyse Semerdjian, Chair of Armenian Genocide Studies at Clark University, took the audience into the world of Armenian women abducted and tattooed during the genocide, drawing on her 2023 book, Remnants: Embodied Archives of the Armenian Genocide. The presentation, divided into the three parts of her book—“Body,” “Skin” and “Bones”—while admittedly disturbing, highlighted how the bodies of Armenians, before and after death, can reveal historical truths about the Armenian Genocide that written archives often cannot.
Semerdjian explained how these tattoos, often forcibly applied to Armenian women who were abducted and incorporated into Muslim households during the genocide, served as permanent markers of their captivity and transformed identity. Through careful research and oral histories, she has documented how these bodily inscriptions became part of a complex narrative of survival, trauma and resilience.
Tsoline Gevorkian, a senior at the University of Vermont, was particularly inspired by Dr. Semerjian’s presentation. “Something that really stuck with me during her educational was the point that genocide is a feminist issue because of its target on reproduction,” she said. “This motivated me to read more about it in her book.”
Dr. Semerdjian’s moving, thought-provoking presentation capped off a day filled with discussions that instilled the importance of keeping Armenian history alive. The event concluded with dinner among new friends.
For Rev. Haidostian, Youth Connect itself is a powerful symbol for the Armenian community, “representing the hope and investment of the former generation in the awareness and commitment of the young and educated generation towards their roots and common national and universal commitments,” he said.
As the day ended and participants exchanged contact information, many were already looking forward to next year’s gathering, carrying with them new knowledge, perspectives and connections to strengthen their ties to Armenian heritage and community.
Ruby Topalian
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