About Our Society

Our Mission

Founded in 1961, The Mongolia Society is a private, non-profit, non-political organization that promotes the study of Mongolia, its history, language, and culture. Its aims are exclusively scholarly, educational, and charitable.

Our History

The Mongolia Society was founded in 1961 as a private, non-profit, non-political organization interested in promoting the study of Mongolia, its history, language, and culture. The aims of the Society are exclusively scholarly, educational, and charitable.

The Mongolia Society publishes Mongolian Studies: Journal of The Mongolia Society, Mongolia Survey, and two series: Special Papers, devoted to the republication of rare works in Mongolian or related languages; and Occasional Papers, scholarly studies. The Society also has printed and reprinted important current and historical dictionaries of the Mongolian language.

One of the major obstacles encountered by Western students of Mongolia has been the difficulty in obtaining Mongolian publications on a regular basis. Therefore, since 1975, The Mongolia Society has been active in the importation and distribution of scholarly books and periodicals, as well as prints, music, and craft items from Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Buriatia.

During its more than sixty years of existence, The Mongolia Society has become a center for information on Mongolia past and present. It has achieved a position of respect in the scholarly, governmental, and business communities in the United States, Mongolia, China, Japan, and Europe.

Who We Are

Officers of The Mongolia Society

President: Ambassador (retired) Michael Klecheski

Chairman of the Board and Vice President: Dr. Christopher Atwood, University of Pennsylvania

Executive Director: Mrs. Susie Drost, Indiana University

Treasurer: Mrs. Tserenchunt Legden, Indiana University

Co-Managing Editors: Dr. Peter K. Marsh, California State University, East Bay; and Dr. Timothy May, University of North Georgia

Secretary: Dr. Melissa Chakars, St. Joseph’s University

Founding Chairman: Dr. John Gombojab Hangin (1921-1989, Indiana University)

Board of Directors

Dr. Christopher Atwood, Dr. Melissa Chakars, Mrs. Tserenchunt Legden, Dr. Peter K. Marsh, Dr. Timothy May, Ms. Susan Meinheit, Dr. Orhon Myadar, Dr. Uranchimeg (Orna) Tsultem, Dr. Sunmin Yoon.

Senior Advisory Committee

Tony Ettinger, Managing Director and Head of Financial Services Investing for KCK Group and Chair of the Mongolian Children’s Aid and Development Fund;

Dr. Henry Schwarz, Professor Emeritus of History and East Asian Studies, Western Washington University;

Ambassador (Ret.) Pamela J. Slutz, former U.S. ambassador to Mongolia.

Web and Social Media

Peter K. Marsh and Sunmin Yoon