The new “Russian Language and Russian Culture” distance-learning program for international students was about Leo Tolstoy and his era. Lectures and seminars were held from early February–late March 2021 (15 hours of Russian language and 15 hours of Russian culture). The course included a class on Russian philosophy (“Lev Shestov’s Interpretation of Tolstoy”) with Prof. K. M. Antonov, on Russian music (“Lev Tolstoy and Music: Music as Element”) with Assoc. Prof. N. A. Vaganova, and on late 19^th and early 20^th century Russian art (“The Russian Avant-Garde: Avant-Garde Painting and the Icon. Connections to Futurism”) with STOUH senior lecturer N. E. Sekacheva. Time was also set aside for seminars in which students had the opportunity to discuss the topics covered, share their opinions, and ask questions about culture and linguistics.

At the end of the courses, the students shared the results of their independent work and presented an abstract in Russian and a presentation on their chosen topic to the instructors.