Posted: 02-Apr-06
Purdue University has been selected as one of five institutions in the country to receive the 2006 Senator Paul Simon Award for Campus Internationalization.
The award, given annually by NAFSA: Association of International Educators, honors colleges and universities for overall excellence in internationalization efforts, such as study abroad, international student services and programs that encourage education about other countries and cultures. NAFSA is the largest international education organization in the world.
Purdue will be profiled in the organization's annual report, "Internationalizing the Campus 2006: Profiles of Success at Colleges and Universities," which will be published in the fall.
"This award confirms that we are on the right path in developing the next generation of global leaders and that we are ensuring that every Purdue student has the opportunity to become globally competent," said Riall Nolan, dean of International Programs.
The award is named after Simon, the former senator from Illinois who died in 2003. He was an advocate for international education and led the effort to create the National Security Education Program, which awards scholarships for study abroad in regions critical to the interests of the United States.
The other institutions receiving recognition are Arcadia University in Pennsylvania, Concordia College in Minnesota, Earlham College in Indiana and Michigan State University.
In its application letter for the award, Purdue cited many of the gains the university has made during the last decade, both in numbers of students and in the creation of programs that promote internationalization.
Michael Brzezinski, director of the Office of International Students and Scholars; Brian Harley, director of Programs for Study Abroad; associate dean Andrew Gillespie; and Matt Sikora, coordinator of the Asian Initiative, worked with Nolan to develop the award application.
"Every Purdue faculty and staff member who has been involved in any international activity, service or program over the course of the last decade should feel proud of this award," Brzezinski said. "It's a recognition of a job well done by everyone.
"This award is especially meaningful and rewarding because an external peer review panel found Purdue to be a model for how to internationalize a campus."
In the report, Nolan wrote that in 1995, there were 2,584 international students enrolled, only 721 of whom were undergraduates. In 2005 those numbers had jumped to 4,831 international students, 1,894 of whom are undergraduates. For the past five years, Purdue has ranked first or second in the nation in total international student enrollment among public institutions in the country.
Nolan also pointed to the creation of the Office of International Programs in the early 1990s and the start of several programs that encourage community engagement, such as the International Friendship Program, which was started in 1995. The program has matched 900 international students in friendship relationships with community residents.
Another program called Global Outreach Purdue, known as GO Purdue, takes international students on annual trips to Chicago and other destinations and provides a speakers bureau that provides international students with opportunities to speak in local schools about their cultures. And International Awareness Week, started in 2000, highlights the various nationalities and cultures represented at Purdue.
Purdue also has made gains in study abroad. In the late 1980s, Purdue had about 30 students participating each year. In the 2005-06 academic year, about 1,000 students were involved in study abroad.
Brzezinski said much of the reason Purdue has experienced so much growth in its international mission is because key people at the university have made it a priority.
"This award would not have been possible without the strong support that Purdue's internationalization has received from both the president and provost," he said. "Purdue's strategic plan, introduced in 2001, stresses global education, and that has been instrumental in moving the university forward."
Gillespie said Purdue's recognition will be useful not only to boost prestige and recruitment efforts but also to help a new generation thrive in a global world.
"The main beneficiaries are the students," he said. "The world is demanding more internationalization, and Purdue is preparing them in a variety of ways for this changing society."
Gillespie said Purdue also has started a variety of programs recently that will assure the push for internationalization continues for years to come.
Among them are:
• The Asian Initiative grant program, started last year, which will develop Purdue's connections with top Indian and Chinese universities.
• The University Honors Program partnership with Laval University in Quebec, Canada, which gives first-year students an international experience.
• The Global Partners program, starting in May, which will take 10 faculty and staff members abroad each year where they will formulate ideas for study-abroad programs they can begin or enhance at Purdue.
• The colleges of Liberal Arts and Engineering program that arranges faculty and student exchanges with two Chinese universities.
• More than $500,000 provided annually to support study-abroad program development, student scholarships, faculty and staff development, international research, cross-cultural and interdisciplinary student development, and visiting scholar programs.
NAFSA, formerly known as the National Association of Foreign Student Advisers, was founded in 1948 and provides professional services for post-secondary exchange students. It has nearly 9,000 members at 3,500 institutions worldwide, representing 84 countries. Most of the organization's members work as international student or study-abroad advisers and directors of international programs on college and university campuses.
http://news.uns.purdue.edu/html3month/2006/060215.Nolan.award.html
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