Posted October 29, 2007

Push for global Temple gains momentum

October and November loaded with international events

Ann Weaver Hart in China | SAFEA Signing Agreement
Photo by Ryan S. Brandenberg/Temple University

On Oct. 29, Temple President Ann Weaver Hart signed a three-year renewal agreement with Ji Yunshi (right), director of China's State Administration of Foreign Expert Affairs, cementing a partnership behind Temple's Rule of Law programs in China.

Temple University’s rise as an international institution — a trend that began in earnest 41 years ago with the establishment of Temple’s study abroad program in Rome and gathered momentum with the arrival in 2006 of President Ann Weaver Hart, a passionate advocate of internationalization in higher education — is reaching new heights in late October and early November with a convergence of major events and announcements.



In October, President Hart and a team of Temple representatives embarked on a two-week trip to China, Taiwan, Japan and other destinations in Asia.

Highlights of the trip include President Hart’s presiding over the graduation of the largest class of Chinese legal professionals to earn degrees from Temple’s Master of Laws program in Beijing (Oct. 28); the first Temple University alumni reunion in China (Oct. 28); the signing of a renewal agreement with a branch of the Chinese government partnering with Temple’s innovative Rule of Law programs (Oct. 29); a signing ceremony in Taipei inaugurating a groundbreaking dual-degree program with six Taiwanese universities (Nov. 1); and a gala celebration in Tokyo honoring the 25th anniversary of Temple University’s Japan Campus (Nov. 6).

Events will continue during International Education Week (Nov. 12–16), a joint initiative of the U.S. Department of State and U.S. Department of Education.



From Nov. 11 to 13, President Hart will be in New York for the 120th annual meeting of the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges (or NASULGC, the nation's oldest higher education association), where she will officially begin a two-year term as chair of NASULGC's Commission on International Programs and moderate a panel discussion on "Education for Global Leadership."



At Temple's Main Campus on Nov. 13, the university celebrates "The World at Temple/Temple in the World" at the second annual Global Temple Conference. The day-long event at the Howard Gittis Student Center includes a keynote address by David Edwards, a national authority on trends in foreign language education and international studies, as well as films, student poster sessions, panel discussions and a series of internationally inspired performances and exhibits by Temple students and faculty members. (For more information, go to www.temple.edu/studyabroad.)



On Nov. 14, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., the annual Carnival of Cultures will take place in the Howard Gittis Student Center, bringing together international and cross-cultural student organizations with music performances, information tables, art and more.

For President Hart, this fall's events represent the beginning of a shift in the university's institutional priorities.



"Globalization changes everything," said Hart, "and Temple is distinctly poised to become a truly global university. We must continue to internationalize teaching, research and community outreach so that we can prepare our students to excel in a dynamic and changing world. We have the infrastructure, we have the history, we have the international presence, and most of all, we have the commitment."

 

Temple goes international: greatest hits

The growth of international programs has Temple "poised to become a truly global university," says Temple President Ann Weaver Hart. Why is Temple an emerging leader in international education? Some select highlights:

• MAKING HISTORY IN ITALY. Temple University Rome, which celebrated its 40th anniversary last year, has grown into one of the largest and longest-standing study abroad programs in Italy, enrolling about 650 students annually from more than 45 different universities (about half are Temple students).

• A PRESENCE IN JAPAN. Temple University Japan marks its 25th anniversary this year. With 2,830 students from about 40 countries, TUJ is the oldest and largest foreign university in Japan. A wide variety of undergraduate and graduate degree programs are offered at TUJ's Tokyo campus.

• PAYING FOR PASSPORTS. To help Temple students pursue international experiences, President Hart and her husband, Randy, have established a scholarship to support the cost of passport fees for Temple freshman and transfer students who plan to study abroad and are applying for a passport for the first time.

• STUDYING ABROAD. The number of Temple students studying abroad has increased dramatically in recent years. In 2006-07, nearly 1,000 Temple students participated in study abroad programs, an 80 percent increase since 2000-01.

• TOP RANKINGS. U.S.News ranks the undergraduate international business programs at the Fox School of Business in the Top 10 nationally and graduate programs in the Top 20. International law programs at the Beasley School of Law rank in the U.S.News Top 20. Financial Times ranks Fox's MBA program in the Top 20 worldwide for international experience provided to students and international mobility of graduates.

• INTERNATIONAL FACULTY. Temple's faculty members are doing cutting-edge international research and bringing international perspectives to the classroom. A faculty recruitment boom is bringing prominent international experts from the world's leading institutions, including international law expert Peter Spiro and philosopher Carol Gould, director of Temple’s Center for Global Ethics and Politics.

• A NEW PROGRAM IN SPAIN. Temple has created a new semester-long study abroad program in Oviedo, in Spain's Asturias region, beginning in spring 2008. It’s the first new universitywide semester-long program in about 20 years, and the first major semester-long program for Temple in the Spanish-speaking world.

• A NATIONAL RESOURCE. The Center for International Business Education and Research at the Fox School of Business is one of 31 CIBERs created by the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 to increase and promote the nation's capacity for international understanding and economic enterprise.

• SERVING COMMUNITIES ABROAD. Temple University's Office of Community Service runs alternative winter and spring break community service trips in Mexico, Belize and Guatemala, offering opportunities for Temple students to spend their breaks immersed in another culture — and making a difference in local communities.

• SUPPORTING CHANGE IN CHINA'S LEGAL SYSTEM. Temple Law's groundbreaking Rule of Law programs in Beijing are introducing American and international legal practices and reasoning to Chinese judges, prosecutors, government officials and other legal professionals.

• SPANISH-LANGUAGE IMMERSION IN PHILADELPHIA. Temple's Latin American Spanish Semester is a 15-week, interdisciplinary, on-campus, total language immersion program. A highlight of LASS is a 10-day excursion to Mérida, Mexico.

• AN ACTIVIST PRESIDENT. Temple President Ann Weaver Hart is a leading voice in the push to internationalize American higher education. On Nov. 11, she begins a two-year term as the chair of the Commission on International Programs at the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges.

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