Eduard Shevardnadze (ედუარდ შევარდნაძე), 25 January 1928 – 7 July 2014

Eduard Shevardnadze (ედუარდ შევარდნაძე)

25 January 1928 – 7 July 2014

Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Soviet Union from 1985 to 1991 and President of Georgia from 1992 to 2003 understood the value of international educational and cultural exchanges.

It's fascinating to read about how "General Agreement on Contacts, Exchanges, and Cooperation in Scientific, Technical, Educational, Cultural, and Other Fields" between the United States and the Soviet Union [one of smaller outcomes of the Geneva Summit in November 1985] came about:

"Pact on Exchanges: 200-Hour Wrangle" via The New York Times, November 27, 1985

"General Agreement on Contacts, Exchanges, and Cooperation in Scientific, Technical, Educational, Cultural, and Other Fields" between the United States and the Soviet Union

"Student Segmentation for an Effective International Enrollment Strategy" - A New Research Report by World Education Services

The following research report came on my radar by World Education Services (WES) and I thought IHEC Blog readers would find this to be of interest.

The report, entitled “Student Segmentation for an Effective International Enrollment Strategy,” examines four types of U.S.–bound international students, based on their academic preparedness and financial resources. 

The report identifies the following student segments:

• Explorers are students with high financial resources and low academic preparedness. They are the most likely to need assistance during the application, as 39% of them chose application requirements as one of their most sought-after areas of information. 
• Highfliers are students with high financial resources and high academic preparedness, and family support is key to their financial independence. 69% of survey respondents indicated family or friends as their main source of funding. 
• Strivers are students with low financial resources and high academic preparedness. 61% of Strivers indicated that they rely on institutional financial aid, and 35% said they will take out loans to finance their studies. 
• Strugglers are students with low financial resources and low academic preparedness. Strugglers are the least interested in learning about the reputation of a school, indicating that they have lower expectations for quality. 

These insights are integral for U.S. universities and colleges that want to effectively attract and enroll the best fit international students. The report expands the scope of last year’s report and provides a deeper understanding of international student segments at a more granular level. The report highlights differences in prospective international students’ information seeking behavior by level of education — bachelor’s and master’s degree — and key source countries — China, India and Saudi Arabia.

You can access more information about the report via the WES World Education News & Reviews (WENR) website and while you are there you may want to take 20 seconds and subscribe to the free WENR Newsletter as it's well worth it!

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on the Impact that Violence in the United States has on Prospective International Students

Video Coverage of the first NACAC Commission on International Student Recruitment Meeting

Yesterday morning I discovered the NACAC Commission on International Student Recruitment YouTube Channel and I was pleased to see that they video recorded and posted the proceedings of their first meeting.  I have embedded the entire video coverage of the meeting proceedings below (7 videos in total that I believe follow in order) for your viewing and/or listening pleasure.

 

Secretary Clinton's remarks at the Inaugural Meeting of the Advisory Committee for the 100,000 Strong Initiative

You can read a transcript of Secretary Clinton's remarks here and read a Fact Sheet about Advisory Committee on the 100,000 Strong Initiative here.

Celebration of the first year of the Consultation on People-to-People Exchange

This week the United States Department of State celebrated the achievements during the first year of the Consultation on People-to-People Exchange between the United States and China.  I wanted to post a bit about this this week but given my family move to a new house and no internet connection at home that has proved difficult.  I did want to post about the various videos and transcripts available for you to link to when you have some free time.


Video "Secretary Clinton Celebrates Achievements of U.S.-China Consultation on People-to-People Exchange" on DipNote.  Text of Secretary Clinton's remarks are available here.  (I'm trying to find a way to embed the video here in this post and will do so if I find a way)


Fact sheet on the U.S.-China CPE Cooperation on the 100,000 Strong Initiative





For me, what is really awesome about this video is that one of the Fulbright alumni featured in the video is a someone I advised on the Fulbright here at The University of Chicago (1:03 & 1:43 minute marks)!

Interesting Online Reads about U.S.-USSR Educational & Cultural Exchanges

"Unofficial thaw in the Cold War: Unofficial exchanges, tourism and trade are rapidly increasing contacts between U.S. and Soviet citizens, establishing mutual good will that should eventually be reflected on the official level" by James Cracraft (1986, May) Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.

“The Cultural Agreement” [ Chapter 3] from Cultural Exchange and the Cold War: Raising the Iron Curtain (2003) by Yale Richmond. 

“U.S, Soviets OK Cultural Exchanges” by Peggy Pagano in the August 6, 1986 Los Angeles Times.

Advertisement from the July 17, 1987 The Washington Times.  The advertisement argues against U.S.-Soviet exchange agreements on all levels and subjects to prevent the "Sovietization (internationalization) of the American classroom."  They crunched a lot of text into what appears to be a full-page advertisement.

Address to the Nation on the Upcoming Soviet-United States Summit Meeting in Geneva [November 14, 1985] by President Ronald Reagan

“The Scientific and Cultural Exchange” by the Central Intelligence Agency [approved for release 1994, CIA Historical Review Program, 18 Sept 1995].

“U.S.-U.S.S.R.  Interacademy  Exchanges” (1967, November) by Lawrence C. Mitchell  in Applied Optics, Vol. 6, No. 11.

“Report: U.S. vs. Soviet Exchange” (1959, October) by Kenneth Holland [President, Institute of International Education] in The Rotarian.

"U.S.-USSR Cooperation in Health-the First 5 Years" (1978) by Robert Fischer in Public Health Reports.

U.S.-Soviet/Russian academic & cultural exchanges have been an interest of mine for some time now and I have previously posted to IHEC Blog which you can read here and here.

International Students Contribute $18.8 billion to U.S. Communities

Today, on the first day of International Education Week, NAFSA released its annual economic impact statements that calculate the financial contribution international students and their families make to local communities and states through tuition, fees, and living expenses. International students contributed an incredible $18.8 billion to the United States economy in the 2009-2010 academic year, which is a $1 billion increase from the previous year.

At http://www.nafsa.org/eis, you can find the statements, which contain the following information organized by state, institution, and congressional district:

·  Number of foreign students enrolled

·  Cost of tuition and fees

·  Cost of living expenses (including those of dependents)

·  U.S. financial support

·  Total financial contributions of foreign students and their dependents

On the NAFSA blog, Katie O’Connell go into a little more detail as to why these statements and other contributions of international students important are for advocacy: Foreign Students Bring $18.8 Billion to U.S. Communities – and Much More.

Photo credit:  Public Domain Photos

The P’yongyang Project - Academic Cooperation and Cultural Exchange between North Koreans and Americans

During my recent research efforts I came across a very interesting program called The P'yongyang Project.  The P'yongyang Project is an academic cooperation and cultural exchange program for Americans in North Korea.  Their mission follows:


Our mission is to forge a new level of academic cooperation and cultural exchange between North Koreans and Americans. We believe that through personal experience, interaction and continued dialogue, we can lay the foundation for peace and prosperity between our nations.


Currently, four different programs make up The P'yongyang Project.  I have copied and pasted descriptions of these four programs below:  


Delegation Trips allow participants to interact with and explore the DPRK in an intimate and academic way. These programs combine group discussions, travel, meetings, and group bonding activities, to take students and professors well beyond the surface of the DPRK. This kind of in-depth access provides participants with a comprehensive introduction to the core issues facing the nation and region.


The North South Dialogue Project (NSDP) was started as an offshoot of P’yongyang Project delegation trips and incorporates many of the academic components of a delegation trip. The key difference is that NSDP delegates work toward creating a consensus document that offers policy suggestions for maintaining stability on the Korean peninsula. In order to draft this document, participants will spend a significant amount of time in South Korea participating in workshops and discussions.


THiNK (Transcending History in North Korea) is an intensive Korean Language Summer Study Program in P’yongyang—the first study abroad program for Westerners in the DPRK. We have worked hard to negotiate a joint deal between The P'yongyang Project, KIYCTC, the Ministry of Education of the DPRK and Kim Il Sung University to make this program a reality.


Independent Programsare tailor-made for schools looking to establish their own program in the DPRK. We are currently working with several North American universities and colleges to create programs that match their goals and curriculum. Individuals or small groups may also contact us if they are interested in traveling to North Korea independently.


You can learn more about all of these programs at http://www.pyongyangproject.org/programs.html as well as in articles from the Harvard Crimson and the Brown Daily Herald.


You can read related posts on academic and cultural exchanges with North Korea at:


U.S.-DPRK Science Engagement Consortium
Another Call for Exchanges with North Korea


Photo credit:  John Pavelka

Boren Awards - Breaking the Language Barrier

I haven't posted about the focus of my dissertation and won't directly do that until it is finished or close to being finished.  Previous IHEC Blog posts may have alluded to the direction I'm heading with my dissertation.  The following video also provides some insight into my current research interests.





Learn more at http://www.nsep.gov/ and http://www.borenawards.org/.

Research Notes on the National Defense Education Act of 1958

The following are some brief notes I typed up during my research activities for some class earlier in my doctoral program. Since I’m not using these notes in any of my current research/writing activities I thought I would post them to IHEC Blog as they are interesting:

In 1957, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) launched the tiny Sputnik I satellite, thus beating the Untied States in innovation and exploration of the new frontier of outer space. As a result, the United States Congress passed the National Defense Education Act of 1958.1 The National Defense Education Act highlighted the critical importance of education to national defense and was signed into law by President Dwight D. Eisenhower on September 2, 1958. By passing this legislation, the United States Congress understood that the defense and security of the United States were bound with education.2  The National Defense and Education Act provided federal funding to colleges and universities in order to develop graduate programs focusing on mathematics, the sciences, foreign languages and area studies. In addition, The National Defense Education Act created the Graduate Fellowship Program and the National Defense Student Loan Program, the precursor to the Perkins Loan Program, which was the first federal student aid program for low-income students.

The National Defense Education Act authorized one billion dollars of federal aid for twelve separate programs outlined in its ten Titles. The National Defense Education Act had a substantial impact on graduate education and research during its time, however, as with all federal funding programs; The National Defense Education Act also had its share of critics. Despite the controversies and concerns, The National Defense Education Act of 1958 was landmark legislation that brought significant federal attention to higher education and how it was funded, both at the institutional level as well as at the individual student level.

If you are interested in reading more about the National Defense Education Act of 1958 you can do so here and here.

1 Often referred to as NDEA.
2 Richard D. Scarfo. “The History of Title VI and Fulbright-Hays,” in International Education in the New Global Era: Proceedings of a National Policy Conference on the Higher Education Act, Title VI, and Fulbright-Hays Programs, ed. John N. Hawkins, Carlos Manuel Haro, Miriam A. Kazanjian, Gilbert W. Merkx and David Wiley. (Los Angeles: International Studies and Overseas Programs, University of California Los Angeles, 1998): 23.

The Role Educational Exchanges Played in Georgia’s Rose Revolution?

As I continue to research and read (sometimes scan) for my dissertation proposal I hope to post to IHEC Blog or IHEC Blog’s Facebook Page from time to time about interesting books, reports, blogs, data or other interesting items that I think IHEC Blog readers will find interesting. One such item that I have found to be of interest is a new (2009) book by Lincoln A. Mitchell entitled “Uncertain Democracy: U.S. Foreign Policy and Georgia's Rose Revolution.”  In his book, Mitchell discusses international educational exchanges and study tours and states that these programs “contributed to the conditions that made a democratic breakthrough in Georgia possible…[but] they played a secondary and indirect role.” I haven’t read all of the book yet but have found it to be a good read and I’ve learned much about Georgia and the Rose Revolution.

Here is a link to the book on Google Books where you can search “exchange” to read relevant snippets of the book.

If you want to learn more about or to purchase this book please click on the photo of the book cover above.

World Education Services now Recognized as the Recipient of Verified Chinese Degrees for the United States and Canada

Last night I spent several hours searching through and clearing out my various e-mail inboxes and Google Reader looking for resources that would be helpful for my dissertation research and I came across a recent announcement from World Education Services, Inc. (WES) that I wanted to post about to IHEC Blog.

According to a January 20, 2010 WES press release, they have signed an official memorandum of understanding with the China Academic Degrees & Graduate Education Development Center (CDGDC). CDGDC is the “authorized agent responsible for verifying Chinese degrees for the Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China and the Academic Degrees Committee of the State Council. The CDGDC is the legal entity that provides verification of degree certificates, diplomas and other related educational materials conferred by Chinese education institutions.”

You can read more about this new agreement here.

Emergency Assistance for Haitian Students on U.S. Campuses

Last week, the Institute of International Education (IIE) announced that they will provide emergency grants to Haitian students studying in the United States. The Haiti-EAS (Emergency Assistance for Students) is available to provide grants up to $2,000 to Haitian students who are experiencing “serious financial difficulties due to the recent tragedy in their home country. Nomination forms should be submitted to IIE by February 12, 2010.

U.S. campus administrators can learn more about this generous support for their Haitian student population at www.iie.org/HaitiEAS

Photo credit: ChrisM70

Video of the Week – Introduction to the Open World Program

Heard of the Open World Program before? I’ve been aware of their existence for only a few months and I’ve been following them on Twitter and really like what they are about.

After watching the video I recommend checking out their website to learn more about them and if you are on Twitter follow them at http://twitter.com/OWProgram.

How can we Establish a National Longitudinal Survey on Study Abroad in the United States?

This question has been on my mind for several years and I thought I would post some of my random thoughts on this topic to IHEC Blog. My interest in a national longitdinal study abroad survey dates back to the Roundtable for International Education Researchers held by the American Council on Education (after the 2004 NAFSA conference in Baltimore) that I was invited to participate in. I was excited because I found myself on a list of invitees of some of the best higher education and international education scholars around and I was asked to present a brief overview to the group of scholars on what research is needed to promote better practice and to assist practitioners in the field.

One of the scholars invited to the Roundtable but was unable to attend was George Kuh from the School of Education at Indiana University. If you don't who George Kuh is you might know of his work on the NSSE: National Survey of Student Engagement (he founded NSSE). I was hoping to engage Mr. Kuh in a discussion on the feasibility of such a similar study on study abroad in the United States and to generate ideas to move forward on this. I, of course, was disapointed that I was not able to meet him.

So here we are six years later and the idea of a national longitudinal survey on study abroad continues to enter my mind from time to time. The topic comes up from time to time in discussions I have with colleagues at conferences but I don't hear more talk about this on a national level. We, of course, have the Open Doors Report on International Educational Exchange which I think is a great data collection effort but what I'm thinking about is different. This national longitudinal study on study abroad is only part of a much larger operation I dream about and what some of us have referred to as a Clearinghouse on Sudy Abroad and what inspired me to start collecting literature for my "Bury Book International Education Library & Archive".

Some of the questions that come to my mind as I type this include:

- How do we go about starting such a study?

- How much would this all cost?

- Where would be the home base for such a study?

- Is such a study even needed for the field of study abroad in the U.S. and, if so, what data do we want to collect?

- How can I start/contribute to this effort with a full-time job and a dissertation to write?

I'm curious what other IHEC Blog readers think about this?

Photo credit: Jamiesrabbits

Two Brief Notes of Sadness on Matters Related to International Education

On this first work day of the new year my inbox has filled with Google Alerts linking to articles on two important issues related to international education. In case you are busy and haven’t been able to follow the news:

1. Sad news out of Australia is that a twenty-one year old student from India was stabbed and killed in a park over the weekend while walking to work in Melbourne. You can read more about the incident and the ripple effects here. Violence against Indian students in Australia was a very hot topic in 2009 in both India and Australia. On July 15th I asked on IHEC Blog “has the recent violence against Indian students in Australia had an effect on Indian American students’ decision to study abroad in Australia?” which you can read here.

2. The aftermath of the failed Christmas Day bombing attempt of a Delta Airlines flight to Detroit has set in motion new and intense screening procedures at airports worldwide for citizens from 14 nations. Citizens from the four “state sponsors of terrorism” and nine “countries of interest” will now be required to “undergo full-body pat downs and will face extra scrutiny of their carry-on bags before they can board planes to the United States. In some countries that have more advanced screening equipment, travelers will also be required to pass through so-called whole-body scanners that can look beneath clothing for hidden explosives or weapons, or may be checked with a device that can find tiny traces of explosives.”[1] You can read more about these new security measures here.

These two issues will no doubt effect international education exchange in Australia, India and the United States.

[1] http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/04/us/04webtsa.html

The Top International Education Focused States in the United States

For this first IHEC Blog post of 2010 I thought I would share some metrics. I hope to be able to provide other interesting IHEC Blog metrics in the days and weeks ahead. I’m very pleased with the response I have received about IHEC Blog and the feedback and consulting inquiries make this unpaid venture worthwhile.

2009 was a good year at IHEC Blog and I saw dramatic increases in many areas that Google Analytics collects data on. Specifically, 2009 saw increases of 1,121% in the total number of visits, 1,052% in the total number of unique visitors and 1,212% in the total number of page views over 2008. Perhaps these aren’t the most important metrics to focus on but they are of interest to me.

One metric I’ve been paying special attention to over the last few months is the number of visits IHEC Blog receives from the various states across the United States. 65.15% of the total visits to IHEC Blog in 2009 came from the United States (the leading country for visits). Now that we are in a new year I thought I would pull from Google Analytics the following list of states (and Washington, D.C.) ranked by the number of visits to IHEC Blog. However, I’m listing the states in order of percentage of visits rather than the number of visits. Does this list truly represent the top international education focused states in the United States? I can tell from Google Analytics that people arrive to IHEC Blog based on a variety of international education related search terms. Has a rigorous scientific research method been applied to reach these findings? Certainly not! I just think they are interesting and thought I would share.

1. Illinois 13.12%
2. New York 8.68%
3. California 8.47%
4. District of Columbia 5.61%
5. Massachusetts 4.68%
6. Texas 4.34%
7. Virginia 4.26%
8. Minnesota 4.14%
9. Pennsylvania 3.93%
10. Wisconsin 3.50%
11. Florida 3.00%
12. Colorado 2.87%
13. Ohio 2.56%
14. New Jersey 2.39%
15. Iowa 2.22%
16. Michigan 2.03%
17. Maryland 2.02%
18. Georgia 1.99%
19. North Carolina 1.88%
20. Washington 1.53%
21. Oregon 1.38%
22. Indiana 1.35%
23. Connecticut 1.32%
24. Arizona 1.31%
25. Missouri 1.20%
26. Kansas 1.14%
27. Tennessee 0.73%
28. South Carolina 0.67%
29. Louisiana 0.52%
30. Maine 0.51%
31. Arkansas 0.50%
32. Vermont 0.49%
33. Alabama 0.49%
34. Utah 0.46%
35. Kentucky 0.45%
36. Rhode Island 0.43%
37. Nebraska 0.41%
38. New Hampshire 0.40%
39. Hawaii 0.35%
40. Oklahoma 0.34%
41. Nevada 0.34%
42. Mississippi 0.25%
43. New Mexico 0.21%
44. West Virginia 0.19%
45. Idaho 0.19%
46. Delaware 0.18%
47. South Dakota 0.15%
48. North Dakota 0.10%
59. Alaska 0.10%
50. Montana 0.07%
51. Wyoming 0.05%


What are your thoughts on this?

Notes:

1. To be sure, there are many limitations to these findings. According to the 2000 U.S. Census (http://bit.ly/68MLgh), for example, the top states ranked by population (in 2000) are California, Texas, New York, Florida and Illinois and these five states are all ranked in the top 11 states for visits to IHEC Blog. State population is just one of many variables to be considered when interpreting these "results."

2. I believe I successfully filtered out all of my visits to IHEC Blog as I tend to check out every post to make sure everything looks correct. However, I’m not 100% positive that I was able to correctly filter out my visits so I calculated the total number of visits from Illinois minus the 282 IHEC Blog posts for 2009 (estimated number of visits I made to the blog). Based on this calculation, Illinois still is the leading state and leads New York by 245 visits.

U.S.-DPRK Science Engagement Consortium

Last week I posted to Twitter (RT of @PublicDiplomacy) and listed on IHEC Blog’s “Links of Interest” post on Friday the following article “U.S. Scientists Due in Pyongyang for Talks on Academic Cooperation” from Brunei fm World. In my busy I life last week I didn’t stop to think about the significance of these talks but over the weekend I thought much more about this and wondered why I only picked this up via @PublicDiplomacy's Twitter post and didn't read it in any U.S. media outlets.

I then investigated further and went to the American Association for Advancement of Science (AAAS) & the U.S. Civilian Research & Development Foundation (CDRF) websites to see what they were saying about this historic visit by U.S. scientists to North Korea. You can read the joint AAAS/CDRF news release here.

I have copied and pasted a snippet of the news release below that further describes the U.S.-DPRK Science Engagement Consortuim visit:

“The six-person delegation of the U.S.-DPRK Science Engagement Consortium aims to discuss and identify future opportunities for collaborative research activities with the DPRK in fields of mutual interest.

The consortium is composed of four organizations: CRDF, a nonprofit organization that promotes international scientific and technical collaboration; AAAS, the world's largest general science society; Syracuse University, which has been engaged with Kim Chaek University of Technology in Pyongyang in the only sustained U.S.- North Korea academic science collaboration to date; and The Korea Society, a nonprofit group that promotes greater awareness, understanding and cooperation between the people of the United States and Korea.”

You can read more information about the history of the U.S.-DPRK Science Engagement Consortium here.

The scientific community here in the United States has been quite active in conducting Science Diplomacy with so many countries across the globe. Nearly a year ago (December 18, 2008) I posted to IHEC Blog about an interesting development in U.S.-Iranian scientific collaboration and you can access that post entitled“Science as a Gateway to Understanding: International Workshop Proceedings, Tehran, Iran (2008)” here.

More on what I discovered on the American Association for Advancement of Science and the U.S. Civilian Research & Development Foundation websites later on IHEC Blog’s Facebook page.

My question is this...with all of the international scientific collaboration happening across the globe why do we make it so difficult for students in the STEM fields (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) to study, research or intern abroad? To me, an international academic experience should be a required part of any STEM field program of study.

Cultural Exchange or American Dominance?

Part of the description of IHEC Blog states “from time to time, International Higher Education Consulting Blog will post thought provoking pieces to challenge readers and to encourage comments and professional dialogue” and I hope that this post meets this criteria so here goes it…

I came across an interesting article over lunch entitled “Is $120 Million Study Abroad Bill About Cultural Exchange or American Dominance?” which was posted yesterday to MatadorAbroad.com. I think the author, Sarah Menkedick, raises some interesting/important points that are worthy of discussion here on IHEC Blog.

What’s your take on the Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Foundation Act? Is it about cultural exchange or American dominance or is it a little bit of both?

Here is a video of Senator Paul Simon from November 13, 2003 (a few weeks before his untimely death) announcing his vision of the Abraham Lincoln Study Abroad Fellowship Program:



I plan to post more to IHEC Blog about sending one million students abroad in the near future. I leave you with this thought I have; if the United States does reach the goal of sending one million students abroad I wonder how many more “Itaewon” type areas will be established across the globe?

This post is related to a similar to a March 30, 2009 IHEC Blog post entitled “Spreading of Colonial Influence Abroad via the Peace Corps” which you can read and comment on here.