|
GLOBAL
BRANDEIS: A STATUS REPORT
|
Dear Brandeis community,
|
This fall marks the fourth year of
Brandeis University's commitment to comprehensive global
engagement. As we begin the semester, welcoming a new class and
preparing for a new presidential transition, I thought it was a
good time to let you know where we stand as an increasingly
international community of scholars, students, alumni, families and
organizational partners.
First, it is worth remembering that Brandeis is part of an
educational transformation happening across the world. Higher
education expansion is not only increasing access for students, but
also making the connection between knowledge and development more
important. We are seeing repeated calls from national and
international leaders, including from President Obama, advocating
for major, knowledge-based cooperation around issues of
environmental change, public health, economic stability, and human
equality. Despite the economic crisis, universities in many
countries are setting up outposts, campuses, and embassy-style
offices to meet this need.
Such cooperation takes many forms. At Brandeis, we are beginning to
develop a new approach to partnership that involves a small set of
sustained, core commitments
across the world. During his recent trip to India, Jehuda Reinharz
addressed these kinds of sustained collaborations in speeches to
the Delhi Sustainable Development
Summit and to the Asia Society.
These commitments will be built within a social justice mission,
and they will relate directly to the undergraduate learning
experience. Ideally, they will also provide a few central hubs for
collaboration involving alumni, overseas partners, faculty research
and many other areas of our university. We have begun planning for
these commitments by launching some initial, flagship projects that seek to
form the foundations for sustained engagement (see top
right).
In a few years, the goal will be for Brandeis to have a
highly-visible set of global relationships around the world. Such
relationships might also foster collaborative development projects
that take advantage of the expertise in the humanities, social
sciences, sciences, professional schools, and centers/institutes.
If we have learned anything from the last decade, it is that the
major issues of our time cannot be presented as absolutes of one
particular area; nor can we ignore the particularities of culture
and society. At Brandeis, we continue to seek meaningful approaches
to interdisciplinary thinking and cosmopolitan identity rooted in
the liberal arts -- that is, in the art of thinking itself.
Below are a few highlights of our recent achievements together as a
global university. I also encourage you to visit the Office of
Global Affairs web site, where you can learn more detailed
information on our efforts towards a "Global Brandeis"
strategy.
 Sincerely,
Daniel Terris
Vice President for Global Affairs
Study and Work Abroad
Our undergraduates continue to study and work abroad at
record numbers, with 40% of students studying abroad each year;
more importantly, they are typically Brandeisian in their pursuits
-- which is to say not typical at all. New programs include
Brandeis in The Hague and a Siena, Italy program on Italian art and
culture. New graduate programs include a recent International
Business School trip to Chile. Read more.
The Curriculum and the
World
As part of the Brandeis Assessment efforts, the Office of
Global Affairs is chairing a new university-wide sub-committee on
global learning goals. After preliminary discussions last spring,
we will be working with faculty from different departments to test
out some of these initial ideas in courses. Read more.
Major Research
Initiatives
Brandeis University continues to be a major player in global
research, both in terms of content and collaboration. This fall
marks the opening of the Mandel Center for the Humanities, which
will become a hub for interdisciplinary inquiry. In the spring, the
Heller School for Social Policy and Management launched a new
Institute for Global Health and Development, under the leadership
of Prof. A. K. Nandakumar. Read more.
Global Campus
The class of 2014 holds the distinction of being the most
international incoming class, at 16% of the undergraduate student
body, up from 15% in 2009 and 7% in 2008. The incoming students
hail from 84 different countries. In addition, our new Gateway
Scholars Program, an intensive English-language preparation
experience designed for first-year academic preparation, involves
46 students from six countries. Read more.
Student-Led Projects
Our students are some of the most active and globally-minded in
higher education. After the Haiti earthquake, students around
campus joined together with faculty to create the Brandeis Haiti
Relief Effort, raising over $30,000 for a number of charity and
relief organizations. Read more.
|
|
Flagship Projects
The Office of Global Affairs has
launched a few "flagship projects" designed to set the foundations
for a broader Global Brandeis strategy and build upon our social
justice mission.
|
Brandeis-India
Initiative
Brandeis in The Hague
Brandeis-Genesis
Institute for Russian Jewry
Brandeis-Al-Quds
University Partnership
Global Brandeis
Symposia
|
Toward
a Comprehensive Strategy
|
The
Office of Global Affairs is leading efforts to create a long-term
strategy for Global Brandeis. This "blueprint document" outlines
our goals and current projects in a number of key development
areas.
|
President-elect
Lawrence forged global ties to India, the Hague at GW
|
As
Dean of George Washington University Law School, Brandeis
President-elect Fred Lawrence led efforts to establish GW Law ties
to India and in the Netherlands. Read more.
|
|
