Spectrum - Volume 18 Issue 05 September 21, 1995 - International awareness activities scheduled

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including The Conductor , a special section of the Spectrum printed 4 times a year

International awareness activities scheduled

By Clara B. Cox

Spectrum Volume 18 Issue 05 - September 21, 1995

The University Office of International Programs (UOIP) has scheduled three programs this fall and is planning others to help increase international awareness on campus.

On October 10, 8:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m., UOIP and University Leadership Development will sponsor a leadership symposium at Donaldson Brown Hotel and Conference Center on "Strengthening International Programs at Virginia Tech." The symposium, designed for faculty members and administrators, will feature several nationally known leaders in international programs who will speak on topics relevant to key issues in the development of a strong international program at Virginia Tech. Speakers and panel participants will be Ralph Smuckler, a founder and board member of the Association of International Educators and Administrators and co-chair of the International Education Research Task Force; Gill-Chin Lim, dean of international studies and programs at Michigan State; Jody Olsen, executive director of the Council on International Exchange of Scholars; LaMarr Kopp, vice president of international programs at Penn State; and Charles Ping, president emeritus of Ohio University and chair of the board of directors for the Council on International Education Exchange.

The university's first Global Issues Forum will be held October 12-13, featuring Ali A. Mazrui, the Albert Schweitzer Professor in the humanities and director of the Institute of Global Cultural Studies at the State University of New York at Binghamton, the Albert Luthuli Professor-at-large in humanities and development studies at the University of Jos in Nigeria, and senior scholar and the Andrew D. White Professor-at-large at Cornell University. Mazrui, whose extensive writings include the BBC series "The Africans: A Triple Heritage" and more than 20 books, will speak on October 12 at 7:30 p.m. in Colonial Hall in Squires Student Center on "Africa in Crisis: The Passions, The Problems, and The Prospects." The following day, he will address the topic "Africa's Triple Heritage Re-examined: Indigenous, Islamic, and Western Legacies" at noon in 150 Squires. Sponsors include UOIP, the Virginia Tech African Studies Association, African Students Association, International Club, and the Cranwell International Center.

A second Global Issues Forum has been scheduled on November 9.

Plans are also under way to begin "Mornings with a Global View," a series of morning sessions featuring different speakers who will address a variety of international topics. Among the other activities now in the planning stages are an ambassador-in-residence program, participation in the Foreign Policy Association's (FPA's) Great Decisions Program, the annual Global Market Opportunities Conference, a World Trade Institute, and export/import conferences co-sponsored with Public Service Programs, the Pamplin College of Business, Virginia Department of Economic Development, and Virginia Chamber of Commerce. Work is also under way on a publication listing linkage agreements with universities in other countries.

"Our goal in arranging these programs is to work toward ensuring that Virginia Tech furthers its global mission in becoming an institution that facilitates its constituents' understanding of the contradictions, challenges, and opportunities of living and working in an interdependent and borderless world," said Patrick R. Liverpool, vice provost for international programs.

Most of the programs will be open to the entire university community.