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Photo: SIUE Interim Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Ann Boyle welcomes NAFSA attendees to campus.
Photo: Representatives from international universities visited the SIUE campus Tuesday.
Representatives of 15 universities from Asia, Europe and Canada toured Southern Illinois University Edwardsville today and talked with administrators about prospective agreements between institutions.
The visitors are attending the Association of International Educators (NAFSA) meeting, which is being held in St. Louis. Individuals from Sweden, Russia, France, Belgium, Germany, Denmark, Japan, SPAIN and Canada learned more about the SIU system and SIUE.
“It’s so exciting to have a wide array of countries represented on our campus,” said Interim Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Ann Boyle. “We have a great opportunity to showcase our beautiful campus.”
Boyle, who extended a welcome to the guests on behalf of SIUE Chancellor Julie Furst-Bowe, talked about the importance of building a University of internationally trained students. “We are growing our international footprint and enhancing the educational experience for all of our students,” she said to the audience.
Information was made available about the University’s variety of programs through the College of Arts and Sciences, and the schools of Business, Education, Engineering, Dental Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy, as well as the Graduate School.
The visitors interacted with the campus community during a morning breakfast, a walking campus tour, a discussion with leaders and faculty members, and a lunch.
“Already we’ve had discussions about cooperative, direct exchange and research programs, as well as larger numbers of students coming to us as part of 2+2 programs,” said Ron Schaefer, SIUE’s director of the Center for International Programs.
Boyle referenced a plan that SIUE School of Engineering Dean Hasan Sevim and Schaefer authored five years ago with the assistance of an International Task Force comprised of SIUE faculty members. That plan has been taken off the shelf under the new chancellor’s directive to embrace strategic growth. The proposal is to increase SIUE’s current total of approximately 300 international students to 800-1,000.
Currently, the University has 2+2 international programs in place with Turkey through the SIUE School of Engineering, as well as study abroad opportunities across the world. Under Furst-Bowe’s chancellorship, the plan is to increase SIUE’s international presence and offer more collaborative international programs.
Representatives from 15 international universities visited campus Tuesday.