As the world becomes more connected, Americans and American educational institutions must broaden their perspective, say the State Department officials who launched International Education Week yesterday.
"The challenges we face in areas such as security, democratic development, economics and health cannot be addressed by any country acting alone," Secretary of State Colin Powell said in a press release last week. "International education, learning about other cultures and languages through study, living overseas and interacting with people of other countries promotes the free exchange of ideas, allows us to seek joint solutions to problems and helps create lasting partnerships to meet our shared concerns."
This week marks the fourth annual International Awareness Week, and the University's Office of International Studies is celebrating with a series of events.
"It's a week to celebrate and acknowledge international connectivity and to celebrate international students in the United States and U.S. students going abroad," Director of International Studies Rebecca Brown said. "The purpose of the week overall is really to raise the profile of a lot of wonderful programs that are happening -- wonderful programs for students to go abroad, or students abroad to come here."
The University promoted its study abroad programs in an open house yesterday, as well as highlighted the prestigious Fulbright Scholars program with a reception last night. Upcoming events focus on the multicultural library, the Center for Global Health and ESL volunteers.
"Americans really need to learn more about the rest of the world. A lot of Americans are really focused on what's contained within our own borders. That's not really realistic for the world that we live in today," Brown said. "Education should be international because the new generation should have an international perspective."
--Compiled by Riley McDonald
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