Justin O’Jack will serve as the director of the the University’s China office, the University’s first overseas office, as part of a push to extend the University’s global presence.
O’Jack’s role in the Shanghai office will be to facilitate the creation and management of educational exchange programs between the University and Chinese academic institutions. He has spent a third of his life in China and has most recently worked on building and managing educational exchange programs between American and Chinese universities.
Shanghai was selected because it is a global business and financial center, O’Jack said, though the office will also work with Beijing, Hong Kong and various other Chinese cities.
The University currently has 15 formal agreements with mainland Chinese universities, research institutes and non-governmental organizations, including several in Shanghai, O’Jack said.
“A permanent presence on the ground is an important step toward better supporting and deepening University engagement abroad and developing new opportunities for students and faculty alike,” O’Jack said.
The relationship between the United States and China is “arguably the most important bilateral relationship of the 21st century,” O’Jack said.
Jeffrey Legro, the vice provost for global affairs, said expanding a presence in China will be a necessary part of the University’s global presence.
“Solutions for many of the world’s most pressing problems, from regional security and the global economy to climate change, will need to be addressed through close cooperation between the U.S. and China,” O’Jack said. “The importance of [a] better understanding between Americans and Chinese through educational exchanges and partnerships cannot be overstated.”
The University also considered, but ultimately ruled out, a proposal to build a campus abroad and one to maintain current academic relationships without a physical presence in China.
Legro estimated the cost of maintaining the overseas office will be between $200,000 and $250,000 per year, though that number will be finalized in the next year.
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