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Kent State University
Contents:
General Institutional Overview
Overview of Internationalization Efforts
- Vision and Goals for
Internationalization
- Progress
- Successful Strategies
- Future Plans
General Institutional Overview
Kent State University, established
in 1910, ranks among the top 90 public universities in the country,
according to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.
This places the university among an elite 3.8 percent of the
nation’s nearly 3,900 colleges and universities. Kent State earns
national recognition for its breadth of high-quality undergraduate
programs balanced with innovative research and graduate studies in
selected areas.
The Kent State eight-campus
network is designed to serve both the development of a true
living-learning approach at its Kent Campus—where residential
living combines the resources and facilities of a large, diverse
university—and regional needs on seven campuses offering the
friendly, casual atmosphere of small liberal arts colleges. Regional
campuses include Ashtabula, East Liverpool, Geauga, Salem, Stark,
Trumbull, and Tuscarawas. The Kent Campus offers bachelor’s
degrees, master’s degrees, and doctoral programs. Kent
State’s regional campuses serve their specific community’s
needs with associate degree programs in more than two dozen technical
and business fields, as well as baccalaureate and selected graduate
work. In total, Kent State University provides some 254 academic
programs of undergraduate study: Students may work toward 10 different
baccalaureate degrees in the Colleges of Arts and Sciences, Business
Administration, Communication and Information, Education, Fine and
Professional Arts, and Nursing, and the School of Technology. Kent State
also offers 16 degrees in 231 programs at the master’s level, one
degree for educational specialist in eight areas, and two doctoral
degrees in 59 areas. Current enrollment stands at approximately 33,000
students, making the university Ohio’s second-largest institution
of higher learning.
Kent State’s mission is to prepare students for
responsible citizenship and productive careers, broaden intellectual
perspectives, and foster ethical and humanitarian values. The
institution’s faculty and staff are engaged in teaching, research,
creative expression, service, and partnerships that address the needs of
a complex and changing world. By discovering and sharing knowledge in a
broad array of graduate and undergraduate programs, the university meets
the dynamic needs of a global society.
Overview of Internationalization Efforts
I. Vision and Goals for Internationalization
The theme for Kent State University’s strategic
plan, adopted in 2004, is "our commitment to changing lives." The
following four principles will guide the institution for the next
five years:
These principles provide a strong foundation for
implementation plans at the individual, unit, department, college,
division, and university level, and each has implication for
international affairs.
II. Progress
An International Review Committee was charged by the
Provost’s office in July 2003 to evaluate the university’s
current state of international activities, including opportunities,
prospects, and obstacles, and propose appropriate changes in
organizational structure that enhance both the efficiency and
effectiveness of international programs. To understand the current state
of international affairs, the committee conducted a survey of academic
units across Kent State, interviewed key individuals from the campus
community who have been engaged in international affairs, discussed
first-hand experiences of committee members with international students
and international programs here and abroad, surveyed the web sites of at
least 16 comparable institutions, and reviewed the recommendations of
numerous professional associations (e.g., NASULGC, ACE, CIEE, NAFSA, and
USAID).
The review was grounded in three premises: (1) Global
problems abound and cannot be solved by the actions of any one nation
alone; (2) the future of Ohio’s economic development rests with
its ability to join with others in global and international initiatives;
and (3) Kent State has the capability to lead Ohio in realizing this
potential.
The review of international activity across the
university community discovered many areas of promise. Many individuals
in key mid-level administrative and senior faculty leadership positions
were found to have significant international research experience and
training expertise. In addition, numerous individuals and units were
found to be quite student focused, interested both in supporting the
needs of international students as well as expanding the international
exposure and opportunities of domestic students.
The committee’s findings were analyzed and
presented to the provost in December 2003. While many positive aspects
of international activity were found, the committee recommended
improvements and efficiencies that could be achieved. As a result of
this review, the following actions have recently taken place.
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An Executive Director for International Affairs was appointed in
September 2004. The initial goals of this position are to articulate a
clear vision and mission for internationalizing the university;
encourage and lead faculty and administrators in a strategic,
well-planned, and coordinated effort to make international education an
integral component of the university’s mission and student
experience; establish a structure that integrates and coordinates
international activities across divisions; facilitate individual and
collective international partnerships and activities; encourage greater
numbers of Kent students to study abroad; help define a mix of
international students appropriate for the university and each academic
unit and campus; and coordinate professional development opportunities
for students and faculty.
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An Executive Team, consisting of the executive director, the
director of the Center for International and Comparative Programs, the
director of International Student and Scholar Services, the director of
the College of Education’s Center for International and
Intercultural Education, the assistant director of International
Admissions, and the associate director of Campus Life, was established
to guide the process of internationalization. This team meets
biweekly.
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A university-wide International Affairs Advisory Council was
established in fall 2004. With representation from all academic units,
the council meets monthly to advise and evaluate guidelines and
priorities for Kent State’s international activities, and
communicate actions to various units across the university.
-
Geographic Regional Committees were established in the 2005 spring
semester to provide an opportunity for faculty with similar
international interests to pursue research opportunities and encourage
student exchange in specific areas of the world. These committees, each
of which is open to faculty from across the university community and all
disciplines, convenes monthly in an attempt to collaborate with one
another on potential research projects, share information on potential
funding sources, and explore avenues for collaborative activity. The
five regional committees cover Africa, Asia/Pacific, Europe, the
Americas, and the Middle East.
III. Successful Strategies
Highlights of Kent State’s internationalization
efforts to date include:
- Core Curriculum. For any bachelor’s
degree, all students must satisfy a diversity requirement, two courses
chosen from an approved list. Students must take one course addressing
domestic issues and one course addressing global issues.
- Study Abroad. A variety of study abroad
opportunities are available to Kent State students. Students interested
in international relations, international business, French language, and
human rights can study for a semester at the university’s Geneva,
Switzerland, campus. Students spend a semester living and studying
within walking distance of the United Nations, can participate in an
internship with an international agency, and travel to international
organizations throughout Europe. Students studying architecture or
fashion design and merchandising can spend a semester in the heart of
Florence in Kent State’s newly renovated Palazzo dei Cherchi, a
historic 13th-century building with state-of-the-art classrooms.
Students can also study Italian language, art, history, music,
literature, politics, and culture through the core curriculum program
offered at this campus. Students in the Honors College can select from a
wide array of courses at the University of Leicester, England, and the
University of Ulster in Northern Ireland. Nursing students can study in
Ulster, Northern Ireland. Students in the exercise, leisure, and sport
program can study at De Montfort University near London. Students in
teacher education can participate in a variety of overseas student
teaching experiences through COST (the Consortium for Overseas Student
Teaching). Education students can travel with faculty to take one of
their required courses in countries such as Ireland or Mexico. Foreign
language and ESL majors can take advantage of study abroad opportunities
in Cuernavaca, Mexico; Bordeaux, France; Volgograd, Russia; and Dresden,
Germany; Business students can study in Rennes, France, and architecture
students can study abroad at the Technical University in Dresden,
Germany. Additional opportunities exist with the School of Fashion
Design at Hong Kong Polytechnical University; for Russian majors in
Volgograd, Russia; for Music students in Vienna; for chemistry majors at
Leicester University in England; and for art students in Canberra,
Australia. Students also can take advantage of an agreement that allows
them to participate in many of the programs offered at Kent
State’s sister institutions in Ohio through the Ohio International
Consortium.
- Internationally Focused Centers. A number of centers
with an explicit international focus exist on campus. These include the
Center for International and Comparative Programs (CICP), which has
historically served to coordinate international activity; the Gerald
Read Center for International and Intercultural Education in the College
and Graduate School of Education (CIIE), which serves to integrate an
international and intercultural perspective into teacher preparation;
the Center for the Study of World Music in the School of Music, a
resource for the study of ethnomusicology; the English/ESL Center, which
offers undergraduate and graduate programs in Germany, Taiwan, Korea,
and Mexico; and the College of Business, which is currently developing a
Global Management Center.
- International Linkages. Kent State maintains
partnerships with numerous institutions abroad. Among the most active
include a long-standing relationship with The College of the Bahamas
collaboration that includes a variety of master’s degree programs
in such areas as school counseling and educational administration, with
new programs currently under development. Kent State’s partnership
with The University of Bahcesehir, GAP Administration, and Ministry of
Police (Turkey) includes student and faculty exchange, professional
development, and cross-cultural training and research. Kent State has an
active linkage with the Liquid Crystal Institute and Samsung Corporation
in Korea; and Kenyatta University and Taita Discovery Centre (TDC) in
southeastern Kenya for professional development workshop offerings and
teacher development in village schools, and the University of Zambia
with student and faculty exchange in nursing. The university serves as
the sole provider of graduate credit for teachers taking professional
development workshops with the International Baccalaureate (IBO)
program; has a faculty and student exchange program with University of
Ulster and Causeway Health Trust, Northern Ireland; and has student
exchange linkages with the University of Leicester, University of
Ulster, University Michel de Montaigne–Bordeaux III, University
Montesquieu–Bordeaux IV, Technical University of Dresden,
University of Leipzig, and the Autonomous University of the State of
Morelos, Mexico.
- ESL Center. The ESL Center offers undergraduate and
graduate programs through its new ESL studios at Technical University,
Dresden, Germany; ChiefESL, Taiwan; and Korea Nazarene University,
Korea. The center also has a faculty exchange relationship with the
University of Leipzig, Germany; and offers ESL training opportunities
for Kent State students in Mexico and Germany.
- Campus-Wide Events. During the 2004 fall semester,
Kent State sponsored its first International Education Week. The
following semester, the university had a Global Awareness Week from
February 28 to March 4.
IV. Future Plans
Toward the end of the 2005 spring semester, the
International Affairs Advisory Council initiated a process to develop
and implement a strategic plan for internationalization. This plan,
which should be completed by the end of the 2005 fall semester, will
establish benchmarks and suggest strategies for improving the
recruitment and retention of international students, improving the
recruitment and retention of international scholars, internationalizing
the undergraduate and graduate curriculums, increasing international
opportunities for students and faculty, and providing professional
development for faculty and staff.
In addition, the Office of International Affairs expects
to move into an expanded facility by the 2006 fall semester. Plans are
underway to reorganize and realign the university’s efforts in
light of this pending move.
Last Updated: July 12, 2005
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