Welcome

Welcome to the first issue of Global Connections, a newsletter designed to share with the BU community the diversity of our global engagement as an institution and the resources available to support faculty initiatives. BU Global Programs is working alongside faculty, students and staff to increase the impact of the University’s global activities. If you have questions or suggestions, please contact us at global@bu.edu.

With best wishes,

Willis G. Wang
Vice President and Associate Provost for Global Programs

750K Award for Archaeology Curriculum Development in Iraq

Boston University College of Arts and Sciences was awarded a $750,000 grant through the United States Embassy in Iraq’s “University Linkages Program.” CAS Professor of Archaeology Michael Danti will work with Mosul University in the Erbil Province of Iraq to strengthen their archaeology and cultural heritage program through professional development training in Iraq and at BU. Global Programs enjoyed working with Prof. Danti during his proposal development and now during implementation, including health & safety planning and developing an MOU.

Record Number of Students Go Abroad

Study Abroad finished a record academic year 2011-2012 with more than 2,500 students participating in the University’s study abroad programs. The summer 2012 programs started equally well and currently almost 900 students are spending the Fall semester in one of Study Abroad’s 24 sites and partner universities, including the Washington and Los Angeles programs. For the summer, Study Abroad, working with the School of Public Health and the International Relations department, introduced a new highly successful program on “Global Governance, Economic Development, and Human Rights” in Geneva. During this Fall semester, 17 students are for the first time enrolled in Study Abroad’s new Madrid Science Program, and the Madrid Engineering Program is set to launch in Spring 2013.

CELOP Innovates Language Support Programs

Summer and Fall 2012 enrollment to date at the Center for English Language and Orientation Programs remains strong and is 6.5% above its target. CELOP continues to integrate with other BU departments. We are working closely with International Admissions to accept BU conditionally admitted students into our programs to prepare them for their academic studies at BU. CELOP is working with BU Law to develop a new two-year LLM program to attract international students to BU LAW. We continue to support the International Teaching Fellows (ITF) program at the College of Arts and Sciences. This fall both CELOP and the ISSO participated in the BU Undergraduate International Student Orientation led by the Dean of Students Office.

Unprecedented Number of New International Students

The fall semester is off to a brisk start as the International Students and Scholars Office (ISSO) welcomed over 2,000 new international undergraduate, graduate and non-degree students to campus to begin programs of study. While the ISSO was instrumental in helping ensure successful student visa applications and arrival, this unprecedented number of new international students is the result of concerted efforts by the Office of Admissions and the various graduate schools and colleges to attract another diverse and dynamic class of international students. The ISSO projects Fall 2012 enrollment to be near 6,600 international students.

Did You Know…?

Global Insurance

Stop budgeting for travel and medical evacuation insurance! All full-time Boston University employees, including faculty and staff, are covered by an emergency travel assistance program whenever they are abroad on University business? The plan includes a range of travel assistance services, and also provides for medical and security evacuation. Learn more about this and other time- and money-saving resources is available in the Global Operations Toolkit.

India Network

With support of Global Programs, BU intends to launch a BU-India Faculty Network. The purpose of this network is to find common ground for India related activities on campus, to support and encourage these activities, share guidance and expertise on India issues and serve as a resource for peers at BU and in India.

The BU-India Faculty Network is open to all faculty, including those currently working on India-related research or education activities (or who would like to); have a general interest in India; and/or are of the Indian diaspora. For more information, contact Deepti Nijhawan, Director of India Initiatives, Global Programs.