Program Updates

2017–2018 Cohort Visits National Peace Corps Association in Washington, DC

On November 3rd, the 2017–2018 cohort enjoyed an informative meeting with National Peace Corps Association President Glenn Blumhorst at NPCA headquarters in Washington, DC.

NPCA, is a non-profit organization composed of more than 225,000 individuals who have experienced the Peace Corps in 141 countries since 1961. Its mission is “to champion lifelong commitment to Peace Corps ideals.”

Prior to joining the NPCA, Mr. Blumhorst enjoyed an 18-year career with ACDI/VOCA, an economic development organization that fosters broad-based economic growth, raises living standards, and creates vibrant communities throughout the world. He also served as Country Representative and Chief of Party on several major USAID-funded projects and programs throughout Central and South America. His work has taken him to over 65 countries and enabled his near-native Spanish language fluency.

Mr. Blumhorst launched his career by serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Guatemala from 1988 to 1991.

This was our second visit to meet with Mr. Blumhorst at NPCA, and last year Mr. Blumhortst also visited with us at BU during one of his trips through Boston. The relationship became fruitful quickly, as last year Valeria Rios Molina of Bolivia completed her Professional Affiliation under Mr. Blumhorst's supervision at NPCA.

The 2017–2018 cohort enjoyed learning about significant support that NPCA can provide in terms of connecting them to members with whom their interests overlap. There are myriad possibilities for collaboration and mutual support, which the Fellows look forward to exploring with Mr. Blumhorst and his colleagues.

Fellows Gather in Washington, DC for Global Leadership Forum

From October 29th to November 2nd, the cohorts of all fifteen host universities—154 Fellows in total—gathered in Washington, DC as hosts of the State Department and the Institute of International Education for a week of meetings, presentations and receptions at the Humphrey Fellowship Program's annual Global Leadership Forum.

The Schedule of Events included addresses and presentations by a wide range of officials and specialists including the following:

• Dr. John Sedlins, Chief, Humphrey Fellowships and Institutional Linkages Branch, U.S. Department of State
• Mr. Paul Schelp, Program Officer, Humphrey Fellowships and Institutional Linkages Branch, U.S. Department of State
• Mr. Kennon Jones, Regional Alumni Coordinator for East Asia and the Pacific Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, U.S. Department of State
• Dr. Allan E. Goodman, President and CEO, Institute of International Education
• Ms. Nancy Overholt, Client Engagement Lead, Humphrey Fellowship Program Institute of International Education
• Ms. Edith Cecil, Chief, Client Engagement, Government Institute of International Education
• Ms. Huma Haque, Program Manager, Humphrey Fellowship Program Institute of International Education
• Mr. Eric Schwartz, President, Refugees International; Former Dean, Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota
• Mr. John Schaus, Fellow, International Security Program Center for Strategic and International Studies
• Ms. Lobna Ismail, Founder and President Connecting Cultures, Inc.
• Dr. William Dant, President, WPD Global Solutions, LLC

There were also presentations by four alumni, including Sujeev Shakya, a 2002–2003 alumnus of the BU program:

• Mr. Utku Cakirozer, Member of Parliament, Turkish Grand National Assembly / University of Maryland, College Park 2008-2009
• Ms. Harum Mukhayer, Visiting PhD Researcher, Harvard Law School / University of California, Davis 2015-2016
• Mr. Sujeev Shakya, Founder and CEO, Beed Management / Boston University 2002-2003
• Ms. Inga Spriņģe, Investigative Journalist & Co-Founder, Baltic Center for Investigative Journalism / University of Maryland, College Park 2010-2011

Each cohort was also assigned to produce a slide presentation and poster on the theme of Our Shared Global Future. The BU cohort prepared a presentation focused on leadership, meta-competencies and soft skills entitled "Investing in an Inclusive Global Society," which was delivered by Waqas Munir of Pakistan. At the end of the presentation, Waqas was joined by his colleagues Alena Vachnová of Slovakia, Aziza Pulotova of Tajikistan, and Ziyad Abuo Habla of Israel, each of whom recounted situations in their previous work when such competencies were critically needed. Following the presentation, the entire cohort stood to take questions from the audience, which included the cohorts of Michigan State, MIT, Penn State and Vanderbilt.

The BU Fellows' presentation and Q&A session may be viewed here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ZFtVVQP30n3antnAdp7Vxr0VcJfuKZ8e/view?usp=sharing

https://drive.google.com/file/d/10m4lW-yRoWBIKXYiYVBU8GkMqUE3f18s/view?usp=sharing

This year's GLF also included a set of concurrent sessions entitled "Shared Challenges: Global Responses" featuring the following topics and speakers:

• How to Establish an NGO / Ms. Inga Spriņģe, Investigative Journalist & Co-Founder, Baltic Center for Investigative Journalism and HHHP Fellow at University of Maryland, College Park 2010-11
• Media Literacy in Today’s World / Dr. Kalyani Chadha, Associate Professor and Director, Media, Self and Society Program, Merrill College of Journalism, University of Maryland College Park
• Empowering Women for Sustainable Development / Mr. Wade Channell, Senior Economic Growth Advisor for Gender, U.S. Agency for International Development
• Leadership in Public Service

We were pleased that Ms. Thabsile Ntshalintshali of Swaziland was selected to moderate the session on Empowering Women for Sustainable Development.

On Tuesday night, October 31st, Deputy Secretary of State John J. Sullivan hosted a grand reception for the Fellows in the Benjamin Franklin Room at the Department of State. IIE President and CEO Allan Goodman also addressed the Fellows.

We were also very pleased to see Ms. Beatriz Gonzalez, a 2016–2017 BU Fellow who is currently working at the U.S. Department of Transportation in an extension of her Professional Affiliation during the Fellowship year.

Cheering on the BU Men’s Ice Hockey Team

On Friday, October 27th, host family and friend of the program Al Petras hosted the Fellows for a special evening of BU spirit through sports at the BU Men’s Ice Hockey Game.

The evening began with a banquet featuring an incredible menu of roasted turkey, southern smoked brisket, roasted brussel sprouts, apple cranberry stuffing and yukon gold mashed potatoes. To top it all off, there were assorted autumn cakes and pies for dessert.

The evening continued with watching the men's ice hockey team from the Pepsi Student Suite—the best seats in the whole arena. In the suite the Fellows were treated to an assortment of appetizers, pizza, savory snacks, and Pepsi beverages.

BU has one of the most storied teams in NCAA Division I hockey, playing its first game in 1918, winning five national championships, and making twenty-two appearances in the Frozen Four.

In the spirit of the first game of the season, everyone including the Fellows wore red to celebrate BU sportsmanship in style! It was an unforgettable evening.

Host Families Organize Annual Chili Party for Fellows

On October 22nd, the Lowry family again opened their home to Fellows, coordinators, and host families for what has become an annual tradition in the Humphrey Fellowship Program at BU—the autumn chili party.

Fellows and coordinators brought their family members, and with over thirty people in attendance it was the largest gathering for this event we have ever had.

Doris Kellom, the coordinator of the host families, first described the history of chili in the United States, and then we all had a great time relaxing, chatting, and enjoying unseasonably warm and pleasant weather for mid-October in Boston.

We also enjoyed celebrating the birthday of Sergiu Bulbas of Moldova, which happened to fall on the same day.

BU and MIT Fellows Visit Class of Barbara Kellerman at Kennedy School of Government

On October 17th, thirteen Fellows from BU and MIT gathered at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government to join a class session of The Leadership System, a course taught by Dr. Barbara Kellerman.

Dr. Kellerman is the Founding Executive Director of the Kennedy School’s Center for Public Leadership. Among her many accolades, she has been ranked by Forbes as among the world's "Top 50 Business Thinkers" and by Leadership Excellence as among the Top 15 "thought leaders in management and leadership." She co-founded the International Leadership Association (ILA) and has authored and edited many books including Leadership: Multidisciplinary Perspectives; The Political Presidency: Practice of Leadership; Bad Leadership; Followership; Women and Leadership (co-edited with Deborah Rhode); Essential Selections on Power, Authority, and Influence (2010); The End of Leadership (2012) and Hard Times: Leadership in America (2014).

The End of Leadership was listed by the Financial Times as among the Best Business Books of 2012.

Dr. Kellerman's course at Harvard presents an inclusive, integrative approach to understanding leadership in the 21st century. It describes leadership as a system comprised of three equally important variables: the leader, the follower, and the context (or contexts—some proximate, others distal). The Fellows were deeply engaged in observing and also participating in the class, which that day was focused on the theme of "Bad Leadership and Bad Followership."

We plan to meet Dr. Kellerman at Harvard for a dedicated discussion with Humphrey Fellows from both BU and MIT next month.

College of Fine Arts Faculty Lead Workshop on Visual Presentation

On Monday, October 13th, College of Fine Arts (CFA) faculty members led the Fellows through a three-hour session on the elements of slide presentation design and photography.

Assistant Professor of Graphic Design Laura Grey gave a presentation on fundamentals of \ slide design such as color theory, typology, and the balance of images and text. Assistant Professor of Photography Greer Muldowney then lectured on line balance, vantage point, contrast, light, and other elements of effective photography.

Following these lectures, our CFA colleagues offered feedback as the Fellows went through the slide presentation they are preparing for the Humphrey Fellowship Program's Global Leadership Forum, which will take place from October 29th–November 2nd in Washington, DC. This year, every cohort of Humphrey Fellows across the country will produce a poster in addition to their slide presentations, and so we spent the final half hour of our workshop developing ideas of the poster that the BU cohort will produce.

Fellows Gather for Friends and Family Welcome BBQ

On Saturday, October 21st, the Fellows gathered for a Friends and Family Welcome event at the George Sherman Student Union. We held this gathering to welcome Fellows' dependents and celebrate birthdays occurring this fall. Fellows from neighboring campuses were also invited to join the fun.

Even though we couldn’t grill ourselves, our colleagues at Catering on the Charles provided an incredible meal with a mini taco station, BBQ, and salads. The weather was gorgeous, and we had a beautiful view of the Charles River. It was a lovely event, with host families, spouses and children of Fellows joining in the celebration.

Here are some photos from our lovely afternoon together:

Fourth Global Leadership Symposium at Questrom School of Business

On Friday, March October 20th, the Fellows joined Professor Sandra Deacon’s undergraduate seminar on leadership, The Leadership Challenge, as surprise guests and examples of emerging global leaders in the fourth installment of the BU HHHP's Global Leadership Symposium at the Questrom School of Business. This symposium has become an integrated element of both the BU Humphrey Program Seminar and Professor Deacon's curriculum on the global dimensions of leadership in the modern world.

Sandra Deacon Carr is a Master Lecturer in the Organizational Behavior Department at Boston University's Questrom School of Business where she has been teaching courses in organizational behavior, leadership, management, career development, and team learning for more than 25 years.

This signature event enables Fellows and Questrom students to engage in important cross-cultural dialogue on the challenges and opportunities of global leadership in the modern world.

Fellows Enjoy Lunch and Discussion with HHHP Alumna Agnes Igoye

On Monday, October 16th, 2010–2011 HHHP Alumna Agnes Igoye of Uganda met with the 2017–2018 cohort for lunch and a discussion about the Humphrey Program and how to navigate it.

Agnes was in Boston to join the 10th Annual Meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative University (CGI-U), where she was named to the CGI-U Honor Roll. As a member of CGI-U, Agnes is committed to establishing a rehabilitation center for the victims of human trafficking in Uganda. To date, she has trained over 2,000 law enforcement officers on counter-human trafficking, fundraised and delivered over 90,000 books to children across Uganda, and founded the Huts for Peace Program for homeless women who have survived violence in Northern Uganda. For her efforts, she has received recognition from the United Nations, Vital Voices, and the Women in Public Service Project among others.

During the 2016–2017 academic year, Agnes was a Mason Fellow at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. While she was studying at Harvard, she met with BU Fellows a number of times and also addressed the cohort as our Commencement Speaker.

We are grateful to Agnes for her making time to meet this year's cohort during her brief return to Boston.

Dean Freeman Hosts Welcome Reception for 2017–2018 Fellows

On Wednesday, September 27th, Deadline Kenneth Freeman welcomed the 2017–2018 cohort of Humphrey Fellows to Boston University at a formal reception hosted by the Questrom School of Business.  Nearly forty guests attended, including former directors of the Humphrey Fellowship Program at BU, faculty advisors, host families, ad other friends and affiliates of the Humphrey Program from both within BU and the surrounding community.

Following introductory remarks by Dean Freeman and HHHP Director Jack McCarthy, each Fellow introduced him or herself to the audience, and the reception followed.

Here are a few images of the event: