University of Wisconsin–Madison
Teri Allendorf applied for the Peace Corps in the early 1990s with an eye toward East Africa, where she was hoping to use her knowledge of Swahili. But when the program gave her a list of four possible destinations, none were in her desired location. Instead, she chose Nepal. And that decision has shaped her entire …
Climate change and national defense took center stage as members of the Danish Parliament joined students and the UW–Madison community on September 19 to discuss the future of Danish transatlantic relations. The group discussed connections between Denmark and the United States, the European Union, and the world, with conversation ranging from economics to international politics. …
by Masarah Van Eyck When Emily Dickmann took 23 UW–Madison undergraduate students on an alternative spring break service learning trip to the Dominican Republic in 2008, she knew they had learned some valuable things. “There was no room to hide behind a textbook,” says the academic adviser who took students in the Chadbourne Residential College …
The Chronicle of Higher Education (July 1, 2010) – “Internationalization Is Difficult” By Nigel Thrift EXCERPT: The latest news from Michigan State University is scaling back its operations in Dubai only underlines something we know all too well: internationalization is difficult. Many, many universities are looking to set up overseas operations but the barriers to …
The launching of Sputnik I in 1957 led to the federal government’s most significant participation in modern foreign language and area studies research and training in history – the National Defense Education Act (NDEA) of 1958. The first NDEA grant to expand language and area studies in the UW–Madison Department of Indian Studies was acquired …
Read Karin Fischer’s article on the excitement behind the increase of faculty-led study abroad programs in The Chronicle of Higher Education. EXCERPT Faculty-led study-abroad programs have proliferated in recent years, as colleges have sought ways to give time- and cash-strapped students some international exposure. Marrying academics’ international experience with students’ interests has seemed an ideal match for …
Below we have republished this Wisconsin Idea Profile: Anne Topham has been to many places to talk about goat milk and cheese, but San Bernardo was different. The air was cold at 10,000 feet when she stepped off the bus after the five-hour ride from Quito, Ecuador, and the street was dusty from months of …
Next month, four UW–Madison undergraduates will leave for Nyargia, Ghana for five weeks to study the impact of a poverty reduction model in the village. The impact assessment internship is run by the Blessing Basket Project, which works to reduce poverty in developing countries by paying “Prosperity Wages” for artisan products, thus supporting entrepreneurs and …
On May 26, 2010, U.S. Department of Education Secretary Arne Duncan, spoke to the Council on Foreign Relations on “International Engagement through Education.” Read his speech and/or watch the video and Q&A online. Sec. Duncan notes two important trends that “inform our drive to transform education in America”–international competition and international collaboration. He also highlights …
On January 28, 2010, panelists gathered to discuss, “HAITI: Perspectives on Crisis” in the Red Gym’s On Wisconsin room. Gergens Polynice, an M.A. candidate in Latin American, Caribbean, and Iberian Studies (LACIS), who was in his home country of Haiti until just a few hours before the earthquake, spoke to the full audience. “A practical …