Big news from IUPUI. Sun Yat-sen University was recently ranked 8th among China's universities.IUPUI's goal is for this partnership to flourish and to transform the university in a way similar to its partnership with Moi University in Kenya.
Guangzhou, China - IUPUI Chancellor Charles R. Bantz and Sun Yat-sen University (SYSU) President Daren Huang signed a Memorandum of Strategic Alliance , the second such agreement for IUPUI.
Expanding the already substantial collaboration between IUPUI and SYSU - one of the most prestigious universities in China - to the level of a strategic alliance provides opportunities for meaningful engagement in a host of new arenas, Bantz said. The memorandum was signed December 9.
The campus has already developed initiatives with SYSU in the fields of informatics, medicine, public policy, computer science, education, business, and economics.
Strategic Alliances are long-term, comprehensive collaborations between two universities that advance the internationalization of each institution while also providing vital linkages for the communities in which these institutions are located. They cut across disciplinary boundaries, harnessing the full capacity of each institution for work that is of significant mutual benefit.
IUPUI signed its first strategic partnership with Moi University, one of the leading universities in East Africa, in Kenya in 2006.
Under the new agreement, IUPUI and SYSU commit themselves to:
- Expanding their collaboration to new schools and units, across the arts and sciences and the professions.
- Exploring where the two institutions can fruitfully share resources and make joint faculty appointments.
- Holding joint seminars, workshops, conferences, and symposia.
- Assisting each other in developing courses, workshops, lectures, videoconferences, and film series that enable students, faculty, staff, and the local community to develop a deep understanding of the other country.
- Supporting faculty, students, staff, and members of the local community in communicating with and visiting their counterparts at the other institution.
IUPUI’s relationship with Sun Yat-Sen University was a key factor in the campus being chosen by the Chinese government to house one of its prestigious Confucius Institutes. The Confucius Institute:
- Has taken a leadership role, in collaboration with the Office of the Mayor, in establishing the highly successful annual Chinese Festival of Indianapolis.
- For the past two years the Institute has held summer kids camps on the IUPUI campus which have benefitted from the presence of SYSU faculty who specialize in arts and crafts, martial arts, calligraphy, and dance.
- Also for the past two years, the Institute has conducted month-long summer study abroad trips to SYSU in China for IUPUI and IU Medical School students
- Hosted two international symposiums on Confucius in the twenty-first century and 30 years of US-China relations.
Discussions of joint degree programs as well as faculty and student exchanges in such disciplines as engineering and informatics have already taken place. Two IUPUI study abroad programs now exist at SYSU, and active research collaboration in medicine and public affairs is well under way.
Through strategic alliances, IUPUI is pursuing an innovative approach to international education that already has garnered a top award. Earlier this year, the Institute of International Education (IIE) honored IUPUI with the Andrew Heiskell Award for International Partnerships. The prestigious Heiskell Awards were established by IIE to recognize and promote outstanding international higher education initiatives among its member colleges and universities.
IUPU’s strategic alliances in China and Kenya reflect the importance of each region for international learning, existing or potential ties between Indiana and these countries, and the fit with IUPUI’s areas of excellence.
