In response to the news that Indiana University’s School of Global and International Studies would receive a record total of $18.8 million in grant funding under the Department of Education’s prestigious Title VI program, IU President McRobbie held a reception to celebrate at Bryan House.
The grant funding, which has been awarded to 11 IU area studies centers and programs for 18 separate programs, is the best in the 60-year history of Title VI at IU and affirms the university's vision for the School of Global and International Studies to strengthen and revitalize area studies on the Bloomington campus by bringing area and international studies under one roof.
From the top: IU President Michael A. McRobbie speaks to a crowd gathered at Bryan House to celebrate the record Title VI funding for international centers and programs within the School of Global and International Studies, Associate Director at IU's East Asian Studies Center Theresa Kang chats with others during the reception, McRobbie talks with former United States Ambassador to Russia and IU alumnus James Collins.
At the Title VI celebration, McRobbie joined members of the school who played a role in making the record round of funding possible.
Title VI centers are essential to the development of American expertise in critical languages and cultures, as well as to fostering international education. In awarding the grants, the Department of Education has designated eight School of Global and International Studies programs as National Resource Centers:
- The Russian and East European Institute, which has received such funding since its establishment in 1958.
- The African Studies Program.
- The Center for the Study of Global Change.
- The Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies.
- The Center for the Study of the Middle East.
- The East Asian Studies Center, with the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana.
- The Institute for European Studies.
- The Inner Asian and Uralic National Resource Center.
In addition, the Islamic Studies Program and seven of the eight National Resource Centers received Foreign Language and Area Studies awards. IU's Center for Languages of the Central Asian Region and National African Languages Resource Center also received four-year funding through Title VI as National Language Resource Centers.
From the top: Hilary Kahn, Assistant Dean for International Education and Global Initiatives at the School of Global and International Studies, talks with IU President McRobbie and Lee Feinstien, founding dean of School of Global and International Studies; Feinstein speaks at the reception; Professor Emeritus and Vice President Emeritus Patrick O'Meara, Former Iraqi Ambassador Feisal Amin Rasoul al-Istrabadi, and Salman Alani professor of Near Eastern languages and cultures sit together during the reception.
Photos by Eric Rudd, Indiana University
McRobbie congratulated members of the School of Global and International Studies at the event, noting that the extraordinary funding underscores IU's continuing leadership in strengthening our nation's expertise in international education, languages and area studies that are critical for our nation's competitiveness and international security.
IU teaches more than 70 foreign languages each year, and over the last 5 years has taught around 90 languages — the most of any university in the country.
IU's multiple area studies and language programs -- which cover almost every area of the world and are central to the success of our School of Global and International Studies -- ensure students are globally ready and that they receive the knowledge, training and cultural understanding they need to serve as future diplomats, national security professionals, scholars, business leaders and other global practitioners.
"IU is one of America's powerhouses in internationally-focused education," McRobbie said.
