Dear all,

As we enter full fall mode, there is much activity in International Programs (IP) to share with you. As most of you know, one of IP’s major priorities is to establish a greater presence in sub-Saharan Africa. To that end, an all-star delegation from Iowa visited one of our key partners on the continent, the University of Johannesburg (UJ) in late August and early September. The group consisted of Edith Parker, dean of the College of Public Health, Mark Van Weg, chair of the Department of Community and Behavioral Health in the College of Public Health, Oluwafemi Adeagbo, assistant professor of community and behavioral health, Claudia Corwin, specialist in occupational medicine in the Carver College of Medicine, Dimy Doresca, director of the Institute of International Business in the Tippie College of Business, and myself. The goal of the trip was to further develop research and teaching opportunities for UI faculty and students at the University of Johannesburg.

UI and UJ have been working together for a number of years, holding research networking events as well as webinars on various topics such as substance abuse among teens and the scholarly processes involved in turning a manuscript into a book. Our focus, naturally, was on public health and business/entrepreneurship, but opportunities present themselves in engineering, African studies, and the arts as well. The plan is to use internal resources to seed research collaborations that will lead to larger external funding opportunities in the future.

While in South Africa, we also visited the YALI (Young African Leadership Initiative) Regional Leadership Center in Midrand. Based at the University of South Africa in Pretoria, this YALI center serves all of southern Africa. Over the years, it has sent us Mandela Washington Fellows from neighboring countries such as Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Eswatini, Lesotho, and, of course, South Africa. These Fellows benefitted from their time at Iowa to advance their professional skills to build business, educational, and cultural networks across the region. These Iowa alumni are important to enhancing our footprint in southern Africa and the developing world more broadly.

The University of Iowa fosters mobility between students, faculty, and staff, and as much as we value visiting Africa, we seek to bring partners from the continent to Iowa City as well. Such is the case with Professor Djiby Anne, director of international relations at SupdeCo, an international school of management with whom Iowa has enjoyed a strong relationship—including with its YALI center—for several years. Djiby and his team received a delegation from Iowa in 2022, and we’ve returned the favor by sponsoring his stay as a Fulbright Scholar in the Division of World Languages, Literatures, and Cultures this semester. Djiby is currently working on a project centered on translating business English to Francophone students. Djiby’s work as an administrator and a researcher has opened doors for Iowa students and faculty in the realms of education, business, as well as language and culture studies. As dean of International Programs and as a faculty member in the UI Department of French and Italian, I am delighted that we are able to receive such a valuable international partner, as Djiby’s presence only adds to Iowa’s reputation as a leader in global education.

Finally, the busy month of September was punctuated by our largest Study Abroad Fair (see photo gallery below) in years. With over 800 attendees, we reached pre-pandemic levels of enthusiasm. The fair highlighted Iowa-sponsored programs across many disciplines and featured program providers from all over the world. The Study Abroad Fair requires weeks of preparation, and special thanks go to our study abroad team and to the IP technical staff for the many hours of work that went into putting together the event. Retention and graduation rates of students who go abroad are routinely among the highest at Iowa, and holding such a large activity at the beginning of the fall semester carries an impact that lasts throughout the academic year. The energy at this year’s fair was as great as it’s ever been, and we are thrilled to share images that convey the enthusiasm that the event generates. Thank you, as always, for your support of this, and all of IP’s endeavors.

Yours, 

Russ

International Programs (IP) at the University of Iowa (UI) is committed to enriching the global experience of UI students, faculty, staff, and the general public by leading efforts to promote internationally oriented teaching, research, creative work, and community engagement.  IP provides support for international students and scholars, administers scholarships and assistance for students who study, intern, or do research abroad, and provides funding opportunities and grant-writing assistance for faculty engaged in international research. IP shares their stories through various media, and by hosting multiple public engagement activities each year.