Supporting Higher Education in 2025

In 2025, the Center for the Study of Global Change initiated conversations and networking for faculty and administrators from across the world. This included our annual Institute for Curriculum and Campus Internationalization (ICCI) that we hosted in May this year. Fifty-two professionals from twenty-five institutions and six countries came together to discuss internationalization and global learning efforts.  

This year, for our fourteenth ICCI and our twenty-eighth summer institute, in addition to supporting faculty, staff, and administrators from higher education institutions across the world, we were able to offer dedicated support to Indiana University (IU) regional campuses. Thanks to funding from the Heartland project, supported by IU’s Area Studies National Resource Centers, faculty and administrators from all of IU’s regional campuses were invited to apply for a scholarship which provided registration fees for ICCI. Collaboration with our regional colleagues, along with their feedback, played a crucial role in shaping the ongoing design of the Global Center’s internationalization and global learning trainings.  

Along with our regional campus colleagues, ICCI welcomed participants from institutions across multiple countries outside of the USA. These included La Trobe University in Australia, Waseda University in Japan, University of Hamburg in Germany, and National Taiwan University in Taiwan. IU’s African Studies Program (ASP) also offered twelve scholarships for select academics from community colleges and MSIs to lessen their financial barriers. Thank you, ASP, for your continued support.

The Global Center continues to host high-profile speakers in the domain of international education to present at our institute. In 2025, both our campus and curriculum tracks welcomed experienced leaders to offer their expertise. Samba Dieng, the Senior Internationalization Officer at Louisiana State University, returned to anchor our campus track along with Hilary Khan, Vice Provost of International Affairs at IU Indianapolis. Dawn Whitehead, Vice President of the Office of Global Citizenship for Campus, Community, and Careers at the American Association of Colleges and Universities, and Eric Castillo, the Associate Vice Chancellor for Arts, Culture, and Community Impact for the Alamo Community Colleges District, guided our course track. Our keynote speaker for 2025 was Svitlana Ramer, the founder and president of the Ukrainian Society of Indiana. Dr. Ramer spoke on the importance and power of students and campus communities increasing their exposure to international experiences. One participant summarized the keynote succinctly: “The passion of Dr. Svitlana was extremely authentic and inspiring to hear.”   

Each year, ICCI celebrates the rich diversity on the Bloomington campus at its Culture Night event. Participants experience international cuisine, artwork, music, and history as well as win international artifacts from a raffle. Our primary performer, Dan Kusaya, is a native to Zimbabwe who currently teaches world music at Fairview Elementary in Bloomington, IN. His deep immersion in traditional music and instruments like ngoma, hosho, marimba, and mbira provided a wonderful soundtrack for the evening.   

ICCI continues to be an integral gathering for the Global Center each year. The connections made here are essential in assisting professionals in developing global learning. One participant stated, "The connections I made, along with the deep conversations, helped me to better understand the importance of intensifying internationalization on campus and in the classroom." This is an outcome that ICCI strives for and continues to deliver year after year. 

In addition to ICCI, the Global Center supports other institutions in meeting their global learning goals. In the spring, Eli Konwest and Vesna Dimitrieska, Director of Global Education Initiatives in the IU School of Education and the Hamilton Lugar School collaborated with the University of Michigan Flint campus to deliver a series of virtual workshops on curriculum internationalization to UMF faculty. The series culminated in a trip to Flint where they got to meet more faculty and administration colleagues and close out the workshop series in person. The Global Center was also able to support Diné College, the first tribally controlled and accredited collegiate institution in the United States, by supporting faculty to attend professional development opportunities such as “Arts and Education without Borders Community College Curricula Conference.” The Global Center was also pleased to forge more connection with Fort Lewis College, a Native-American-serving institution in Colorado, by supporting Dr. Tapati Dutta on a trip to India to create more global opportunities for Fort Lewis students and faculty.