Fiery ambition pervaded the development of the strategic plan last year. Tellingly, we were no longer comparing ourselves to the state schools traditionally branded as our peers. The administration instead focused on the university’s standing on the world stage. In recent years, the university has launched a number of international initiatives: It has an Institute for Global Chinese Affairs (which has attracted Chinese public officials), a research park in collaboration with the Chinese government, and a Shanghai business school. In 2006, Mote traveled to Taiwan and India, pushing the university’s global engagement. There is an increasing drive to recruit students from abroad and to foster international dialogue on the campus. As the university strengthens its global presence, we must publicly and thoroughly explore what our global responsibilities are and how we can best meet them.
Most recently, university President Dan Mote has embarked on a tour of Iranian universities. Mote describes the trip as non-political; after all, “there’s going to be no contact with high-level government,” he says. But this statement ignores his trip’s significance. A major point of contention during the presidential debates was whether the United States should even talk with Iranian leaders. It is silly to suggest that a trip to Iran does not have political implications. But Mote should not be shying away from an influential role abroad. Rather, he should be embracing the opportunity for social responsibility internationally, as we are beginning to at home.
The strategic plan outlines concrete goals for improving its role in the surrounding community. The university plans to use its influence to shape the development of transportation, retail and housing in the city. There is commitment to building a more environmentally friendly community. There is commitment to investing the university’s resources in the surrounding community, from using the public health school to improve “community wellness,” to expansion of clinics like those for Hearing and Speech and Marriage and Family Therapy. Investment in the community is not happening simply for selfish reasons. Rather, there is recognition that the university has the power to play an influential role in the city’s development. With that power comes the responsibility to uphold the university’s core values and commitments.
At home, the university has striven to achieve diversity and ensure equality. The office of multicultural involvement and community advocacy, the office of LGBT equity and even the Nyumburu Cultural Center are all part of that effort. The university hasn’t achieved complete social justice, but there has been real progress.
The university has a similar responsibility in its endeavors abroad. It may seem lofty to expect one university to change the world, but our university can make a real impact abroad, as it does at home. The university is serious about establishing an international presence, and that entails spending a great deal of money and, in turn, having substantial influence.
If we want to have a positive influence that reflects our ideals internationally, we need to plan our initiatives accordingly. The strategic plan focuses on how to bring the university to the world stage, but not what we should do once we get there. There are contentious and complicated issues to deal with. It is relatively straightforward to embrace the ideals of freedom of academic inquiry and debate within the confines of a democratic society, but how should that commitment manifest itself in our relationship with less tolerant countries? Does our university stand for gender equality across the map? Are we purchasing university apparel from vendors abroad with fair labor practices? Perhaps all the world is, indeed, a stage. But the curtain is rising, and we haven’t yet settled on our role.
