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North Carolinians to the traditions andthought of other races, religions andnationalities enhances communicationsand understanding. And, internationaleducational programs are critical to thecompetence of the United States inworld affairs.An Office of In t e r n a t i o n a lPrograms has grown out of theUn i ve r s i t y’s efforts tow a rd globalization.A study conducted last fallre vealed a significant level of intere s tin international programs as well as aconsiderable amount of internationalactivity at A&T. Howe ve r, a coord i-nated, Un i versity-wide approach didnot exist.“Things we re ve ry fragmented,”said Minnie Battle Ma yes, who wasrecently appointed interim director ofinternational programs. “T h e re we rea few opportunities in internationalexperiences such as study abroad andre s e a rch programs. Howe ve r, eachd e p a rtment was on its own andlittle multidisciplinary activity wasa va i l a b l e .“ In addition to re vealing the leve lof interest in international programs, italso showed that unless a student wase n rolled in a department that part i c i-pated in international activity, it wasnot an option that they we re aware ofor even considered. Now, with theOffice of International Programs, thereis a concerted effort to build a level ofawareness and to assist in planning andproviding the best experiences abroad.”Since the majority of A&T studentsand faculty will not be able to takea d vantage of experience abroad programs,the Office of In t e r n a t i o n a lPrograms also will provide global persp e c t i ves, enrichment opport u n i t i e st h rough forums, workshops, seminars,p e rformances, and internships withglobal implications.Ma yes said, “These types ofexchanges help to develop a global persp e c t i ve among a greater number ofpeople.”In the four months since the Officehas been operating, a mayor and cityplanner from Brazil, an educator fro mSouth Africa and two members of aneducational consortium in New So u t hWales, Australia, have visited A&T foran exchange of ideas and information.A German graduate student will studyEnglish and AfricanAmerican literature atA&T this academic ye a r.Fu rt h e r m o re, A&T studentshave pursued internationaleducation thisspring and summer inGhana, Uganda, Fr a n c e ,Mexico and Australia.Under a grant fro mthe Alcoa Fo u n d a t i o nCampus Pa rt n e r s h i pProgram, three A&T studentscurrently are studying in Gh a n aand two Ghanaians will return withthem to study at A&T through ane xchange program in engineering withGhana. Ma yes said that the Un i ve r s i t yis planning to extend the program intoother disciplines.The Un i versity also has aMemorandum of Un d e r s t a n d i n g(MOU) with the Un i versity of Uyo inAkwa Ibon, Nigeria. Dr. CelestineNtuen, a professor of industrial and systemsengineering and director of T h eInstitute of Hu m a n - Machine St u d i e sat A&T, is a member and chairman ofthe faculty of engineering advisoryboard at UNIUYO. He also is advisingthe university how to pre p a re theengineering program for its firstaccreditation.Cu r rently among the 16 UNCschools, N.C. A&T is one of nineschools that have a full-time office dedicatedto international programs, and itis the only one of the four Hi s t o r i c a l l yBlack Colleges and Un i ve r s i t i e s(HBCUs).“UNC-GA has elevated its expectationsfor globalization and internationalprograms,” said Re n i c k .“ Students and industry are choosingschools that offer the most opport u n i-ties. We want N.C. A&T to be amongtheir top choices.” ■Minnie Battle Mayes (left) briefsrepresentatives from eightNigerian universities and theNigerian National UniversitiesCommission. The group spenttwo weeks in the United Statesgathering and exchanginginformation with higher educationadministrators. Pictured are, l-r:Dr. Gambo L. Abdullahi, vicechancellor, University of Abuja;Dr. Babatunde Ipaye, director ofresearch and post-graduatedevelopment, NationalUniversities Commission; Dr.Salihu Mustafa, vice chancellor,Federal University of Technology;Robert Palmer, escort officer,U.S. Dept. of State; Dr. AbdullahiMahadi, vice chancellor, AhmaduBello University; Dr. Pita N.Ejiofor, vice chancellor, NnamdiAzikiwe University; Dr. AbubakarMustapha, vice chancellor,University of Maiduguri; Dr. MusaAbdullahi, vice chancellor,Bayero University; Dr. AbdulimenRichard Anao, vice chancellor,University of Benin; and Dr.Aminu S. Mikailu, vicechancellor, UsmanuDanfodiyo University.A&T TODAY/FALL 20003