Professional development
The Global Education Office joins forces with outstanding academic programs and rich community resources to provide international professional development programs. We offer intensive English instruction, instruction in a wide array of disciplines and connect with local, state and federal government agencies working in health, housing, security and more.
Some programs include:
- Turkish Ministry of Interior
More than two dozen Turkish regional governors participated in a program of professional development, cultural orientation and language instruction organized by GEO and the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs.
Photo: VCU President Michael Rao, Ph.D., welcomes Yusuf Mayda, Ph.D., director of personnel for the Turkish Ministry of Interior.
- American Studies Program
The American Studies Program at VCU is a five-week summer program designed specifically for VCU’s international partner universities in China: Fudan University in Shanghai and Beijing Foreign Studies University; and Russia: Moscow State University and St. Petersburg State University. Over a five-week period, VCU faculty present a variety of lectures on topics such as American history, American foreign policy, homeland security and emergency preparedness, contemporary American society, religion and politics, globalization and international business, environmental science, forensic science, and media and art in America.
In addition to the lectures, students participate in home visits, a weekend excursion to Busch Gardens and Virginia Beach, an overnight camping trip in Shenandoah National Park and a day-trip to the White House in Washington, D.C. The program concludes with a two-day visit to the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, D.C. and a four-day visit to New York City. To encourage interaction between VCU students and Chinese and Russian students, the program employs eight to 10 VCU students as chaperones for the exchange students.
- Iraqi Young Leaders Exchange Program
The Iraqi Young Leaders Exchange Program, funded by the U.S. Embassy/Baghdad and implemented by the Academy for Educational Development, enables 25 highly motivated students from Iraq to attend an intensive academic summer program at VCU. GEO partners with the VCU School of Mass Communications to offer an innovative month-long summer experience for IYLEP students in social media networking, cultural understanding and community development. The program emphasizes the use of social media in leadership and conflict resolution and in improving communication in ways that bring significant positive change to organizations, institutions, communities and society.
Read more about this program. >>
Photo: Iraqi students enjoy hiking in the Shenandoah Mountains.
- Open World Russia
In February 2011, VCU welcomed a delegation of Russian elected officials to campus as part of a weeklong visit to Virginia to learn about state and local government operations. The group’s visit was conducted through the Open World Leadership Center at the Library of Congress to introduce elected officials from Russia and other Eurasian countries to American democracy and civil society in action. The Global Education Office partnered with the Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs to make the program possible. During their week in Virginia, the Russians visited with law enforcement officials, toured the Henrico County Jail, witnessed General District Court proceedings and met with delegates and senators at the State Capitol. Read more about the program through the VCU News Center and Capital News Service coverage.
Photo: Mayor Dwight C. Jones welcomes the Russian delegation to Richmond.
