Latitudes: Can colleges be global if their presidents aren’t?

Half of college leaders come to the job with no international experience. ADVERTISEMENT [Latitudes Logo]( You can also [read this newsletter on the web](. Or, if you no longer want to receive this newsletter, [unsubscribe](. For college presidents, international experience is not required When it comes to broader institutional agendas, international education can find itself jockeying for attention. Little more than a third of colleges said international education was among the top priorities in their strategic plans, according to a 2022 [survey]( by the American Council on Education. A decade earlier, half of colleges said it was on their front burner. There are many reasons that international education may find itself [fighting for relevance]( The political and policy environment in the United States for anything global has been tough in recent years. College leaders have fires to put out at home, including campus protests and attacks on diversity offices and programs. But another possible cause: Almost half of college presidents report having no overseas experience, according to a [survey]( of college leaders, also by ACE. Just 15 percent studied abroad, and only 8 percent have had an international grant or fellowship for research or teaching, such as a [Fulbright scholarship](. Five percent were deployed overseas as part of military or civilian government service. “The problem is both significant and systemic,” said Patti McGill Peterson, a former president of Wells College and St. Lawrence University. In his recent doctoral dissertation, Samba Dieng, senior internationalization officer at Louisiana State University, examined four colleges and found that presidential buy-in — from articulating a vision to allocating resources — matters in international-education efforts. “Successful internationalization requires outstanding vision and leadership,” he wrote. Peterson, who studied abroad as a first-generation college student, knows that firsthand. In her second presidency, at St. Lawrence, she threw her weight behind encouraging overseas study and internationalizing the curriculum. But Peterson is the exception rather than the rule. International expertise is rarely part of the presidential job description, said Carolyn J. Stefanco, president emerita of the College of Saint Rose. The role of senior international officer, the top administrator for global education, is not a common stepping stone to the college presidency. In the current climate, search committees are looking for adept financial managers, talented fundraisers, and nimble political operatives as their next leaders. “So many other things are urgent that international experience doesn’t make the list,” she said. Despite such pressing imperatives, Stefanco, who works as a higher-education leadership consultant, said international skills and exposure during college will be critical to graduates’ long-term success. “You would think after the pandemic, we’d understand that the biggest issues we face as Americans are global,” she said. Presidents of [community colleges]( which often struggle to give students international opportunities, were less likely than leaders of other types of institutions to have overseas experience, the ACE survey found. Today’s crop of college presidents is more global than when ACE last conducted the survey, six years earlier. Back then more than half reported no overseas experience. Greater change may be more difficult, experts said. That’s because, long before they even aspire to college presidencies, there are few incentives for professors to gain international experience. American colleges do attract foreign-born scholars and researchers; about 6 percent of American faculty members are on temporary visas, according to the U.S. Department of Education, an undercount of international faculty because that [metric]( does not include permanent U.S. residents or naturalized citizens born overseas. Yet higher education’s promotion and reward structures infrequently prize — or even recognize — international engagement. ACE [found]( that only 12 percent of colleges have guidelines for considering international experience in promotion and tenure decisions. More than half of colleges said they rarely or never count a global background as a plus-factor in hiring decisions. Stefanco, a historian, was a Fulbright scholar in Croatia. But higher ed’s practices and policies can discourage faculty members, especially early-career academics, from engaging in international research and teaching, she said. On lists of institutional priorities for international education, faculty development ranks far below other activities, like recruiting foreign students and sending Americans to study abroad. It’s a vicious cycle, said Peterson, who also was a Fulbright administrator and an adviser to ACE on global education. “When it comes to creating a pipeline, there isn’t a magic answer,” she said. “I wish there were.” If college presidents don’t come to the job with a global orientation, international educators can work to shift their thinking, Stefanco said. That can mean explaining the value of international education to fit with broader institutional goals, both academic and financial. And there’s another group to educate, she said — the people who often hire college presidents, the trustees. ADVERTISEMENT UPCOMING PROGRAM [The Chronicle's Strategic-Leadership Program for Department Chairs | June 2024] [Join us in June]( for a professional development program tailored to the needs of department chairs. Experienced academic leaders will provide insights on the the current trends in higher ed, effective ways to manage a department, strategic planning, and more. [Register today!]( Australia could be latest to limit foreign students Yet another country is considering a cap on international students. This time it’s [Australia]( where legislation introduced in the federal parliament would limit the number of overseas students universities could admit. The proposed measure would set a maximum annual enrollment of international students, and institutions that exceed those levels could risk being barred from accepting more. The caps could only be lifted if colleges build more housing. New educational providers would be required to first offer programs to domestic students before they would be allowed to enroll students from abroad. Government officials said the new rules were needed to combat student-visa fraud. The [Canadian government]( cited similar concerns in announcing its own international-enrollment caps earlier this year. Australia may not be the last major destination country to move to restrict international students. In [Britain]( Rishi Sunak, the prime minister, is considering limiting or even ending the ability of recent graduates to stay in the country and work. He faces opposition from college leaders, who say the potential changes could make their institutions much less attractive abroad, as well as from members of his own Cabinet. FROM THE CHRONICLE STORE [Fostering Students' Free Expression - Buy Now]( [Higher Education in 2035]( Higher education is facing an array of challenges: economic headwinds, political pressures, and shifting demographics. [Order your copy]( to help your institution prepare for what’s ahead, and discover how the sector will evolve in the coming decade. Connect with Latitudes at NAFSA Are you packing your bags for New Orleans? I’ll be at the NAFSA annual conference, a whirlwind week that is equal parts exhausting and exhilarating. I am speaking a few times during the international-education conference: - On Wednesday, May 29, at 1 p.m. CT, I’ll join Darla Deardorff of the Association of International Education Administrators and Jewell Winn of Tennessee State University for a conversation about antiracism in international education. - I’m presenting at a second session on Wednesday on international-student success. Also on the 2:30 p.m. panel are Ling Gao LeBeau and Steven Schaffling, both of Syracuse University. (I [wrote]( about innovative strategies by Syracuse and other colleges to help foreign students thrive, in and out of the classroom.) - And on Thursday, May 30, at noon, I’m flying solo at the NAFSA pavilion in the expo hall. I’ll be talking about the big changes and big challenges ahead for international education. Please bring your questions and comments. For me, the conference’s greatest value is hearing from people across the field. Panels, discussions, and casual conversations always give me fresh ideas and insights and introduce me to new programs and approaches — in fact, my article on student success grew out a presentation Ling gave at a previous NAFSA conference! If there are sessions or talks — yours or others’ — you think I shouldn’t miss next week, let me know. You can email me at karin.fischer@chronicle.com, send me a message through the conference app, or just stop me in the convention center. See you soon! Around the globe The Biden administration is asking Congress to fully fund educational and cultural exchanges, Secretary of State Antony Blinken [said]( during a Senate hearing. Legislation introduced in California would allow undocumented students to get [on-campus jobs]( at the state’s public colleges. Federal law prohibits employers from hiring people not in the United States legally, but the bills’ sponsors argue that state agencies, including public colleges, are exempt from such restrictions. Sen. J.D. Vance, Republican of Ohio, said American officials could learn from [Hungary]( where Viktor Orbán, the prime minister, has sought to [crack down on dissent]( on and gain more control over college campuses. Indian students in Prince Edward Island are protesting changes to the Canadian province’s [immigration policy]( that make it more difficult to stay and work after graduation. A recruitment campaign by Turkey’s intelligence agency aimed at college students has raised alarms about [greater surveillance]( on campuses. Hundreds of Pakistani students have been [evacuated]( from Kyrgyzstan after local residents allegedly attacked foreign students. Nigerian security forces freed college students who had been [kidnapped](. A Chinese-born professor who taught at a Japanese university has been [sentenced]( to six years in a Chinese prison on allegations of spying. ADVERTISEMENT And finally … The student government at Britain’s Lancaster University has voted to go vegan. The institution’s student union voted to gradually shift the college’s menus, with half of the food served to be plant-based by 2025 and fully vegan by 2027. Supporters said cutting out meat is better for the environment and student health, but a farming association said the motion should have been put to a campuswide vote. College leaders are not bound to follow the recommendation. Students at several other British universities have voted for their institutions to serve plant-based meals, part of a campaign aimed at higher education, the BBC [reported](. Thanks for reading. I always welcome your feedback and ideas for future reporting, so drop me a line at karin.fischer@chronicle.com. You can also connect with me on [X]( or [LinkedIn](. If you like this newsletter, please share it with colleagues and friends. They can [sign up here.]( CAREER RESOURCES [May article collection about moving into administration ] [Read the May collection]( for insights on moving into administration. Find out what you need to know before starting a senior position, the rewards of being in administration, and more! JOB OPPORTUNITIES [Search jobs on The Chronicle job board]( [Find Your Next Role Today]( Whether you are actively or passively searching for your next career opportunity, The Chronicle is here to support you throughout your job search. 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