New Partnership Seeks to Increase Study Abroad Opportunities for HBCU Students

council-on-international-educational-exchange-squarelogoStudents from underrepresented minority groups are nearly 40 percent of all undergraduates, but they make up only 26 percent of all college students who study abroad. African Americans are about 13 percent of all undergraduate students but only 5.6 percent of the students who study abroad.

The Council on International Educational Exchange and the Center for Minority-Serving Institutions of the Graduate School of Education at the University of Pennsylvania, have announced a new three-year partnership in an effort to increase study abroad opportunities for students at historically Black colleges and universities and other minority serving higher educational institutions.

The new partnership will include student scholarships for study abroad, faculty training programs, and workshops for college presidents.

James P. Pellow, president and CEO of the Council on International Educational Exchange, said that “expanding opportunities for global education is an imperative for university leaders across the country. Our experience indicates that the most successful colleges are those that have strong leadership advocating for international education, engaged faculty shaping programs that are appropriate for each institution, and students that have the support they need to participate.”

Portraits of Michael SorrellMichael Sorrell, president of historically Black Paul Quinn College in Dallas, added that “as the world has become a more interconnected and smaller place, students from under resourced communities cannot afford to be left on the sidelines and marginalized in this new world order.”

2 COMMENTS

  1. How can HBCUs make the claim about study abroad opportunities when it emphatically fail to include Ph.D. students for study abroad opportunities. In fact, what better person to serve in the capacity as a representative of an HBCU than a doctoral student. In my view, this is borderline discriminatory based upon ones academic degree is pursuing or even their age(e.g., implicit bias in my view). For example, I have applied on numerous instances for study abroad opportunities was informed that ‘such opportunities are only for undergraduate students” by university personnel. Keep in mind, the electronic advertisement sent out to the university community only indicated ‘students to apply’.

    In close, if HBCUs were really serious about study abroad for their students, they would immediately allow their own Ph.D. students the opportunity to take advantage of such opportunities.

    • Did I miss something?
      The topic of the article is Partnering with HBCUs to create more study abroad opportunities for undergraduate students. Can we be happy for others without insisting a personal benefit for our self ?

      If someone is pursuing a Ph.D, I’m sorry they are not disadvantaged (under represented maybe). I am excited to see such an initiative. May this program spur on many others … including Alums of HBCU and HWCU.

Leave a Reply

Get the JBHE Weekly Bulletin

Receive our weekly email newsletter delivered to your inbox

Latest News

Howard University Achieves R1 Status While North Carolina A&T State University Falls Short

Howard University has received the prestigious R1 Carnegie Classification, making the institution eligible for major federal grants. NCA&T University narrowly missed the achievement, averaging just three less annual doctoral graduates than the classification's requirements.

Three Black Scholars Selected for Endowed Faculty Positions

The new endowed professors are Eddie Chambers at School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Stefanie Dunning at the University of Rochester in New York, and Kizzmekia Corbett-Helaire at Harvard University.

North Carolina Central University Establishes Early Assurance Program With the UNC School of Pharmacy

Students at North Carolina Central University now have the opportunity to apply to an early assurance program for the doctor of pharmacy degree program at the University of North Carolina's Eshelman School of Pharmacy, the top-ranked pharmacy school in the United States.

Five Black Administrators Taking on New Roles at HBCUs

The appointments are Anthony Neal at Florida A&M University, Tara Cunningham at Dillard University in New Orleans, David Camps at North Carolina A&T State University, Michael Meyers at Paine College in Georgia, and Sidney Brown at Tuskegee University in Alabama.