Building Global Connections

ALBANY, N.Y. (June 13, 2018) – UAlbany is a growing global community.

President Havidán Rodríguez returned this week from a three-leg trip to East Asia as he continues to expand the University’s international visibility and impact. The trip included stops in Taiwan, South Korea and Japan, with greetings from regional alumni and discussions with partnering institutions along the way.

“Strengthening relationships with our partners in East Asia exemplifies our core priority of Internationalization,” President Rodríguez said. “These visits were productive, exciting, and truly inspiring - both in terms of past achievements as well as new opportunities for academic and research collaborations.”

Taiwan:

In Taiwan, President Rodríguez met with administrators and students from National Taiwan University (NTU) to discuss atmospheric science research opportunities available through a five-year, $4.5 million, National Science Foundation Partnership in International Research and Education (PIRE) grant. The funding provides student researchers with travel and living expenses to study extreme weather abroad. It is led by UAlbany’s Atmospheric Research Center (ASRC) and Department of Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences (DAES) in partnership with several universities and disaster and weather forecast agencies in both the United States and Taiwan.

UAlbany undergraduates in the PIRE program have already departed for Taiwan this summer. Students from partnering institutions in Taiwan will be conducting research on our campus in mid-August.

A large group of Great Danes alumni and friends also met with Rodríguez in Taipei. Joan YinYin Chien ’76, and her husband Mao Chi-Kuo, who served as the Premier of the Republic of China, hosted the event.

South Korea:

Rodríguez met with administrators from Seoul National University (SNU) in Seoul, South Korea, to discuss a student exchange program that would facilitate study abroad opportunities between UAlbany and SNU. He also visited Ewha Womans University – the oldest and largest women’s university in South Korea. UAlbany has several alumni who are now faculty members at Ewha.

While in Seoul, Rodríguez presented the University’s International Alumni Award for Exceptional Achievement to Teak Ho Kim ‘86. Hansung University President Sanghann Lee ‘89, a past recipient of the same award, was also in attendance.

Japan:

In Hirakata, Japan, UAlbany was the featured international university partner at Kansai Gaidai University’s new campus dedication ceremony. Kansai Gaidai’s new $300 million “Global Town” campus will bring thousands of Japanese and international students together in one location. Rodríguez gave a well-received guest speech at the ceremony, which included partnering institutions from six continents, along with many Japanese dignitaries.

Joining President Rodríguez on the trip were Vice President for University Development and Executive Director of the University at Albany Foundation Fardin Sanai in Taiwan and South Korea, ASRC Director Everette Joseph in Taiwan and Associate Vice Provost for International Education Mark Rentz in Japan.

You can learn more about UAlbany’s international education and global strategy here.

For more news, subscribe to UAlbany's RSS headline feeds