Home >
Public Policy >
United States International Education Policy >
Next President Should Make Int'l Education Central to Meeting National Needs >
Public Policy
An International Education Agenda for the Next U.S. President
On November 7, 2007, NAFSA: Association of International Educators Executive Director and CEO Marlene Johnson sent the following letter to the 2008 presidential candidates, urging them to consider how they, if elected, would marshal the vital resource of international education to serve the nation’s needs.
A NAFSA Letter to the 2008 Presidential Candidates
Dear Candidate:
Immigration. Terrorism. National security. The war in Iraq . The global economy. These are the front-page issues that will occupy much of the energy of the presidential candidates as we head toward the 2008 elections. What lies behind those headlines, though, is widespread concern among the American people about America 's role in the world. How will the next president seek to engage a world that admires America but is concerned about its intentions, craves American leadership but is wary of its implications, wants to help us understand it but is doubtful of our willingness to listen? America's engagement in the world must be committed to strengthening relationships with our friends, deepening our understanding of global challenges and our ability to deal with them effectively, and restoring a legitimate international leadership role for the United States.
NAFSA: Association of International Educators - the world's leading international education association - has long advanced our belief that international educational exchanges are a primary means of achieving a stronger foundation for communication, collaboration, and friendship with the rest of the world. We are not alone in this opinion. Generations of foreign policy leaders have attested to the transformative power of international educational exchanges and the unparalleled contributions of such exchanges to U.S. foreign policy. Opinion polls reveal a dramatic public consensus among Americans about the importance of international education programs in preparing the next generation for success in an interconnected world. The co-chairs of the 9/11 Commission continue to remind us that their recommendation to increase exchange programs remains an important public diplomacy strategy that the United States has not adequately deployed. And on November 6, 2007, the CSIS Commission on Smart Power released a report urging the next U.S. president to make educational exchanges a signature initiative in improving America's image and influence abroad.
Foreign students, scholars, and visitors who come to the United States return to their home countries with a better understanding of American values and way of life, becoming some of our country's best emissaries in the world. American students who study abroad bring home international knowledge and skills that are vital to U.S. leadership and competitiveness. We believe that welcoming international students and scholars to our country, and sending more of our students abroad to study, are crucial long-term investments in American leadership and security and must be integral to a broader public-diplomacy and foreign-policy strategy.
Sincerely,
Marlene M. Johnson
Executive Director and CEO
NAFSA: Association of International Educators
A NAFSA Letter to the 2008 Presidential Candidates
Dear Candidate:
Immigration. Terrorism. National security. The war in Iraq . The global economy. These are the front-page issues that will occupy much of the energy of the presidential candidates as we head toward the 2008 elections. What lies behind those headlines, though, is widespread concern among the American people about America 's role in the world. How will the next president seek to engage a world that admires America but is concerned about its intentions, craves American leadership but is wary of its implications, wants to help us understand it but is doubtful of our willingness to listen? America's engagement in the world must be committed to strengthening relationships with our friends, deepening our understanding of global challenges and our ability to deal with them effectively, and restoring a legitimate international leadership role for the United States.
NAFSA: Association of International Educators - the world's leading international education association - has long advanced our belief that international educational exchanges are a primary means of achieving a stronger foundation for communication, collaboration, and friendship with the rest of the world. We are not alone in this opinion. Generations of foreign policy leaders have attested to the transformative power of international educational exchanges and the unparalleled contributions of such exchanges to U.S. foreign policy. Opinion polls reveal a dramatic public consensus among Americans about the importance of international education programs in preparing the next generation for success in an interconnected world. The co-chairs of the 9/11 Commission continue to remind us that their recommendation to increase exchange programs remains an important public diplomacy strategy that the United States has not adequately deployed. And on November 6, 2007, the CSIS Commission on Smart Power released a report urging the next U.S. president to make educational exchanges a signature initiative in improving America's image and influence abroad.
Foreign students, scholars, and visitors who come to the United States return to their home countries with a better understanding of American values and way of life, becoming some of our country's best emissaries in the world. American students who study abroad bring home international knowledge and skills that are vital to U.S. leadership and competitiveness. We believe that welcoming international students and scholars to our country, and sending more of our students abroad to study, are crucial long-term investments in American leadership and security and must be integral to a broader public-diplomacy and foreign-policy strategy.
What Must Be Done
We urge the presidential candidates to consider the specific ways that they, if elected, would leverage international education for this important effort. The enclosed materials describe NAFSA's key recommendations, which include:- Establish a proactive and comprehensive national strategy to attract international students and scholars to the United States.
Coordination of such a strategy at the highest levels will be crucial to ensuring our country's position as the destination of choice for the world's future leaders and innovators. The next president should establish an International Education Council in the White House charged with spearheading a national effort to do this. - Support a national study abroad program so that America's college students gain the global skills and knowledge that they - and our country - urgently need.
Currently, only about one percent of U.S. college students study abroad, and most study abroad takes place in just four countries. Participation in study abroad must reflect the diversity of the U.S. undergraduate population, and much more study abroad must take place in nontraditional destinations, especially in the developing world and in countries of strategic interest to the United States. Bipartisan legislation is pending in Congress to create a visionary program to accomplish this. The next president should vigorously support that program. - Pursue comprehensive reform of our immigration system so that our country can better access the world's talent and ensure its leadership position in the highly competitive global marketplace of ideas, innovation, and discovery.
To ensure that the United States can attract and retain the international talent needed to fuel its economy and boost its ability to innovate, successful immigration reform must include specific provisions that create a more welcoming environment for international students and scholars who wish to remain here to apply their skills and knowledge after graduation.
A Call for Leadership
The next president should advance national policies that launch the United States into its proper role as the global leader in educating the world, that foster a climate in which all can benefit from the exchange of knowledge and ideas, and that ensure that the next generation of our own citizens is well-equipped to succeed in a competitive and interconnected world.Sincerely,
Marlene M. Johnson
Executive Director and CEO
NAFSA: Association of International Educators
NAFSA's nearly 10,000 members in the United States and around the world are the international educators who make educational exchanges possible for thousands of students each year. It is on their behalf that we advocate, advancing the conviction that international educational exchanges serve U.S. national interests in fundamental ways, including building the skills of Americans to work effectively in today's global environment, developing close ties with the leadership of other nations, supporting economic growth in less developed nations, and providing a foundation for addressing global problems.
