Presidential Transition 2009

NAFSA calls on President-elect Barack Obama to leverage the enormous contributions of international education in support of a new chapter in U.S. engagement and leadership in the world.

The next president should announce a major inter- national education initiative designed explicitly to foster an America that knows, understands, and is able to communicate with the world, and to strengthen the relationships through which the American people and the world's people can relate to, interact with, and understand each other.

Share Your Vision

In the spirit of engaging all Americans, President-elect Obama is inviting citizens such as yourself to share stories about the issues that matter most to you, as well as your hopes and vision of what you would like to see the Obama-Biden Administration accomplish in the next four years.

Learn more.

NAFSA's Recommendations for the Next U.S. President

Praise for the Report
"This helpful report shows how important education and exchanges are to America's soft power in the world." Joseph S. Nye, Jr. Harvard University; former assistant secretary of defense

In a set of policy recommendations for the next administration, NAFSA: Association of International Educators urges presidential leadership for a "revived public diplomacy" that would put international education and exchange front and center in the effort to repair the country's reputation in the world and advance its global leadership.

In the introduction to International Education: The Neglected Dimension of Public Diplomacy, NAFSA notes: "At the heart of public diplomacy, in our view—and essential to the success of the rest of it—is the critical task of building, conducting, and sustaining the long-term relationships through which the world most fundamentally knows Americans and forms its core assumptions about what America is."

Read International Education: The Neglected Dimension of Public Diplomacy

A Look Back at the 2008 Presidential Campaign

NAFSA Hosts Panel Discussion with Campaign Advisors
The NAFSA 2008 Annual Conference hosted a panel discussion in which the presidential candidates' advisers discussed U.S. global leadership and engagement. The event was moderated by Foreign Policy editor Moisés Naím.

• Watch the panel discussion online
• Read a transcript of the session (196kb )

NAFSA's Letter to the 2008 Presidential Candidates
Last fall NAFSA sent a 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. The letter urged the candidates, if elected, to marshal the resources of international education on behalf of the nation's greatest priorities, especially its global leadership, competitiveness, and national security.

Read the letter and supporting materials