NAFSA’s 18th annual report, Internationalizing the Campus: Profiles of Success at Colleges and Universities, reflects the continued growth in support of campus internationalization from campuses across the country since the creation of the Senator Paul Simon Award for Campus Internationalization.

Each year, the selection committee receives an increasingly competitive number of applications from diverse universities across the United States. For the Comprehensive Award, the committee seeks institutions where internationalization has been broadly infused into all facets of the campus. NAFSA received many outstanding nominations from a diverse group of distinguished institutions. Four institutions were awarded the Comprehensive Award and are profiled in this report. They are Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach, Emerson College, the United States Naval Academy, and the University of California-Davis.

The 2020 Comprehensive Award-winning institutions feature the following characteristics:

• The campus has been widely internationalized across schools, divisions, departments, and disciplines.
• There is evidence of genuine administrative or board-level support for internationalization.
• The campuswide internationalization has had demonstrable impact on students.
• The institution’s mission statement contains an explicit or implicit statement regarding internationalization and/or global learning.
• The institution supports education abroad as well as its international faculty, scholars, and students.
• There are programs or initiatives that are innovative and/or creative in their approach to campus internationalization.
• The institution’s commitment to internationalization includes the faculty and is reflected in the curriculum.
• There is an international dimension in off-campus programs, community engagement, and successful strategic partnerships.
• There is internationalization in research and/or faculty exchange.

Three additional institutions received the Senator Paul Simon Spotlight Award for their outstanding accomplishments in a specific area of internationalization. They are Agnes Scott College for its Global Journeys program, DePaul University for its Global Learning Experience program, and the University of Maryland-College Park for its Year of Immigration initiative.

These seven institutions will be recognized at the Simon Award Presidential Panel and Awards Reception, a special virtual program that will take place on November 18, 2020, as part of International Education Week. The presidents will be featured in a moderated panel discussion about their institutions’ success in campus internationalization.

The Simon Award celebrates the legacy of the late Senator Paul Simon of Illinois, a lifelong advocate for international education and exchange, recognizing universities and programs that promote international understanding and a more just and peaceful world. NAFSA continues to support the Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Act, which would create a program to incentivize institutional change to make study abroad an integral part of higher education. The Simon Study Abroad Act would advance the goal of ensuring that 1 million U.S. college students will study abroad annually for credit; that study abroad participants will be representative of the undergraduate population in terms of gender, ethnicity, income level, and field of study; and that a significantly greater proportion of study abroad will occur in nontraditional destinations.

At a time when international education faces complex challenges wrought by the global pandemic, examples of excellence can inspire creative internationalization plans. We hope that international educators across all levels of campus communities will see this report as an opportunity to celebrate the value of well-planned and well-executed international education efforts and to broaden the reach of best practices in internationalization. Internationalizing the Campus is also of great value for connection with communities beyond the campus. Legislatures and government agencies may find it a helpful tool for discussing and understanding international education and exchange.

NAFSA congratulates each institution recognized in the 2020 Internationalizing the Campus report for its outstanding work. These institutions truly recognize the importance of international education in the world today and building a globally competent workforce in the increasingly globalized economy.