The Global Faculty Fellows Program, housed in Global Programs, is intended to advance Penn State’s global engagement goals. The primary objectives of the program are to:
- promote faculty’s understanding of, and intellectual engagement in, the University’s global strategy;
- advance the University’s global strategy; and
- cultivate and proliferate internationalization champions/leaders across academic units.
The fellowship is open to tenured faculty and the duration of the fellowship is negotiable to fit individual needs. In general, the fellowship is for one semester but can be extended if there is good cause. Each fellowship carries a one-course buy-out/release. If course release is not desired or desirable for the selected Fellow, other reasonable terms can be negotiated. In either case, the fellowship application and the fellowship terms must have the support of the applicant’s department head and be endorsed by the college dean. Applications must therefore be accompanied by a letter of support from the applicant’s department head, indicating whether or not the one-course release is feasible for the applicant and the department. Funds to cover the release will be provided by Global Programs to the department.
During the fellowship period, Faculty Fellows will:
- have regularly scheduled meetings with the Global Programs leadership team, in order to learn about the major initiatives, opportunities and challenges in the various areas of responsibility.
- gain an operational understanding of the global strategy of the University by participating in some of the activities of the Vice Provost for Global Programs.
- initiate and work on a project — mutually agreed upon with the vice provost for Global Programs — that aligns with the University’s strategic objectives and advances the University goal of building a Global Penn State, and complete a body of scholarship in research, pedagogy, or assessment around internationalization of higher education in this context, using Penn State as a case study.
- produce a written report suitable for publication and/or presentation at an international conference in their own discipline or in international education.
- present the salient aspects of the report in a public forum on campus.
Upon completion of their fellowship year, Fellows are expected to become champions for internationalization within their academic unit (department, college, campus) and acquire extensive experience of integrating international dimensions into their scholarship, teaching and/or service responsibilities. The fellowship will allow them to crystallize their efforts at integrating global dimension into their work and expand their global horizon. An additional expectation is that, by the end of the fellowship period, the Fellow would have developed a plan for instituting significant programmatic changes that would more broadly internationalize curricula within their unit. It should be noted that Global Programs has funds designated for curricular internationalization, which are competitively accessible to support such programmatic initiatives.
The deadline for 2016-17 applications is July 1. Applications must include:
- A short proposal (three-page maximum) that describes the area of their intended contribution to the University’s global strategy, their compelling and engaging interest as well as their background and experience that makes them suitable for this fellowship.
- A cover letter summarizing their interest in Global Programs, what they hope to gain from the experience and how their proposed project supports or aligns with the strategic goals of the University.
- A full curriculum vitae.
- A letter of support from the academic unit.
This is a competitive process, with the anticipation that one fellowship will be awarded for the 2016-17 academic year. Additional awards may be made if funds are available. Applications should be sent to Robert Crane, professor of geography and Global Programs director for strategic initiatives at rqc3@psu.edu. Interested faculty are encouraged to consult with Crane before submitting their application.