UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State Vice Provost for Global Programs Michael Adewumi will leave the University to join the Institute for the International Education of Students (IES Abroad) as its next executive vice president for Academic Affairs, effective Jan. 2, 2019.
Adewumi has served Penn State in different roles for more than three decades, initially joining the University as an assistant professor of petroleum and natural gas engineering in 1985. In his role as vice provost for Global Programs, a newly created position to which he was appointed in 2007, Adewumi oversaw significant growth in the international student population at Penn State, led the development of an effective and innovative support infrastructure for Penn State’s more than 10,000 international students, and provided innovative leadership and oversight for Penn State’s international engagements across the entire University.
“Through his long-standing leadership in the Office of Global Programs, Michael has enabled Penn State to build strategic partnerships with institutions worldwide,” said Nick Jones, executive vice president and provost of the University. “Global engagement is central to Penn State’s mission in the 21st century, and Michael has certainly left a legacy in this area by facilitating the hosting of international scholars at Penn State, offering our students opportunities to become true global citizens, and extending Penn State’s impact around the world.”
Among other numerous accomplishments, Adewumi led the development of the Penn State Global Engagement Network, fostered interdepartmental collaboration and broad faculty support for Penn State’s international programs, led Penn State to become the number one university in Pennsylvania in terms of the economic contributions of its international students to the state economy, and facilitated the substantial growth of study abroad and international scholar programs at the University.
Adewumi is an internationally recognized expert in the field of petroleum and natural gas engineering, with more than 100 scholarly publications to his name. He holds master’s and doctoral degrees in gas engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology, and a bachelor’s degree with honors in petroleum engineering from the University of Ibadan in Nigeria. He is a member of multiple professional engineering societies, and was recognized by the U.S. Congressional Black Caucus in 2005 for his dedication to creating educational opportunities for underserved students.
Prior to his role as Vice Provost for Global Programs, Adewumi served as the first director of Penn State’s Alliance for Education, Science, Engineering and Development in Africa, a University-wide body that promotes Penn State engagement in Africa and helps build partnerships with African institutions. He also has been recognized as an elected fellow of the Nigerian Academy of Engineering, an elected member of the Council of Registered Engineers in Nigeria, and was selected as a distinguished alumnus of the Illinois Institute of Technology.
In his new role with IES Abroad, Adewumi will provide strategic leadership in setting and maintaining academic standards for the organization’s diverse slate of academic programming; promote IES Abroad’s commitment to diversity, inclusion and making study abroad programs accessible for underrepresented students; and build and enhance relationships with international partners, schools and institutions to best serve students around the world.
“It has been a great honor and privilege to be part of Penn State family. I have thoroughly enjoyed working with faculty, staff and the leadership at Penn State to help this incredible University become an internationally recognized leader in global education,” Adewumi said. “In this new role at IES, I look forward to continuing to help students from all over the world, including Penn Staters, become the next generation of global leaders.”
Penn State will immediately begin a national search to determine Adewumi’s successor.