Academic Plan 2011-2015 (PDF 524kB) - SUNY Empire State College

42 SUNY Empire State College: Academic Plan 2011 - 2015We aspire to create a broadly well-informed and sensitive portfolio aimed at serving manyconstituencies. This must involve a collegewide commitment to treating global issues with balance andsensitivity. Emergent directions could include more deliberate seeking of external resources to expandinternational and global directions. Examples of individual faculty work abound, from cross locationinstruction in Panama and Lebanon, or training of faculty in Belarus in online education, or faculty workwith international residencies, and through our international partnerships. NYC as a world destinationlearning center and our work with immigrant populations around the state could be expanded. Theseand other projects could be focused for a more deliberate and larger focus. Interested faculty mightdevelop and promote a special Empire State College perspective on this topic through an Empire StateCollege planned academic Institute of Globalization Studies. Empire State College could contributeand provide a leadership role by engaging in discussions of the divergent perspectives related to thechanging globalized world.There also may be opportunities to develop studies (blended and online) to deliver Empire State Collegestudies in the Spanish language, particularly in high need areas such as business, human servicesand health care. While the college currently does not have much expertise, there are partnershipopportunities with other institutions for development, and grant resources are available. Resourcesare available through businesses and foundations for work in BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, Indiaand China.) With limited resources, Empire State College needs to focus on a select number ofopportunities where we have interested faculty who want to play a leadership role in development.Empire State College’s approach to prior learning assessment and degree planning has a natural fitwith international planning. The lack of structured curricula allows us to be more creative in workingwith learners or collaborators from other parts of the world, to recognize and be responsive withopen minds.RationaleThe strategic plan points to changing economic and societal trends and the need for understandingglobal perspectives, and possibly creating employment opportunities for graduates. It also reaffirmsthe commitment of the college to foster critical reflective inquiry that encourages active engagementin the local and the global community. One of SUNY’s six big ideas is dedicated to SUNY and theWorld, focusing on the removal of barriers of geography and time, identifying Empire State Collegeas positioned to play a pivotal role in a global SUNY. With BME as the largest area of study by bothgraduate and undergraduate students, the inclusion of concentrations, certificates, residencies andother opportunities are of greater interest. Faculty in many other areas of interest also have developedor are interested in developing studies beyond the borders of the United States, generally in partnershipwith learners and faculty in other countries.Programs and InitiativesGlobal perspectives are addressed in most undergraduate areas of study, and are emphasized inmost graduate programs. From general education, to areas of study, to concentration guidelines,interdisciplinary and disciplinary perspectives stress the need for increased global perspectives.The college also has particular programs that emphasize global perspectives. For example, InternationalPrograms has offered blended programs in Europe, the Middle East and Central America. Theseprograms have been designed for students who have not had access to flexible bachelor’s degreeprograms in their own countries, and who possibly lack the resources to travel to another country