An adjunct who was just coincidentally fired after offering a critique of the basketball coach’s irregularities at SUNY has been offered her job back after the university started an investigation of the basketball department’s coach and its athletic directors.   The adjunct fired was named Sally Dear and had taught, like many fired adjuncts, for over 10 years as the school.  She was let go shortly after criticizing the basketball coach, but the school stated budgetary reasons:

Dear believed she was dismissed because she spoke out against the basketball program. The university had cited fiscal reasons. But Dear received a letter Friday saying she would remain an adjunct, although in a different department, during the audit.

“How come they’re firing me due to budget cuts and a reconfiguring of the department and all of a sudden I’m being hired by another department?” Dear said.

Apparently though, the administration has launched an investigation into the athletic department and has reassigned Dear to another department.  Hmm, administrators who favor coaches can now fire adjuncts?  Add that to the list.

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• Report coming Tuesday on Binghamton athletics (sports.espn.go.com)
• SUNY Board to Oversee Binghamton Audit (nytimes.com)
• Binghamton halts off-campus basketball recruiting (cbssports.com)
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• Binghamton Lecturer Critical of Athletics Is Dismissed (nytimes.com)

Macbeth adalah sandiwara tragedi karya William Shakespeare yang ditulis sekitar tahun 1606. Drama ini adalah salah satu tragedi Shakespeare yang terkenal dan juga yang paling pendek…

Tragedi ini menceritakan tentang ambisi yang berubah menjadi kejahatan, seorang jenderal yang mengkhianati rajanya, sahabatnya, bahkan jiwanya sendiri. “Fair is foul, and foul is fair” adalah inti dari Macbeth yang mengisahkan pahlawan-panglima Macbeth dan istrinya yang berambisi menjadi raja dan ratu Skotlandia. Mereka mengira bahwa satu-satunya jalan menuju tahta raja adalah melalui pedang… Tetapi niat jahat memiliki rencana sendiri untuk menampakkan jati dirinya…

Tentang Apa?
Macbeth adalah seorang jendral di bawah pemerintahan raja Skotlandia Duncan I. Pada suatu hari ia dan temannya Banquo bertemu dengan tiga tukang sihir yang meramalkan bahwa Macbeth bakal menjadi raja suatu hari, dan Banquo walaupun tidak akan menjadi raja tapi akan memperanakkan raja-raja…

Ketika Macbeth pulang dan memberitakan hal ini kepada istrinya Lady Macbeth, ia segera menyusun rencana untuk membunuh Duncan yang akan berkunjung dan menginap di rumah mereka. Setelah menjadi raja, Macbeth juga takut bahwa Banquo akan membocorkan rahasia tentang ketiga tukang sihir, dan memerintahkan ia dibunuh juga…

Sementara itu seorang jendral lain yang bernama Macduff menjadi curiga akan tingkah laku Macbeth yang menampakkan gejala-gejala ketakutan dan rasa bersalah. Ia kemudian bergabung dengan Malcolm dan Donalbain, kedua anak Duncan yang juga merasa curiga…

Perasaan takut Macbeth mendorongnya untuk mencari tukang-tukang sihir itu lagi, dan kali ini mereka meramalkan bahwa Macbeth akan tetap hidup “sampai hutan Great Birnam datang ke bukit Dunsinane“. Selain itu, juga bahwa Macbeth tidak akan dibunuh oleh seorang yang dilahirkan dari seorang wanita… Berpikir bahwa ini hal yang mustahil, Macbeth menjadi sombong dan puas akan jawaban ini. Tapi Lady Macbeth akhirnya tidak kuat lagi dan menjadi gila. Terutama ia merasa bahwa ada noda darah di tangannya yang tidak mau hilang walaupun dicuci berkali-kali…

Malcolm dan Macduff pergi ke Inggris dan merencanakan kudeta untuk membunuh Macbeth. Mereka akhirnya menyerang puri Macbeth dengan sekelompok prajurit, sambil membawa pucuk-pucuk pohon dari hutan Great Birnam sebagai samaran (hutan Birnam datang ke bukit Dunsinane). Macduff berhasil memaksa Macbeth untuk berduel dengannya. Macbeth masih merasa sombong karena berdasarkan ramalan tukang-tukang sihir, ia tidak akan pernah dibunuh oleh “seseorang yang dilahirkan dari seorang wanita“. Tetapi Macduff menjawab bahwa ia “diambil dari rahim ibunya” (dengan operasi caesar). Akhirnya Macduff berhasil memotong kepala Macbeth dan menyerahkan tahta kerajaan kepada Malcolm…

Tragedi dan Realitas
Seperti yang diulas oleh seorang jurnalis di harian “Kompas Minggu“, 22 November 2009, Putu Fajar Arcana, pada dasarnya, kita sangat suka terhadap tragedi… Lihatlah kisah menjengkelkan dalam sistem peradilan di sekitar kita. Tragedi sebuah ruang pengadilan di Purwokerto, Banyumas, Jawa Tengah, dipicu oleh seorang ibu berusia 55 tahun, Minah yang mengambil 3 butir buah kakao di sebuah perkebunan, PT Rumpun Sari Antan 4 dan bandingkan bagaimana cepatnya respon pihak kepolisian memproses laporan dari Pengacara Anggodo terhadap ramainya pemberitaan bukti rekaman pembicaraan ini di Sidang MK (Mahkamah Konstitusi) di media massa – seperti yang diulas oleh media online kompas.com – Negeri Tercinta Anggodonesia.

Mereka tidak saling mengenal, Anggodo hidup di metropolitan Jakarta, Minah hidup di dusun perbukitan Banyumas, jauh dari hiruk-pikuk perkotaan.. Meski hidup di payung hukum negara Indonesia yang sama, nasib mereka amat bertolak belakang. Status hukum Minah adalah terpidana kasus pencurian, sedangkan Anggodo adalah pelapor kasus penyadapan.
Anggodo dan Minah adalah permodelan untuk sebuah penjelasan tentang perlakuan pemerintah Indonesia terhadap warga negara. Sebab urutan kejadian tidak hanya memberi makna dari istilah “persamaan di depan hukum”. Selain nilai keadilan, ada nilai lain yang tidak bisa diabaikan dalam praktik berbangsa.

Memang kisah di lantai pengadilan itu menjengkelkan dan membuat rasa keadilan semakin terkoyak, sebuah institusi lebih kuat menikam rakyat kecil…
Itulah panggung teater sesungguhnya dalam realitas kehidupan, apakah lakon Tragedi Macbeth, 20-22 November 2009, yang dipentaskan oleh Teater Sastra Universitas Indonesia di Graha Bhakti Budaya, Taman Ismail Marzuki Jakarta dapat menjadi contoh tragedi bentuk lain…??

Usaha sutradara I Yudhi Soenarto, master teater dari State University of New York, Amerika Serikat, mengontekskan tragedi dalam drama karya William Shakespeare satu sisi pantas layak diapresiasi.., mengingat tantangan yang harus ditaklukkan saat memilih naskah ini untuk merayakan puncak 25 Tahun Teater Sastra UI.

Lebih lanjut adalah bagaimana menjadikan panggung teater sebagai arena yang pantas ditonton publik karena berbagai pertimbangan setelah melihat realitas sehari-hari jauh lebih tragis ketimbang panggung teater itu sendiri. Perkara Cicak vs Buaya, yang melibatkan institusi penegak hukum, seperti kepolisian, kejaksaan, dan Komisi Pemberantasan Korupsi (KPK), sudah berbulan-bulan ”mencuri” perhatian publik. Di situ kesenian (teater) harus benar-benar bisa menunjukkan dirinya sebagai ruang-renung dan muara katarsis, yang tidak berhenti pada konteks hiburan semata-mata…

Lakon Macbeth
Lakon Macbeth diakui banyak aktor dan sutradara sebagai naskah yang berat. Di dalamnya banyak dialog yang berpanjang-panjang, penuh dengan renungan hidup yang ditulis Shakespeare secara metaforis. Lantaran mengikuti secara tertib hampir seluruh adegan, pementasan Teater Sastra UI sampai memakan waktu lebih dari 3,5 jam. Terlihat dalam durasi pentas yang panjang mengumbar dialog-dialog filosofis secara verbal, tentu bisa jadi itu pekerjaan yang tidak terlalu menguntungkan. Tidak saja lantaran sekarang hidup kita didominasi oleh kultur visual, tetapi sekali lagi, tantangan panggung teater kini ”melawan” kekejaman realitas itu sendiri.

Realitas saat ini membuat kita berpikir keras, bagaimana melihat ketidakadilan terjadi, tragedi dianggap lazim dan bersembunyi di balik semua hal yang bersifat legal formalistic demi prosedur yang menghamba kepada sistem. Kita menjadi tawanan legalistic mind. Sikap dan tindakan kita dipengaruhi secara kaku dan berlebihan.
Hidup dalam keterpaksaan dan kepura-puraan dalam sistem yang tidak memberi peluang bagi rakyat kecil untuk memperoleh kesempatan sama – yang seharusnya dibimbing dan dilindungi? Dan itulah tragedi sesungguhnya yang harus kita lewati…

(Diolah dari wikipedia.org, kompas.com)

While businesses across the United States slash jobs, state and local governments have actually increased employment slightly since the economic recession began in December 2007, according to a report released on Thursday.

“As is the typical pattern in recessions, overall state and local government employment continued to grow after the start of the recession, although there has been a small decline since the August 2008 peak,” said Donald J. Boyd, author of the report by the Rockefeller Institute of Government, in a statement.

Total employment in state and local government rose in 30 states, fell in 16 and was unchanged in four during the last year, the report found.

Governments have added about 110,000 jobs since the recession began, according to the report by the Rockefeller Institute, which is the public policy research arm of the State University of New York.

The recession’s impact on government employment typically lags that of the private sector, Boyd said.

“Further employment reductions are almost certainly on the way,” he said.

At least 20 states have imposed unpaid furlough days on their workers to cut spending without having to resort to layoffs, according to the report.

States also have been able to avoid shedding jobs with help from the more than $36 billion for fiscal relief they have received under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the report said. (Reporting by Karen Pierog; Editing by Jan Paschal)

Andrew Salomon, the National News Editor of Back Stage and author of the magazine’s Espresso blog, is leaving his job effective July 31. He’s joining the faculty of SUNY Purchase (Purchase College at the State University of New York) as a tenure-track assistant professor of journalism.

Andrew is one of a small corps of journalists whose beats include entertainment labor. He reports with intelligence and humor, and his coverage and camaraderie will be missed. He’s a friend, and I wish him all the best.

More than 4,000 prints and 20,000 negatives of the work of the photographer and director Gordon Parks, including “Charwoman,” as well as a collection of images by Mathew Brady and other early American photographers, will be housed at the State University of New York’s Purchase College, the Gordon Parks Foundation said.

Parks, the first black photographer at Life magazine and director of the early blaxploitation film, “Shaft,” died in 2006; the following year, his photography was acquired by the Meserve-Kunhardt Collection, which which will maintain an office at the school to oversee along his work, along with 100,000 Civil War-era photographs by Brady, Alexander Gardner and Timothy O’Sullivan, as well as the collection of Ed Clark, another Life photojournalist. Purchase College said that the collections would be housed at its library, where they will be preserved and made available for public view and study.

source by DAVE ITZKOFF nytimes.com

Arthur Becker-Weidman, Ph.D. received his Ph.D. from the University of Maryland’s Institute for Child Study. He has achieved Diplomat Status in Child Psychology and Forensic Psychology from the American Board of Psychological Specialties. Dr. Becker-Weidman is a Registered Clinician with the Association for the Treatment and Training in the Attachment of Children.

He has been treating the families of internationally adopted children and foster children for over two decades. As Director of the Center for Family Development Dr. Becker-Weidman consults with Departments of Social Services, Residential Treatment Centers, Mental Health Clinics, and School districts. Dr. Becker-Weidman provides training and workshops to parents and professionals across the U.S., Canada, and overseas. He is co-editor of the book, Creating Capacity for Attachment. Dr. Becker-Weidman is on the Board of ATTACh where he chairs the clinical registration committee. He is an adjunct Clinical Professor at the State University of New York at Buffalo. Dr. Becker-Weidman has published many articles in peer-reviewed professional publications and presented at numerous international, regional, and state professional meetings.

So most of the people in the Blogosphere are people that only know me for what I post in my blog, so let me catch you up on how college is going for me. To give you the short version, I went to the University of Scranton for 2 years and put myself in ~$12k worth of debt. Then since I couldn’t pay them, they wouldn’t let me take more classes. So a few years down the road in 06 I saved up some money to go back to school, but had to start over. I had to start over though, at Broome Community College. I learned that in NY state community colleges are a lot more serious and most of them even have engineering programs. So now I have about 2 years left, and will finish them up either at Binghamton University or University of Buffalo. Both schools in the SUNY system. Buffalo is a lot farther away, but distance shouldn’t be that important.

Anyways, that whole chunk of information was just to get you up to speed. College for me has been this long journey and taking much more time that it should someone who didn’t have to work so hard to pay for everything. Its been a nonstop battle with loans and financial aid departments. Most students have trouble with tests, projects, picking a major, but for me it’s all about a struggle to pay for things. I look forward to the classes, even the annoying ones because I know what its like to not be able to take them.

The point of this post, (yes there is one) is that I can’t help but relate to Miley Cyrus’s ‘The Climb’. It doesn’t feel natural to be so connected to a song sung by a 16 year old. She didn’t write the song though, and it’s really just the lyrics that mean a lot to me. So am I crazy? Have you ever felt connected to a song that you weren’t super proud of. Let me hear your thoughts!

I can almost see it.
That dream I’m dreamin
But there’s a voice inside my head saying
“you’ll never reach it”.

The video is actually pretty bad, horrible CG mixed with an awkward laser light show. Either way I’m posting the video do you can give the lyrics a listen. For those of you who might rather read the lyrics, here they are.

Senior French horn player Kathryn is choosing between Belmont University, Juilliard, University of Texas at Austin, Eastman School of Music, USC, NYU Tisch Recording Arts Program, Boston University, Northwestern, University of Miami, McGill, Peabody, DePaul, Manhattan School of Music, Eastman, and New England Conservatory.   Wow.  Once the initial shock of that list settles in you start wondering something.  How did she have the time to apply and audition at all of those schools?!?

Well, we help our students.  We offer a structure to help students hone and polish their auditions, do great applications.  The writing teachers help with essays.  The music teachers make sure the auditions are great and that the player is poised, professional and ready to respond to whatever obstacles are thrown at them.  The transportation coordinator helps book travel so that our students can go to whatever audition they want to go to.  Our faculty invites schools to hold auditions on our campus so that students don’t have to travel.  Academic faculty think of creative ways to give assignments so that students can earn credit in classes while students are on the other side of the country playing for the Juilliard faculty.

We work as a team and the results show it!  I’ll attach the complete and final list of college acceptances here.  If you’re out there in the world wondering whether we’re still accepting applications for next year, the answer is yes!  We’re ready to add your acceptances to this list.

Alfred University
American Academy of Dramatic Art, Los Angeles
American Academy of Dramatic Art, New York
Arizona State University
Art Center College of Design
ArtEZ Dance Academy, Arnhem, The Netherlands
Bard College
Belmont University
Bennington College
Berklee College of Music
Birmingham City University (UK)
Boston Conservatory
Boston University
Brandeis University
California State University, Fullerton
California State University, Northridge
California Institute of the Arts
California Lutheran University
Carnegie Mellon University
Chapman University
Cleveland Institute of Music
Codarts, Rotterdam Dance Academy, The Netherlands
College of Santa Fe
Columbia College Chicago
Cornish College of the Arts
Denison University
DePaul University
Dominican University of California
Drew University
Eckerd College
Elmira College
Eugene Lang College-The New School for Liberal Arts
Florida State University
Fordham University
Hampshire College
Hawaii Pacific University
Hobart and William Smith Colleges
Humboldt State University
Illinois Weslsyan University
Indiana University
John Cabot University
Johns Hopkins University, Peabody Institute
The Juilliard School
Lesley University
Lewis and Clark College
Lindenwood University
London Contemporary Dance School (United Kingdom)
Long Island University, Brooklyn
Longy School of Music
Los Angeles Film School
Lynn University
Manhattan College
Manhattan School of Music
Manhattanville College
Mannes College The New School for Music
Maryland Institute College of Art
McGill University
Muhlenberg College
New England Conservatory
The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music
New World School of the Arts
New York Institute of Technology BA/DO Program
New York University, Tisch School of the Arts
Northern Arizona University
Northwestern University
Oberlin College Conservatory of Music
Pace University
Pacific Northwest College of Art
Palucca Schule, Dresden, Germany
Parsons, The New School for Design
Pennsylvania State University
Pitzer College
Point Park
Pratt Institute
Randolph College
Rhode Island School of Design
Rice University
Richmond, The American University of London
Ringling College of Art and Design
Rollins College
Roosevelt University Chicago College of Performing Arts
Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama
San Francisco Art Institute
San Francisco Conservatory
San Francisco State University
Sarah Lawrence College
Savannah College of Art and Design
School of the Art Institute of Chicago
School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston
School of Visual Arts
Smith College
Southern Methodist University
Southern Oregon University
State University of New York, College at Purchase
State University of New York, Stony Brook
Stephens College
Suffolk University
Syracuse University
Texas Christian University
University of California, Davis
University of California, Irvine
University of California, Los Angeles
University of California, Riverside
University of California, San Diego
University of California, Santa Barbara
University of California, Santa Cruz
University College London, Slade School of Fine Art
University of Colorado Boulder
University of Denver – Lamont School of Music
University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign
University of Massachusetts, Amherst
University of Missouri, Columbia
University of Missouri, Kansas City
University of New Mexico
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
University of North Carolina School of the Arts
University of Northern Colorado
University of Oklahoma
University of Oregon
University of Portland
University of Puget Sound
University of Rochester, Eastman School of Music
University of Southern California, College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences
University of Southern California, Thornton School of Music
University of Texas at Austin
University of the Arts, London Central St.Martins
University of the Arts, London, London College of Fashion
University of Jacksonville
University of Miami
University of New England
University of Puget Sound
University of Southern California, School of Theatre
University of Southern California, Thornton School of Music
University of Utah
University of Wisconsin, Madison
Vancouver Film School
Warren Wilson College
Webster University
Whitman College
Zacky Gordon Film Institute

Welcome to my blog / web home! Go ahead and browse my site, read about me and feel free to drop me a line if you wish.

Best Wishes,
Georgi

Admissions officers at the State University of New York college campus here are suddenly afraid of getting what they have always wished for: legions of top high-school seniors saying “yes” to their fat envelopes.

Students are already tripled up in many dorm rooms after an unexpectedly large freshman class entered last fall. And despite looming budget cuts from the state, which more tuition-paying students could help offset, officials say they are determined not to diminish the quality of student life by expanding enrollment at their liberal-arts college beyond the current 6,000 undergraduates.

At SUNY New Paltz, as at many other well-regarded public institutions this spring, admissions calculations carefully measured over many years are being set aside as an unraveling economy is making less expensive state colleges more appealing. [via the New York Times]

Read the rest of the story.

Purchase College, State University of New York, unveiled its new cross country trail. The course, designed as both an 8K and 5K run, is used for both NCAA competition and recreational cross country running. For varsity play, the trail begins near the walkway of the Great Lawn in the middle of campus and continues throughout the wooded areas of the expansive 500 acre Purchase campus.

Safety was a priority for Purchase in the development of the course. Blue lights with emergency phones are accessible throughout the course. Emergency exits are also marked on the course.

Porta de entrada para muitos extrangeiros, Nova York não é só a maior cidade dos EUA, mas também uma das cidades mais rica culturalmente do mundo. A cidade recebe em média 3,6 milhões de pessoas a cada mês. Os principais turistas são os britânicos e os vizinhos canadenses. Pontos Turísticos? Vários. A começar pelos arranha-céus, principais cartões de Nova York, seguidos pela Estátua da Liberdade, Empire State Building, a ponte do Brooklin, Central Park e, agora, o buraco onde antes era as torres gêmeas do World Trade Center, derrubadas em 11 de setembro de 2001.

A metrópole já serviu de inspirção para muitos artistas, como o cineasta Woody Allen e o cantor Frak Sinatra e tem na arte um dos seus principais atrativos. O Metropolitan, MoMa e o Guggenhein, são enormes e têm um acervo renomado no mundo inteiro. No Museu da História Natural, pode-se observar Dinossauros e mamíferos que já nao existem mais na Terra. Para ver os ainda existentes, há o Zoológico do Bronx, um dos maiores do mundo.

O Central Park, o maior parque urbano do mundo, passa por 50 avenidas, indo da 59th street até a 110th street e com uma infinidade de árvores, gramado, bancos e lagos, quer se torna um dos pontos mais visitados da cidade. Outro ponto alto é a gastronomia. A cidad está recheada de restaurantes governados por chefs renomados de diversas culinárias.

A noite, a cidade fica ainda mais agitada. A começar pelos badalados teatros e musicais da Broadway, passando pelas baladas do Greenwich Village e o Chelsea. Não esquecendo claro, dos pontos de compras: os enormes shoppings e galerias de compras, principalmente na área de eletrônicos, onde pode se encontrar de tudo, com preços muito mias acessíveis do que no Brasil. Por isso, com tantas opções, antes de viajar a Nova York, faça um belo planejamento.

Have soaring gas prices pushed online course enrollment past the tipping point? This is a question addressed in a July 8, 2008 Chronicle of Higher Education article titled, “Rising Gas Prices Fuel Increse In Online Learning.” Author Jeffrey R. Young presented some compelling data, including the following:

• The Tennessee Board of Regents reports that summer enrollment in online courses is up 29 percent this summer over last year.
• At Brevard Community College, in Cocoa, Fla., summer enrollment in online courses is up nearly 25 percent.
• Harrisburg Area Community College, in Pennsylvania, saw its summer online enrollment rise 15 percent to 20 percent.
• At Northampton Community College, summer online enrollment is up 18 percent.

Noting this increased interest, the article further highlights how certain online schools and traditional schools with online programs are now endeavoring to capitalize on the trend, as explained below:

• The SUNY Learning Network, the online incarnation of the State University of New York, offers prospective students access to an online calculator that helps them determine how much they will save in gas costs by taking classes online.
• Colorado State University, which is launching a new online program this fall, has decided to waive the program’s $50 application fee to attract more students concerned about gas prices.

Despite the reported increase in online enrollments, administrators at the University of Phoenix, the largest provider of online education, repot that there has not been a spike in online enrollments this summer nor have representatives heard much about gas prices affecting students’ choice of formats.

This might be due in part to Phoenix’s ground classes being designed to minimize drive time by meeting just once a week for four-hour sessions, with textbooks and library services delivered online.

The evening courses I teach for DeVry are designed similarly: classes meet once a week for four hours with an online component designed to provide two to four additional hours of educational experience. That being said, I still have students who admirably drive upwards of 30 miles to the campus from places like Delano, Wasco and Shafter. I also have one student that drives more than 40 miles from Lake Isabella!

I suspect that as gas prices continue to climb there will be increased demand for online classes. Anecdotally speaking I have seen an ongoing increase in the advertisement and availability of online courses — both individual classes, certificate programs and degrees.

While I can’t verify this, I feel as if I have seen more schools offering additional programs during the past few months. Likely, if it is true, it is merely a coincidence, because developing and launching an online learning experience is not something you can do in just a few months.

Nevertheless, as an online adjunct instructor and as someone who feels technology can both increase the availability of education and enhance a student’s ability to learn (in classrooms or online), I am pleased to see the increase in online education — whatever the reason might be. Personally, I welcome additional opportunities to teach online because I would appreciate a chance to save a few (hundred) dollars in gas!

Editor’s note: this guest entry has been kindly prepared by Kavita Pandit, Senior Vice Provost, State University of New York (SUNY) System Administration. She joined the SUNY System in July 2007 from the University of Georgia where she worked for over two decades. Dr. Pandit has also acted as President (2006-2007) of the Association of American Geographers. At SUNY her responsibilities as Senior Vice Provost include oversight of International Programs and activities. She also oversees the Office of Program Review and Assessment, Academic Planning, Distinguished Professorships, and Faculty Development programs, and serves as the primary liaison to the Academic Affairs Committee of the SUNY Board of Trustees. Her entry should also be read in conjunction with one published on 15 February by Lily Kong on the National University of Singapore’s experience with such programs.

~~~~~~~~~

A spate of recent articles in the New York Times, Inside Higher Ed, other media outlets, and blogs such as the Beerkens’ Blog and GlobalHigherEd, have examined the growing trend of American universities to establish overseas branch campuses as part of their internationalization strategy. These global outposts are seen as a way of fulfilling the growing demand for U.S. degrees while increasing the international prestige and reputation of the institution. Yet there is also a recognition that establishing campuses in other countries can be a risky venture for American universities because of the high cost involved, the difficulty in ensuring educational quality, and overseas concerns about the undermining of the local culture. A compelling alternative is the establishment of international dual diploma programs that can generate many of the benefits of international branch campuses while building deep and lasting partnerships with overseas universities. An excellent example of this is the State University of New York’s award winning dual diploma strategy in Turkey.

The State University of New York (SUNY) is comprised of 64 institutions that include major research universities, four-year comprehensive colleges, agriculture and technology colleges, and community colleges. In 2000, the System entered into a partnership with the Turkish Higher Education Council (YÖK), the body with oversight over Turkey’s higher education, to establish dual diploma programs between SUNY and Turkish universities.

Under this arrangement, Turkish students complete part of their undergraduate education in a Turkish institution and the other at a SUNY institution, fulfilling the requirements of both institutions for a degree in a particular program of study. Instead of the traditional 2+2 articulation (which restricts the overseas partner to delivering only introductory courses) we sought a more equal partnership by requiring students to spend alternating years (or blocks of semesters) in partner universities in a manner that took advantage of the specific academic strengths of each partner institution. Following completion of the requirements, students are then issued two diplomas, one from the Turkish institution and one from the SUNY campus.

In its first year, 2003-2004, ten dual diploma programs were initiated among three SUNY campuses (SUNY Binghamton, SUNY New Paltz, and Maritime College) and four Turkish universities (Istanbul Technical, Middle East Technical, Bilkent, and Boğaziçi University). More than 3,800 Turkish students applied for 305 slots in the programs, and eventually 262 formally enrolled. Over the next few years, 14 more dual diploma programs were added, and the number of participating universities has grown to 9 SUNY campuses and 9 Turkish universities. Currently about 400 students enroll in the dual diploma programs each year; over the initial five years, nearly 1500 Turkish students enrolled in the various dual diploma programs. The first classes of students have yielded 74 graduates and more than 180 will graduate in 2008.

For SUNY, the advantages of the dual diploma program were manifold. The program allowed SUNY campuses that previously had limited engagement in the international sphere, particularly the Middle East, to open the horizons of their institutions and their students. Through faculty exchanges with Turkish universities, a key part of the arrangement, there was a forging of new research and scholarly collaborations. The partnership with YÖK also helped build SUNY’s reputation in Turkey and draw attention to the quality of programs and faculty in campuses other than its already well known research universities.

The collaboration was also important for the Turkish side. Turkey’s system of universities is only able to accommodate about a quarter of the 1.5 million applicants who take the national university entrance examination administered by the Turkish Higher Education Council. Many highly motivated and well prepared students are turned away. The YÖK-SUNY dual-diploma program provided a way to increase the capacity of the Turkish university system. It also provided an attractive option to Turkish students who were able to receive a diploma from a U.S. university at a fraction of the cost. Not surprisingly, the majority of the Turkish students admitted into the dual diploma program were those that had scored at the 90th percentile or better on the entrance examination.

SUNY’s strategy in Turkey demonstrates how dual diploma programs can address the growing demand for U.S. degrees in a manner that is affordable to international students. Yet it avoids many of the risks and pitfalls of establishing overseas campuses because there is no need for new capital outlays or for hiring overseas faculty. By respecting and preserving the academic integrity of the educational systems of both countries, dual diploma programs are unlikely to evoke concerns about foreign influence over local cultural norms that overseas campuses may generate. Most importantly, dual degree programs are built around academic curricula that are focused on student learning and driven by the faculty. Students are immersed in two cultural and educational environments resulting in a richer education than either university alone can provide. Faculty in both universities are brought together to work out equivalencies in each other’s courses and curriculum, deepening international relationships between programs. Ultimately, by keeping students, faculty, and the integrity of academic programs in sharp focus, dual degree/diploma programs ensure that a university’s engagement in the international sphere never deviates from the core mission of higher education.

Kavita Pandit

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I think, that by this time next week, I won’t be employed at this place anymore. It sounds pessimistic, but I have a sneaking suspicion, and women’s intuition that things aren’t going so well. Long story short; since I got divorced my manager hasn’t been treating me well, and she has been going through the union protocols to get someone ousted from a job. I have started applying for jobs at other local hospitals and wrote a killer email to a potential nannying job (I worked my way through college as a nanny) as well. We’ll see what happens. Either way I have to keep my chin up and just move forward.

SUNY Albany called me yesterday about my school application. They have some questions for me … and I have to wait another hour to call them back because of the time change and the random hours they’re in the office. I am nervous and excited and wigged out. School letters are supposed to be coming out any time now and I haven’t heard from any of them yet. This is a sad fact! I want to go back to school! Gar!

Okay, I must find some more jobs to apply to – whee! What fun!