Alumni Events to Highlight International Education Week across Eurasia

The eighth annual International Education Week took place November 12-16, 2007. A joint initiative of the US State Department and US Department of Education, International Education Week is designed to “promote programs that prepare Americans for a global environment and attract future leaders from abroad to study, learn, and exchange experiences in the United States.” As Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice affirmed in a statement on International Education Week, “Our country has no more valuable asset internationally than the friendship of the millions of young people, citizens, and leaders around the world who understand the United States because they have studied here.”

During the week, IREX field offices organized a series of activities throughout Eurasia to highlight the importance of education in promoting international partnership and understanding as part of International Education Week. The events involved Eurasian alumni of State Department exchange programs administered by IREX, such as the Edmund S. Muskie Graduate Fellowship Program (Muskie) and the Eurasian Undergraduate Exchange Program (UGRAD), and included the following:

    * In Russia, Yekaterinburg alumni marked International Education Week and the 200th anniversary of US-Russia diplomatic relations by participating in a seminar on strengthening cooperation between the United States and Russia in the field of education, along with representatives of the US consulate and local universities. In St. Petersburg, alumni joined local academic, business, and government leaders for a seminar on educational reform in Russia, where they shared their impressions of the US education system and discussed how Russia can adopt its best characteristics.

    *Muskie alumni in Moldova gave lectures to share knowledge gained from their graduate studies in the United States with Moldovan academics and government experts in their fields of study. Muskie business, law, library science, and public-policy alumni also made presentations at Moldova State University in Chisinau, and an international relations alumnus met with officials from the Ministry of Reintegration.

    *In Ukraine, UGRAD alumna and accomplished poet Tetyana Strelchenko led a creative writing workshop along with the famous Ukrainian writer Ivan Avramov, incorporating techniques she learned while studying in the United States. Azeri UGRAD alumni in the Ganja region participated in a panel designed to increase awareness about international exchange opportunities among youth studying outside of Baku.

    * Throughout the week, UGRAD alumni across Eurasia returned to their secondary schools and universities to make presentations about their US experiences, promote the benefits of international education, and encourage participation in exchange programs.