WASHINGTON, DC.-The White House, State Department, Partners of the Americas and NAFSA (Association of International Educators) announced nine new scholarship winners under the Innovation Fund Force Hundred Thousand initiative in the Americas, granted by ExxonMobil to support new agreements and student exchanges between universities. Vice President Joe Biden attended the ceremony.
«We must invest in at our disposal-our people … this investment in our young minds is paramount greatest natural resource,» said Vice President Joe Biden at the event. «This investment is based on exposing our young people to culture, language and the policies of other countries. Thus we succeed in establishing closer ties that bind economic growth and stability of this hemisphere. »
The goal of the initiative Force Hundred Thousand in the Americas, an education initiative in the Western Hemisphere led by President Obama, is that 2020 has been increased to one hundred thousand while the number of young Americans studying in the Western Hemisphere as the number of young people in the Americas who studied in the United States. The initiative aims to improve competitiveness, increase prosperity and a better prepared and global awareness workforce.
The aim of this competition, generously sponsored by ExxonMobil, is to increase student exchange in racing engineering, physics, geology and geophysics. Winning institutions of higher education have proposed innovative curricula that will create new partnerships or strengthen existing ones, thus increasing opportunities for student exchange in science and technology. The contest was open to institutions in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Guyana, Mexico and the US
«The report Open Doors Report on International Education and Exchange (2015) shows that the Americas are a region that is advancing rapidly in the area of international education. It also indicates that the number of student exchanges in science and technology should increase significantly, «said Steve Vetter, President and CEO of Partners of the Americas. «Employers as the sponsor of this contest, ExxonMobil, reveal that want to hire more bilingual workers who are competent and globally, both in the field and in the office. He Innovation Fund Force Hundred Thousand in the Americas He works hard and efficiently to attain this objective. »
Instead of giving grants directly to individuals, rewards innovation fund promotes the formation of transnational institutional partnerships. Each advertised prize is $ 25,000 and build on the commitments selected to increase student mobility universities, addressing the institutional barriers that prevent young people to study abroad, and promoting specialized study. As a result of these nine scholarships it is expected that more than 132 young people to study abroad.
The Innovation Fund grants were awarded to:
California State University, Fullerton, California, USA
Partner: Universidade Estadual Paulista «Julio de Mesquita Filho,» Campus of Sorocaba, Sorocaba, Brazil
Project Title: «Bilateral exchange for engineering students»
The main objective of the scientific project initiated by California State University, Fullerton is to give engineering students the opportunity of an advanced educational experience designed to improve the skills they need to succeed professionally in an increasingly interconnected world. This program will strengthen the institutional capacities of CSU Fullerton and UNESP Sorocaba to maintain student mobility between Brazil and the US and establish a lasting connection between the two universities with the aim of raising awareness at the university workers and develop an international culture based on bilateral trade.
Clemson University, South Carolina, USA
Partner: Tecnologico de Monterrey, Monterrey, Mexico
Project Title: «Supporting cultural teams in physics and engineering to meet the operational challenges of today»
Clemson University and ITESM propose a program that focuses on developing the skills of students to work in cross-cultural and multidisciplinary teams. Innovative activities of this program include the creation of binational student teams that collaborate on joint projects to solve real life problems; sharing partner teams traveling to the country and also host students in their own countries; cultural immersion; and collaboration with academic and industrial partners to sustain economic development.
Purdue University, Indiana, USA
Partners: EAFIT University, Medellin, Colombia; Universidad del Norte, Barranquilla, Colombia
Project Title: «Colombia-Purdue Alliance to create a comprehensive, sustainable and transformative Engineering with student exchange»
Purdue University proposes an integrated investment, cooperation and evaluation to increase the number of engineering students at Purdue who travel abroad, specifically Latin America and Colombia, academic experiences for short or long term plan. The Purdue-Colombia alliance will address the needs of minority groups in engineering and increase the number of professional experiences and research opportunities to transform the student exchange. With the help of the Innovation Fund, Purdue will expand its efforts to maintain academic relations with Colombia to be exhaustive, sustainable and transformative.
The University of Massachusetts, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Partner: University Tiradentes, Sergipe, Brazil
Project Title: «Comparative study of marine coasts of Sergipe, Brazil, Massachusetts, USA»
University of Massachusetts, Boston (UMB) and Tiradentes University (UNIT) are ideal partners because they are located in coastal areas, have excellent programs in geosciences and enjoy a formal agreement establishing the Tiradentes Institute on the campus of Boston. The aim of the comparative study between Brazil and the US more students is to raise awareness on the development and evolution of coastal ecosystems through an immersive, research and collaborative educational experience. Following this objective, the program will deepen the relations between UMB and UniT while provide a cross-cultural dimension to students.
The University of Texas at Austin, Texas, USA
Partner: National Autonomous University of Mexico, Federal District, Mexico
Project title: «Moving towards sharing in Geophysics with the application of intelligent systems for solving problems geoscientists (IS-GEO)»
University of Texas at Austin and the National Autonomous University of Mexico have created a new exchange program and innovative to attract more students to the field of Science and Technology-a basic and important need for both universities. IS-GEO aims to increase the number of students in research teams that are based on interdisciplinary collaborations between Mexico and the US Students will participate in a course model for other scientific institutions wishing to incorporate international education in their curricula.
The University of Texas at El Paso, Texas, USA
Partner: University of Guadalajara, Mexico
Project title: «International and Comparative study on smart cities in the US-Mexico border.»
Disasters or human nature have shown in recent years that the urban infrastructure, such as transport, construction, energy and communication networks, is interdependent. The University of Guadalajara collaborates with El Paso, Texas to develop a student based on engineering, business studies and social and cultural practices that contribute to the understanding of urban infrastructure «smart cities» (or smart cities) exchange. During the exchange students will fieldwork, completed courses and presented projects addressing urban issues for the transformation of «smart cities».
University of the State of Mexico, Toluca, Mexico
Partners: University of North Texas, USA .; National University of La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Project Title: «Connecting the Americas: transnational solutions to local landfills with the application of learning through service»
«Connecting the Americas» encourage mobility trilateral gathering students from Mexico, Argentina and the US to study pollution from landfills and develop recommendations for public policies in order to reduce costs and pollution. Students participate in learning through community service work and academic mentors from the three universities. Research teams made up of students and teachers investigate methodologies to the Dumpster by fieldwork and in university classrooms.
University of Guyana, Georgetown, Guyana
Partner: Texas Tech University, Texas, USA
Project Title: «Developing the capabilities of undergraduates at the University of Guyana and Texas Tech University to support the oil and gas sector»
The agreement between Guyana and Texas has established a student exchange to strengthen institutional capacities and sustainable development of the oil and gas industry. Students from both countries will study together and complete projects based on the community through service learning. Topics addressed include sustainability, social justice and transparency in the energy sector. Students will participate in field trips and attend conferences to discuss issues of ethics, conservation and economic resources.
University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Partner: Universidade Federal do Parana, Brazil
Project title: «Brazil-US Alliance. for project design engineering in higher grades »
The body Pittsburg and Parana academic alliance is based on a program that integrates existing relationships and academic concentrations that both universities share. Propose a program of study for students completing the final year, specifically a project design that will complete their university studies. Students will participate in a mandatory course for the title of engineer / o learn from foreign colleagues cultural issues, problem solving skills, communication styles and so on. In this way the student exchange program graduates transform into global skills qualified candidates and also establish networks of contacts between Brazil and the US
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The mission of Partners of the Americas is to connect people and organizations beyond the borders to serve and change lives through lasting fellowships. These fellowships provide opportunities, promote understanding and solve problems in real life. Inspired by President Kennedy, and founded in 1964 under the Alliance for Progress Partners is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization with international offices in Washington, DC. Learn more at www.partners.net or via Twitter at partnersamerica .
With nearly 10,000 members, NAFSA (Association of International Educators) is a nonprofit professional association dedicated to the world’s largest international education organizations. Learn more about their work in www.nafsa.org and www.connectingourworld.org , and Twitter, in NAFSA and ConnectOurWorld .
ExxonMobil is a multinational American oil and gas and a founding donor of the Innovation Fund. «This is a unique opportunity to expand the educational experience to regions that are strategically important to ExxonMobil while strengthening academic disciplines that are key to the future of the energy industry,» says Neal Goins, Vice President of International Government Relations ExxonMobil. «The success of this initiative will advance the economic development in the Americas and also increase the number of qualified candidates wishing to start a career in our industry.»
