Arcadia University, a leader in global education, this week was named to a prestigious American Council on Education (ACE) project to explore best practices that connect international opportunities abroad with diversity efforts on college campuses and public service projects in neighboring communities.

Funded by the Henry Luce Foundation, At Home in the World: Educating for Global Connections and Local Commitments will support Arcadia as it continues its efforts—initiated by the faculty in 2005—to promote synergies among internationalization, diversity and multicultural education. In particular, Arcadia will use the ACE fellowship to seek greater involvement by faculty, students and staff in service projects with community partners, not only at its Glenside campus, but also overseas through its College of Global Studies.

Arcadia’s leadership team is composed of four very senior Arcadia leaders, each with a resume that demonstrates a commitment to community and global engagement.  The team includes  President Carl (Tobey) Oxholm III;  Ana María García, Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice; Dennis Dutschke, Academic Dean of Studies in The College of Global Studies; and Jeff Shultz, Assistant Provost for Special Projects and Professor of Education. They will meet with leaders from the seven other institutions receiving the ACE recognition at a conference at the end of August in Washington, D.C., where they will begin a dialogue about how to create and nurture this collaboration.

“In Arcadia’s proposal for this project, the major goal is to create university-wide engagement with issues related to civic responsibility, social justice and global citizenship,” said President Oxholm. “Working with a committee of faculty, students, administrators, and staff, the leadership team is aiming to generate enthusiasm and commitment across the campus for these issues in the same way that London Preview coalesced our campus community around comprehensive internationalization.”

These goals dovetail perfectly with the key objectives for his presidency that President Oxholm identified in his very first message to the Arcadia community: a commitment to public service and the creation of an environment welcoming to and supportive of diverse constituents, domestic as well as international. “By working with government and community leaders and organizations in the greater Glenside area, as well as with our overseas community affiliates that network with The College of Global Studies,  members of the Arcadia University community will come to a deeper understanding of what it means to seek social justice in a diverse world,” said Oxholm.

“The interface between multicultural and international efforts on campus is a critical place to engage students, who will face an increasingly diverse and global workplace over the course of their careers,” said Patti McGill Peterson, presidential adviser for global initiatives at ACE. “Competition for this project was quite intense and shows a great desire among applicants to effectively address this important relationship. We anticipate great strides from this learning community.”

Chosen from 54 applicants, the eight recipients of the ACE recognition are:  Arcadia University, Alliant International University—San Diego Scripps Ranch, Bennett College for Women (N.C.), Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District (Calif.), Mercy College (N.Y.), North Carolina State University, University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, and Washington State University.