Stony Brook Hosts SUNY International Education Meeting

For the first time, Stony Brook University hosted the fall meeting of the SUNY Council on International Education on campus. Dozens of international education leaders from across the 64-campus system attended in person, and many more joined the conversation virtually.

"It was an honor to host this meeting for our peers and colleagues from other State University of New York campuses," said Lindsi Walker, senior associate provost for global affairs. "Each college and university has a different situation and different needs, but we are all eager to learn from each other how we can best ensure we offer global experiences through study abroad programs, welcoming students from other countries to study on our campuses and supporting collaborative learning and scholarship. Meetings like these and organizations like the CIE demonstrate yet one more strength of our SUNY system."

During the meeting, administrators from different campuses discussed pre-departure orientations for students preparing to study abroad, how best to prepare faculty leading overseas trips to manage emergency situations and general updates about study abroad programs across the system.

"We hope that the various sessions, presentations and updates were helpful, informative and perhaps even inspirational at times. As we mentioned throughout the two-day event, our CIE consortium's success depends on our members' contributions and our collaborations across the SUNY network," said Adam Rubin, assistant vice provost and director of education abroad at the University at Buffalo and chair of the CIE. "I want to thank the incredible Stony Brook International Academic Programs team for organizing and hosting our meeting. Hosting these events takes considerable time and energy, but the team hosted us with unfailing positive energy and support."

The meeting was organized and hosted by Stony Brook International Academic Programs, the office that manages SBU's study abroad programs for domestic students going overseas and for international students seeking to study at Stony Brook as exchange, rather than degree-seeking, students.

"I'm truly grateful to be in New York and part of the State University of New York. In Governor Hochul and Chancellor King, we have strong advocates for the importance of the international community - to our students, to our academic programs and to our scholarship and research," said Carl W. Lejuez, executive vice president for academic affairs and provost. "It's so important that we have each other to share ideas and best practices. Together, we can ensure the nearly 400,000 students across the SUNY system have the international experiences that are critical to their development as informed, thoughtful global citizens."

In addition to supporting Stony Brook study abroad programs, the university's Office of Global Affairs supports nearly 4,000 international students from application to graduation. It oversees partnerships with overseas institutions, offers the Global Summer Institute program for non-SBU international students to earn college credit or improve their English skills. The office offers the International Family and Friends program to connect international students to local host families. Earlier this fall, the university's International Student Success team opened a student center for international students to study, relax and meet with academic advisors.