Developing a Cohesive Strategy for Global Work: Leveraging a College Merger and Senior Leadership Transitions to Increase Global Engagement

• In Event: Governance and Leadership in Higher Education: Research on Engagement, Autonomy, and Diversity

Proposal

This presentation takes a case study approach to highlight the use of comprehensive internationalization tools and community engaged methods to build a cohesive strategy for global work within a newly formed college situated in a large, private research-intensive urban university in the United States. In addition, the authors will present the use of these tools as a strategy for building culture and cohesiveness through the transitions of a college merger and multiple changes in senior leadership. The presentation will review strategies in the areas of student mobility, local and global initiatives, international research and scholarship, technical assistance and service, and the development of academic programs.

In 2018, Wheelock College closed and merged with Boston University, creating a new college at Boston University: The Wheelock College of Education and Human Development. The merger presented an opportunity to bring two groups of faculty and staff together to build a shared strategic plan. Anchored in BU Wheelock’s mission to “transform the systems that impact learning and human development for a thriving, sustainable, and just future in Boston and beyond,” the BU Wheelock 2020-2030 Strategic Plan delineates key metrics illustrating the college’s commitment to furthering equity in the fields of education and human development in Boston and beyond. While the strategic plan highlights specific goals related to the College’s commitment to the City of Boston and Boston Public Schools (BPS), the plan does not is less specific when it comes to the goals for the College’s work beyond Boston. Despite the plan’s absence of specific data targets related to global and international work, in this presentation, the authors will illustrate the ways in which the college’s newly formed Strategic Partnerships & Community Engagement (SPACE) Office provided a structure to take a more strategic approach to this college’s global engagement work.
The college’s faculty are actively engaged in significant global and international work and the SPACE Office has played a key role in guiding the college’s strategic direction and fostering sustainable, mutually beneficial community partnerships both locally and globally. This has been accomplished in part by identifying strategic priorities and building processes that have moved the college forward through recent senior leadership transitions at the levels of dean, provost, and president.
The merger between Boston University's School of Education and Wheelock College created a unique opportunity for the new college to become more intentional and strategic about its international work. Prior to the merger, Wheelock College had a strong legacy of international work. Global scholars who had worked with organizations such as the Inter-American Development Bank and UNESCO, transitioned to BU Wheelock, bringing their expertise to the college. Additionally, the former director of Wheelock’s Center for International Programs and Partnerships, moved into a leadership role at Boston University’s Global Programs division. These transitions fostered collaboration between globally-experienced faculty, while also strengthening connections between BU’s central global offices and the college, building crucial bridges for future international initiatives.
The Strategic Partnerships and Community Engagement Office’s community engaged approach and commitment to sustainable systems has also enabled the college to prioritize international initiatives, building on the commitments outlined in a strategic plan. While references to international engagement are limited in the college’s strategic plan, global engagement is one of the pillars of Boston University’s 2020-2030 strategic plan. Taking advantage of the opportunity presented by Boston University’s Global Engagement Pillar, the college established a working group dedicated to advancing the college’s international and global engagement initiatives. This pillar underscores BU’s commitment to empowering faculty and students to thrive in an increasingly interconnected world, highlighting the growing importance of global research collaboration for faculty and the need for global expertise and appreciation of diversity in 21st-century education.
During the 23-24 Academic Year, anticipating leadership transitions at the levels of dean, provost, and president, the authors formed the BU Wheelock International and Global Engagement Working Group to focus on: (1) inventorying the current international work, (2) deepening connections to University-wide global initiatives through the Global Programs unit, including the the Center for English Language & Orientation Programs (CELOP), and (3) making recommendations to support a strategic, comprehensive approach to global/ international work at BU Wheelock College.
One of the outcomes of this work was the articulation of our local and global strategy. Our commitment to Boston and Boston Public Schools creates opportunities for deep community engaged work with local immigrant populations. The BPS Office of Family & Community Advancements Translation & Interpretation Services Protocol currently translates into the 9 major languages of the district: Arabic, Cape Verdean Creole, Chinese, French, Haitian Creole, Portuguese, Somali, Spanish, and Vietnamese. According to the Boston Planning and Development Authority, 27.9% of the city’s total population is foreign born, and the top countries of origin for foreign born residents of Boston are: Dominican Republic, China, Haiti, Vietnam, Cabo Verde, El Salvador, Jamaica, Colombia, India, and Trinidad and Tobago. This context is important to keep in mind as our scholars and students work with local foreign-born populations and try to forge partnerships and relationships with governments, NGOs, universities, and school systems in the related countries of origin.
The BU Wheelock SPACE Office, rooted in a community-engaged approach, plays a key role in fostering global partnerships across the college and coordinating its international work. This strategic framework, combined with opportunities for reflection and innovation following the merger, has allowed BU Wheelock to broaden its global initiatives in a more strategic and coordinated way.

Authors

• Cara Mattaliano, Boston University

• Mary Churchill, Boston University