“If you want to walk far, walk together:” The transformational potential of international university partnerships

• In Event: New models and partnerships in higher education

Abstract

Objectives
The idea of colleges and universities as global institutions is not a new one (Altbach, 2007a). Institutions of higher education have engaged in international activities for hundreds of years. However, over the years, both the types of activities and rationales for those activities have evolved. Over the past decade, there has been a proliferation of international partnerships between universities. In fact, international university partnerships have come to be viewed as “a model for effective international development cooperation” (ALO, 2003, p.7), particularly within the context of developing countries where universities struggle with numerous demands that include retaining their best scholars, educating a new generation of professionals to meet the increased need for teachers at every level of education, competing in global rankings, and building “world class universities” (Altbach, Reisberg, & Rumbley, 2009). These relationships between universities have had varying success at addressing the above issues, some lasting only a short time and others for decades. However, this paper will examine one long-standing partnership that has become deeply embedded into the fabric of both the universities involved and the local communities surrounding them. It will explore the ways in which this relationship has transformed both partners and what factors have enabled the development of this kind of relationship.

Conceptual Framework
Although university partnership contains an element of economic exchange that is often spelled out explicitly through memoranda of understanding or other similar contracts, there seems to also be another piece that cannot be understood in purely economic terms. “Social exchange differs in important ways from strictly economic exchange. The basic and most crucial distinction is that social exchange entails unspecified obligations” (Blau, 1964, p. 93). Unlike commodity exchange, social exchange has the potential to bind people in more long-term relationships. Social exchange theory provides an interesting framework through which to examine the development of partnerships because of its focus on actor interaction. It enables us to query how and why obligations of reciprocity develop. A single transaction does not conclude the relationship. In terms of university partnerships, this may help us to better understand the interactions take place above and beyond the scope of any formalized agreement.

Modes of Inquiry
A case study approach is used for this study because of its emphasis on understanding the connection between a given phenomenon and its contextual conditions (Yin, 2003). It acts as a means of studying larger phenomena, where connections are made between specific research questions and larger policy issues. The relationship under study began in 1989 between a medical school in Kenya and a medical school in the United States. Since then, the partnership between these two medical schools has evolved into a multi-institutional global health consortium with a highly visible HIV control/treatment program. This burgeoning success prompted wider interest in partnering with the Kenyan university at the American university, and in 2006, a university-wide Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed.

Data Sources
The methods I undertake in this study include semi-structured interviews, document analysis, and social network analysis. Document analysis helped to identify an initial group of study participants. Snowball sampling was then used to identify additional participants. In-depth, in person interviews, 30-90 minutes in length, were conducted with institutional administrators, members of the partnership administrative team, and involved faculty at each of the partner institutions.

Results & Significance
My study provides insight into how one “deep” partnership has developed over the span of 20+ years. My analysis will demonstrate how what began as a small endeavor has transformed into an enormous enterprise with wide-reaching and well-documented impacts on students, faculty, administrators, and community members. Moreover, I will show that while there have been, and continue to be, certain challenges, this particular case provides a compelling model for partnership building and development, within both the university and local community.

As partnerships will remain a prominent part of internationalization efforts, this study will offer a careful examination of the complexities and potential outcomes of these relationships in order to inform university administrators, faculty, and funding agencies as they consider the formation of such linkages. My study seeks to provide diverse perspectives from partnership participants that could aid in the development of long-term, sustainable relationships that reach beyond the walls of the university.

Author

• Candice Grant, Indiana University