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ASU embarks on marketing campaign beyond borders

ASU is beefing up its status as a world-class university. In one of its newest partnerships, the institution is collaborating with its neighbors south of the U.S.-Mexico border to improve educational access and maximize partnerships in higher education and research.

Earlier this year, ASU established 75 fellowships through a new partnership with El Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACYT) in Mexico. Through this agreement, ASU will develop interdisciplinary graduate programs, faculty and researcher exchange and strategic collaborative research.

The agreement, signed during the June 25 – 29 Partnership for Prosperity (P4P) Entrepreneurial Workshop in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico, also opens the door to large-scale funding.

Through the leadership of Pan American Initiatives (OPI) in the Office of the President, ASU professors and researchers have embarked on an unprecedented international marketing campaign, visiting numerous universities, such as the University of Guadalajara and La Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), to inform and advise students and professors about the opportunities available through the ASU-CONACYT program.

Carlos Ovando, associate dean for Teacher Education and a professor in the Division of Curriculum and Instruction in the College of Education, recently spoke to a group of professors and students at UNAM and said feedback was very positive.

“The future of Arizona is closely linked with Mexico,” Ovando says. “(The program) fits quite well with the university’s effort to educate and cultivate students about the importance of global engagement. UNAM professors have expressed an interest to participate, and they recognize the need for this type of exchange.”

CONACYT, counterpart to the National Science Foundation in the United States, was created in 1970 by Ley del Congreso de la Unión to explore and strengthen the efforts in scientific research in Mexico by supporting and promoting the creation of research projects as well as the advancement of technology.

While ASU and CONACYT offer a wide variety of student scholarship opportunities, this new agreement provides a unique opportunity for Mexican graduate students to attend ASU nearly for free. Tuition, health insurance and a monthly stipend will be provided throughout the duration of the fellowship. In addition, ASU is committed to providing top-quality service to its CONACYT Fellows throughout the application, selection and admittance process.

Francisco Lara-Valencia, assistant professor for the School of Planning in the College of Architecture and Environmental Design, says this agreement with CONACYT represents a very tangible vehicle to bolster the presence of ASU in Mexico.

“I believe this agreement is path-breaking in many ways,” says Lara-Valencia, who visited the Universidad Iberoamerica and UNAM. “First, because it opens opportunities for collaboration with all type of universities in Mexico, regardless of size, origin of funding and region. Second, the number of scholarships and the multiple-year character of the agreement is a guarantee that the agreement will have a long-term impact on the relationship between ASU and Mexican universities. Third, it is equally open to the social sciences, engineering and humanities. I have the impression that we are in front of a mechanism that will make it possible to reach further and deeper into attracting more talented Mexican scholars to ASU.”

Mexican professionals in schools, colleges and state departments of education face the difficult task of preparing young people to succeed in two cultures, and to function comfortably in a complex environment in which languages and cultures mingle much more than ever. The result is that while education continues to be a location function, the results of a good education must be reflected in environments that are binational.

Shannon Wulf, OPI’s manager of Strategic Relations & Planning, says marketing and outreach for the ASU-CONACYT program is done through information sessions to potential candidates, as well as interaction with administrators and governments.

“Aside from promoting the program to Mexican students, we also have been engaging university directors of graduate studies, research and international affairs to ensure that the opportunities reach the greatest amount of potential candidates,” Wulf says. “There are also a high number of professors in Mexico that do not yet have a doctoral degree, and they are eligible for the program as well. Also, government entities – such as state secretaries of education – can be a great help in identifying markets for outreach.”

Lara-Valencia spent three days visiting institutions in Mexico City and one day visiting with a group of legislators during their annual conference that focuses on U.S.-Mexico border issues.

“We had the opportunity to interact with a variety of individuals, including students, faculty, school administrators and even parents,” he says. “We talked to them in groups, but also in conversations in which more particular questions were raised. The interest on the agreement was so high, and the personal situations so diverse, that group presentations were clearly insufficient.”

Ovando says ASU ultimately will have a huge impact in Latin America as these partnerships and marketing efforts continue. He says this effort is crucial for the university to develop more ways of educating students.

“There’s no option,” Ovando says. “We need to go beyond our own backyard to continue growing as an institution. You cannot be an isolated university. There is a large presence of Latinos here, and I believe ASU is on its way up in becoming an internationally engaged institution.”

To learn more about the ASU-CONACYT program, visit the Web at (www.asu.edu/opi/conacyt).

By Manny Romero. Romero, with Marketing & Strategic Communications, can be reached at (480) 727-3116 or ( mlromero@asu.edu).