Grant Strengthens Pitzer's International Study Programs

Funds will be used to facilitate faculty and student collaborations with host countries

CLAREMONT, Calif. (Oct. 8, 2003) — Pitzer College is pleased to announce it has been awarded a $300,000 grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to focus on intercultural faculty and student exchanges with partner institutions abroad.

The three-year faculty led pilot program, with the support of the presidents and faculty of Pitzer, Claremont McKenna and Harvey Mudd colleges, will focus on opening doors for other faculty members to collaborate with universities in England, South Africa, Mexico and Australia in the first instance. Faculty from any field group at the colleges will be eligible to participate in the program.

In the spring, Paul Faulstich, Pitzer professor of Environmental Studies, will work with Professor Claire Smith of Flinders University in Australia to design an environment course that will be simultaneously taught at Pitzer and Flinders. In Fall 2004, Jose Calderon, Pitzer professor of sociology and Chicano studies, will similarly collaborate with Oaxaca University in Mexico. Ntongela Masilela, Pitzer professor of English, will jointly teach a course on New African Intellectuals with Professor Keyan Tomaselli of Natal University in South Africa, while Andre Wakefield, Pitzer professor of history, and Terrell Carver at Bristol University in England, will teach a course on Karl Marx in Context.

"Pitzer College is very excited to receive this grant from the Mellon Foundation," said Pitzer Dean of Faculty Alan Jones. "It will enable Pitzer to expand its study abroad opportunities for students and increase the number of international students on our campus. These developments will further Pitzer's goal of increasing intercultural understanding."

The International Faculty and Student Exchanges program seeks collaboration through technology, joint syllabi, student exchanges and faculty visits. These efforts should complement Pitzer's successful External Studies program, which was instrumental in six Pitzer students' successful bids for Fulbright Fellowships in the 2002-03 academic year.

According to Kebokile Dengu-Zvobgo, Pitzer's International Exchanges Coordinator, "the project will enable students from diverse cultural backgrounds and experiences to study at Pitzer. This Mellon grant is indeed a dream come true because I have been longing to facilitate this type of student exchange for the past 10 years." The Mellon Foundation has now provided the resources to further sharpen the cutting-edge innovative tradition of Pitzer College.

About Pitzer College

Pitzer College is a nationally top ranked undergraduate liberal arts institution. A member of The Claremont Colleges, Pitzer offers a distinctive approach to a liberal arts education by linking intellectual inquiry with interdisciplinary studies, cultural immersion, social responsibility and community involvement. For more information, please visit www.pitzer.edu.

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