Cronkite welcomes international professionals for borderlands study


Humprey Fellows

Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication is taking 47 international professionals from 31 countries to the U.S.-Mexico border to study borderlands issues and human rights.

The daylong excursion involves international professionals participating in the prestigious Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship Program and the International Leaders in Education Program (ILEP), both initiatives of U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.

The participants include Humphrey Fellows from the Cronkite School and the University of Minnesota's Humphrey School of Public Affairs and Law School, as well as ILEP Fellows from ASU’s Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College.

The visitors will travel to Tucson and Nogales, Arizona, and meet law enforcement and community officials to discuss immigration, education and national security.

B. William Silcock, associate professor in the Cronkite School, who directs Cronkite Global Initiatives and curates the Humphrey Fellowship Program at ASU, said the trip provides an opportunity for internationals to experience a critical issue impacting the United States.

“We are thrilled to welcome the University of Minnesota Humphrey Fellows to Arizona State University,” Silcock said. “This is an exciting chance for internationals from dozens of countries and different professions to collaborate and gain valuable lessons that they can use to help their home countries.”

The U.S. State Department’s Humphrey Fellowship Program provides 10 months of non-degree academic study and related professional experiences in the United States to professionals from designated countries undergoing development or political transition.

The Cronkite School is one of just two institutions to host Humphrey Fellows in journalism. This year, 10 international journalists and communicators are studying at the Cronkite School. The University of Minnesota is home to 23 Humphrey Fellows with backgrounds in law and public affairs.

“The Arizona study trip is a top highlight of the year for the University of Minnesota Humphrey Fellows, enabling them to study immigration and human rights issues on the U.S.-Mexican border in a firsthand way,” said Kristi Rudelius-Palmer, director of the University of Minnesota Law School's Humphrey Fellowship Program. “This learning is further enhanced by collaboration with the ASU Humphrey and ILEP Fellows, which enables a rich interdisciplinary and globally-minded discussion about effective practices with perspectives from a variety of disciplines and professions.”

The U.S. State Department’s International Leaders in Education Program is a five-month program that brings secondary school teachers from around the globe to enhance their teaching skills and increase their knowledge about the United States. The Fulton Teachers College is hosting 16 teachers from Bangladesh, Brazil, Indonesia, Kenya, Morocco, Philippines and Senegal as part of this year’s program.

The trip is being organized through Cronkite Global Initiatives, which manages the Cronkite School’s Humphrey Fellowship Program, Edward R. Murrow Program for Journalists, study abroad programs and overseas faculty research projects.