Sr. Margaret Carney, O.S.F., university president, signed a cooperation agreement with international educators last month.
The arrangement included Bonaventure; L’Hermitage, an educational foundation with headquarters in Belo Horizonte, Brazil; and Liaison America, an international education company. The intent is for the organizations to unite to advance their common education goals, which include professional development for educators and school leaders, according to the university’s website.
Kathy Baugher, executive director of international partnerships, added the signing indicates Bonaventure and the foundation will cooperate to build more linkages to support cultural opportunities, faculty and staff exchange and recruiting.
She said an example of this collaboration will be seen in 2016.
“This foundation has a member school that is hosting some SBU students in 2016 for home stays in Rio during the Olympics,” Baugher said. “We are actively looking for partnerships like this.”
Bernie Valento, vice president of enrollment, said the Brazil initiative is part of a larger plan to boost enrollment.
“It is critical that the university develop new enrollment streams including the development of international recruitment markets,” he said. “We plan to do this through a strategic process of developing partnerships and relationships that will drive enrollment well into the future.”
Valento added university officials have identified specific potential countries, that are well aligned with Bonaventure’s mission and values, to increase enrollment. should We have identified specific countries that provide strong potential and are well aligned with our mission and values. He said the university will develop international support services as the number of students grows.
According to Baugher, the university has a three-year strategy of investment and return. This means officials plan to earn back the invested money in three years. However, the timeline is constantly evolving as university officials learn more about partnering with different groups around the world, he said.
She did not provide the amount of the university’s investment.
Baugher added this is the first time the university has dedicated full-time staff and resources to building an international initiative. Therefore, there are many ways university officials are measuring the return on their investment.
“Our milestones for return are measured in…the number of partnerships established, the effectiveness of those partnerships and actually achieving programs in those partnerships, enrollment of students at SBU, numbers of cross-cultural and exchange opportunities built, etc,” said Baugher.
Valento said the plan to boost enrollment also includes strengthening the university’s institutional brand and using the University Planning Commission to identify academic and co-curricular programs to use as enrollment boosters.
“[We will] continue to explore new recruitment markets and educational delivery methods, and look to grow enrollment at all levels including: freshmen, transfers and graduate,” he said.
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