The Indiana Center for Cultural Exchange :: ICCE
Resources
Indiana University
Indiana University has one of the most comprehensive and diverse International Programs in the United States with six federally-funded national area studies resource centers, instruction in 60 languages, 1,300 students studying in 30 countries, and faculty linkages in 70 countries. It also has a Title VI Center for the Study of Global Change, and a Center for International Education and Development Assistance. Its many schools are already actively engaged in programs of international cooperation.
Examples of how Indiana University is aiding areas in predominately Muslim countries include: the School of Nursing's development of nursing opportunities in South and Southeast Asia, the School of Education's three-year exchange with Saudi teachers, the establishment of an American Studies Center at Baku State University in Azerbaijan as well as the first Masters in Public Administration in Azerbaijan, and the School of Law's assistance to the Adilet School of Law to establish itself as the model for post-Soviet legal education in Kazakhstan. Indiana University's School of Public and Environmental Affairs (SPEA) is ranked third in the country for public affairs by U.S News & World Report. SPEA's Center for Developmental Strategies (CDS) is a key ICCE resource.
Indiana University's Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures (NELC) and its Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies Program (MEISP) offer such relevant area studies as Middle Eastern Literatures, Middle Eastern Religions, Middle Eastern Cultures and Civilizations, and Arabic Language and Linguistics. NELC's interdisciplinary approach draws the expertise of over 40 Indiana University faculty members from such areas as Religious Studies, Central Eurasian Studies, African Studies and Inner Asian Studies. The MEISP, with its 20 faculty members, provides superb expertise in the complexities of the Middle East and Islam, as well as language skills and contacts with counterparts in the Muslim world. Also, Indiana University 's Inner Asian and Uralic National Resource Center, and the Center for Languages of the Central Asian Region are both U.S. Department of Education National Resource Centers.
Purdue University
Purdue University is engaged in numerous International Programs in Agriculture, Business, Engineering, Pharmacy, Science, Technology, Tourism, and Veterinary Medicine. Purdue has linkages with 32 universities in 16 Muslim countries. For example, the School of Engineering has establishing distance-learning centers at Kabul University, Kabul Polytechnic Institute, and Kabul Teacher's College that are designed to provide graduate instruction to the faculty of those three institutions in Afghanistan.
Purdue's School of Agriculture is engaged in collaborative projects (water resource projects, sustainable agriculture projects, etc.) in such countries as Egypt, Jordan, Tunisia, the West Bank and Gaza, Lebanon, Bangladesh, Thailand, and the Philippines. Purdue University has state-of-the-art videoconferencing systems that can connect 12 international sites. Also, with Indiana University's video linkage with all K-12 classrooms in the State of Indiana, the ICCE can create videoconferences between school children in Indiana and in Muslim communities overseas.
Both Indiana University and Purdue University are "CIBER universities." Their Centers for International Business Education and Research are located in Purdue University's Krannert School of Management and Indiana University's Kelley School of Business. Both universities can collaborate to host a "Joint CIBER Event" in Indianapolis that will bring American executives from around the country to meet with scholars and business leaders from predominately Muslim countries.
The University of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame has a number of International Programs initiatives in different schools throughout the university. Notre Dame also has the highest percentage of undergraduates studying abroad of any American research university. The two resources at Notre Dame that contribute directly to our Center are the Helen Kellogg Institute for International Studies, and the Joan B. Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies.
The Kroc Institute focuses on the religious and cultural elements of peacebuilding. For example, the Kroc Institute's Program on Religion, Conflict, and Peacebuilding (PRCP) has hosted Rockefeller Foundation Visiting Fellows researching the role of Islam in conflict and peacebuilding in Lebanon, Turkey and the North Caucasus. The PRCP also hosted a conference on "In Multiple Voices: Challenges and Prospects for Islamic Peacebuilding After September 11." The Kroc Institute has begun the Research Initiative on Resolution of Ethnic Conflict (RIREC) that focuses on post-accord peacebuilding and the means for creating a sustainable, just peace after a period of protracted conflict. It also has a joint initiative with the United Nations undertaking an interdisciplinary study of the links between globalization and local violence generally and specifically in urban contexts. The Kroc Institute is planning to establish "satellites" in Africa, South Asia, and the Middle East that will enable Notre Dame faculty to conduct research and collaborate on specific peacebuilding projects.
The Kellogg Institute fosters research on many regions of the world and provides faculty, students, and visiting scholars with a supportive intellectual community. It attempts to expand understanding of democracy, development, social justice and other important international goals challenging humankind. The Kellogg Institute provides resources on such topics as: new and old democracies, public policy and social well-being, opportunities for economic growth in developing countries, fostering a vigorous civil society, and religion and public life.
The Islamic Society of North America
The Islamic Society of North America in Plainfield, Indiana is the largest network of mosques and Islamic organizations in North America. It has been in existence for over 40 years and its annual convention draws about 35,000 participants. In addition to the annual convention, ISNA builds bridges of understanding and cooperation within the diversity that is Islam in America in many other ways. Throughout the year, ISNA supports Muslim communities, develops and presents educational, social and outreach programs, and fosters good relations with other religious communities, civic and service organizations. In regard to developing interreligious relations in America, ISNA is now playing a pivotal role in extending bridges to all religious communities in North America.
As ISNA expands its bridge-building role, it efforts have become more humanitarian and global. These efforts have included contributing to stopping the tragedy in Darfur, to alleviate the plight of those hit by tsunamis and cyclones in Southeast Asia, and working with state and civic structures to address other global challenges faced by Muslims around the world. Given this commitment to work with all communities to foster mutual understanding, respect and to collaborate to address issues of common concern, ISNA is a major partner in the ICCE's projects.
Key Persons
Besides the many faculty members and administrators involved in the initiatives of the ICCE, key persons in the partnership include:
Scott Appleby, Director of the Joan B. Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies at the University of Notre Dame.
Hal Culbertson, Associate Director of the Joan B. Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies at the U. of Notre Dame.
Muneer Fareed, Secretary General, Islamic Society of North America.
Kevin Jacques, Director of the Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies Program at Indiana University.
Donald W. Mitchell, Director of the ICCE at Purdue University.
Riall W. Nolan, Dean of International Programs at Purdue University.
Patrick O'Meara, Dean of International Programs at Indiana University.
Charles Reafsnyder, Director of the Center for International Education and Development Assistance at Indiana University.
Christopher J. Welna, Associate Director of the Helen Kellogg Institute at the University of Notre Dame.