AMES, Iowa -- Iowa State University President Gregory Geoffroy will travel to Asia in November in an effort to recognize and strengthen ISU's overseas recruiting and alumni connections. Geoffroy will make stops in Korea, Malaysia, Singapore and Republic of China (Taiwan) Nov. 6-16.
The trip features mutual commitment agreements -- as a memoranda of understanding, agreement or articulation, or an agreement on cooperation -- with eight Asian institutions. Alumni events, campus and facility tours, meetings with top administrators and heads of state, and an ISU biotechnology presentation also are planned.
"Iowa State has long been known as an international university, considering the number of students we attract each year from at least 100 countries," Geoffroy said. "On this trip, we'll strengthen existing academic and alumni relationships and lay the foundation for what I believe will be exciting and rewarding collaborations for many years to come."
Geoffroy starts with four days in South Korea, where he will sign agreements with administrators from Yonsei University, Hanyang University, and Seoul National University, all in Seoul; and Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon. An alumni dinner also is planned.
Two days in Malaysia feature agreements with INTI University College, Taylor's University College and University Putra Malaysia. At Taylor's University College, Geoffroy will formally announce ISU's Presidential Award for International Transfer Excellence, a scholarship program with 20 ISU "International Partner Schools" that currently boasts 10 Malaysian students. An alumni dinner in Mine, Kuala Lumpur, will be capped by the inauguration of the Malaysia ISU Alumni Society. More than 700 ISU alumni reside in Malaysia -- the highest number living outside the United States.
After a short stay in Singapore packed with meetings and receptions, Geoffroy will close out his itinerary with two days in Taiwan. He will meet with former Taiwan president Lee Teng-hui, who earned a master's degree in agricultural economics from Iowa State in 1953. An agreement with Chung Yuan University, Chung Li, and an alumni banquet also are scheduled.
Some ISU faculty and staff members will join Geoffroy at various stops during his trip, including:
- Hyemi Sevening, director of development for College of Engineering, ISU Foundation
- Jeff Johnson, president, ISU Alumni Association
- Jan Breitman, director of travel and educational programs, ISU Alumni Association
- Ann Gogerty, global recruitment coordinator, admissions
- Max Rothschild, C.F. Curtiss Distinguished Professor of Agriculture and Life Sciences and M.E. Ensminger International Chair
- Bong Wie, professor of aerospace engineering
- Suman Lee, assistant professor of journalism and communication
- Yong Chin Pak, adjunct instructor of kinesiology
- John Wong, associate professor of marketing
- Ramesh Kanwar, professor and chair of agricultural and biosystems engineering