Globalization of American Education System is now a household concept in educational meetings.  In 1998 a report, “Educating for Global Competence”, by the American Council on Education’s Commission on International Education called upon universities to pay special attention to the global context in preparing students for the future.  The first paragraph of the Executive Summary of the report states: 

            The pursuit of excellence will require the integration of global perspectives and the promotion of international experiences as being central to the mission of the university and to campus life.  These priorities need to be embodied in policies that promote and reward the initiatives of faculty, students, and staff, as they become responsive to the global context.  The internationalization process, most often referred to as “globalization,” requires a new approach to institutional priorities as well as a different understanding of the context of the student learning experience and the student’s needs for future careers.  In other words, rather than mere enhancements to research activity and the learning experience, pursued in specialized or relatively isolated departments and programs labeled “international”, global and cross-cultural perspective must pervade our campus cultures; these perspectives must move from margin to mainstream. 

The following statements culled from the literature on International Education reinforce the need for international education in American Colleges and Universities, including the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. 

·      If our nation and its people are to prosper in the new environment of the 21^st century, our colleges and universities must truly be institutions without boundaries.  Their leaders must re-think what is taught, how it is taught, where it is taught, and who teaches it. 

·      Most courses taught at our universities have a limited global perspective, and teaching faculty lack sufficient international exposure and knowledge to act as catalysts for internationalizing their courses. 

·      Emerging national needs require universities to organize themselves to educate students for competence and success in an interdependent world, for the 21^st century.  This kind of competence needs to be provided not as something extra in the curriculum, but as an integral part of the educational experience.

·      As a practical matter, what this means is that the entire nation’s two and four-year institutions of higher education must avail themselves to new goals for international education. 

·      Colleges and universities have a great deal to do, if they choose to take seriously the task of preparing their students for a global society.  New thinking, different rewards, and revised structures for teaching and learning will be needed. 

·      Knowledge and understanding of other countries and cultures are prerequisite to the international collaboration required to address global and regional problems. 

·      The challenges of global transformation in national security, foreign policy, competitiveness, the environment, public health, population control, and the eradication of want and misery resulting from famine, natural disasters, or population dislocations call for many more U.S. citizens with in-depth expertise and knowledge of other nations, including their languages, cultures, political, economic, and social systems. 

·      Graduates who can function effectively in a global environment can provide direct benefits to businesses, helping them access emerging international markets, supporting the export efforts of small and mid-size companies that have become the greatest source of new jobs in America. 

·      New emphases on the international dimensions of curricula support higher education’s public service functions, enabling better outreach to primary and secondary schools, the community, the media, and the government. 

·      International exchange programs, whether for undergraduates, graduate students, or faculty members, provide Americans with first-hand experience in other cultures that often is essential in gaining international competence.