President Richard Brodhead shared his vision of the University as an international leader in education with members of the faculty in a crowded Divinity School lecture hall Thursday.
Brodhead delivered the Annual Report of the President as part of the University Faculty meeting, an annual assembly of faculty members.
The University Faculty meeting ended with an address given by Paula McClain, chair of the Academic Council and a professor of political science, before the council's meeting convened in the same location.
Brodhead said the goal of this year's report was to examine the ways through which Duke can become a more vibrant and influential identity outside of the United States.
"What is it Duke should be trying to accomplish in the international community?" he asked.
He also stressed the importance of attracting strong international talent to the University and breaking down barriers between academia and the growing global community.
"A person who can't navigate outside his native world will not be equipped to deal with the contemporary world," Brodhead said.
Currently, no single country has a monopoly on significant researchers or intellectuals, he added.
"We need to be where things are happening so we can grasp new realities," Brodhead said.
He added that the University already has many praiseworthy international endeavors, citing high participation in study-abroad programs and the DukeEngage pilot program last summer as examples of successful global education.
Still, Brodhead said Duke should create a unified plan to establish a more vibrant international community on campus.
"We need international efforts to become more concerted and strategic," he said. "The time comes to ask if these vibrant parts could make a greater whole."
Following the president's report, McClain spoke about the council's commitment to ensuring that the views of faculty members remain consequential on campus.
"Each of us is essential to Duke's excellence," she said.
McClain said recent events on campus have challenged the values of the faculty, and added that the academic community must work to rebuild a sense of unity.
"'The time for healing of the wounds has come.... The time to rebuild is upon us.'" McClain said, quoting Nelson Mandela.
In other business:
A doctor of nursing practice degree and a joint Ph.D. program in German studies with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill were proposed at the council's meeting.
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