VCC Magazine Summer 2020

V irginia C apitol C onnections , S ummer 2020 19 As we turn to the 2020-21 academic year, it is evident that the impact of COVID will not abate for some time. Uncertainty abounds with regard to how colleges and universities will open, the sustainability of global education, and the status and careers of our international students. The three are closely related. To begin, it is vital to do whatever is necessary to maintain global education as an integral part of college and university life. Sending American students abroad and welcoming international students to our universities is an established part of American higher education. According to Open Doors, Virginia hosted 20,452 international students in 2019. In terms of Virginia’s current population, that is like adding another city the size of Christiansburg or Culpeper to the commonwealth. Put differently, if all those international students were in one university, it would be bigger than UVA. In 2017-18, Virginia schools sent 12,373 students abroad—essentially, the population of Mount Vernon or Martinsville. Needless to say, Virginia—and, frankly, all states—is highly invested in global education. Whether motivated by cruelty or myopia, the new guidance proposed by ICE threatened to deport our international students if COVID forced universities to go online. In response to the lawsuit spearheaded by Harvard and MIT, the administration rescinded the new guidelines on 14 July. Notwithstanding the proposed policy’s victimization of our international students, it is clear that the policy took no account of the negative impact such a deportation would have had on state and local economies. A pretense of the rescinded guidelines was that online (or, at least, anything short of fully classroom-based) learning did not justify the presence of international students in the USA. As a result, the definition of what constitutes a fully-enrolled student has become a highly charged matter. Certainly, COVID forces universities to continue to offer classes in online and hybrid formats. But, for some time, universities have experimented with and incorporated new teaching modalities as they have expanded curricula to include high-impact practices such as internships, experiential learning, and community-based learning. Along with lab courses, the rise of educational gaming and other digital coursework, these high-impact practices have taken students out of the classroom or online as part of the dynamic transformation of higher education. All of these modalities have become part of the “normal” breadth of university education. Yet, as demonstrated by the government’s attempt to threaten the status of our international students, higher education must now pause to clarify standards and definitions for the new teaching modalities that constitute integral parts of 21st century higher education. Educators must therefore update the terms by which we conduct higher education and, as demonstrated by ICE’s attempted attack on international students, to protect all involved from those who would use vagaries to undermine higher education’s mission. COVID has exposed the fragility of the American model of higher education. Even the best-endowed institutions depend tremendously on the flow of tuition, room and board to sustain their annual operating budgets. The same goes for the many study abroad organizations that make it possible for thousands of American students to go abroad each year. Many have closed for the year. Many are uncertain if they will reopen. This threatens the sustainability not only of the traditional, campus-based model of education but of global education in general. There is a world beyond the campus and classrooms. Even the best virtual reality technology cannot substitute for being somewhere, dealing with real people, in person. Through the global exchange of students, nations export their values and their cultures and make it easier to collaborate to tackle everything from poverty to climate change to space exploration. Similarly, nations import a greater understanding of other nations’ cultures and values. This is a formula for peace, understanding and education. But that formula will fail if it is limited to a small number of CEOs or foreign ministers. By making it possible for students of all backgrounds to deepen and broaden their educations and understanding of other cultures, global education sows the seeds of peace that enhances the capacities of those CEOs and foreign ministers to succeed. And, as noted above, it benefits the local economies of all nations. It may take decades to assess the impact of COVID accurately. Unquestionably, colleges and universities can and should play a key role in making that assessment. To play that role, our institutions of higher education must reconsider and strengthen relations with their communities, clarify the terms by which we conduct teaching and research, and protect the important investment in global education. Dr. Mark Rush, Stanley D. and Nikki Waxberg Professor of Politics and Law; and Director of International Education at Washington and Lee University, writes and teaches extensively on voting rights and elections around the world, constitutional issues, and religion. His current research addresses the intersection of law, science, and religion, academic integrity, and statistical analysis of baseball. Reflections on Higher Education and International Education in the Time of COVID By Mark Rush, P h .D. There is a world beyond the campus and classrooms. “ ” Floyd's death) proposals to break down racial disparities not only in criminal justice but also in education, housing, voting, and healthcare access. Virginia can be the change sought by so many at this time. It can do that by the good will and action of people who not only state their belief in our collective humanity but go beyond to insist that those in positions to activate solutions do just that. Virginia has more historic reasons than most to lead on fixing racial injustice and inequity in all its forms and Ready to Lead, Virginia? from page 15 effects. The members of the Commission to Examine Racial Inequity in Virginia Law are glad to do our part. Cynthia E. Hudson is an attorney with Sands Anderson. She assists state and local governments regarding dispute resolution, employment law, and compliance with government administration statutes, among other things. She chairs the Governor’s Commission to Examine Racial Inequities in Virginia Law. Dr. Brenda D. Long Executive Director (540) 760-2504 FAX (540) 961-4392 email brendalong73@gmail.com www.virginiaacte.org V V