President John D. Simon Speaks at International Higher Education Forum 2018

Lehigh President John D. Simon spoke in the United Kingdom on a panel at the sixth annual International Higher Education Forum 2018: “Thriving in a Shifting Global Environment,” at Nottingham Conference Centre on Wednesday, March 14, 2018.

The panel, titled “Internationalization: National Approaches,” according to its moderator Phil Baty, editorial director of global rankings at Times Higher Education, looked at “the impact of differing government approaches to internationalization on the universities in their territories.”

Prior to the panel, Baty said, “We’ll hear from the heads of leading universities in North America, Japan and Switzerland as well as a senior representative for institutions in the Pacific Rim area.”

Speakers on the panel included: Dr. Kyosuke Nagata, Vice President of JANU and President of the University of Tsukuba; Dr. Christopher Tremewan, Secretary General, Association of Pacific Rim Universities; Dr. Marilyn P. Lambert-Drache, Associate Vice-President International, York University, Canada; and Professor Michael Hengartner, President of the University of Zurich.

During the hour-long panel discussion, these highly respected institutional leaders explored visa regimes, international collaboration in research, changing demographics and international recruitment.

Along with President Simon, Cheryl Matherly, Lehigh’s vice president and vice provost for international affairs, also participated in the Forum and played a key role in President Simon’s involvement in the panel. Both remain committed to enrolling international students and hiring international faculty.

Earlier, President Simon underscored Lehigh’s commitment to providing expansive international learning experiences for students: “The free flow of students and scholars across borders is essential to the scholarly activity of our university, and international engagement remains an integral component of our mission of teaching, research and service. Lehigh is committed to attracting and retaining the best students and scholars from all over the world, and our academic community has grown and thrived as a result. We firmly believe that we are all enriched by relationships that bridge cultures and worldviews and that our community is stronger when we are bound by the principles of mutual respect, acceptance and inclusivity.”

Story by Lauren Stralo