Courtesy of Bennett College
The Bennett College Center for Global Studies welcomed 21 participants in the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) to campus. University presidents and senior administrators from African universities in Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, Tunisia, Senegal, South Africa, Benin, Democratic Republic of Congo, Burkina Faso and Liberia engaged in dialogue with Bennett College faculty, Fulbright Teaching Assistants, Global UGrads and student leaders, often speaking through interpreters that travel with the IVLP group.
The schedule included presentations, meetings with faculty and student leaders, a campus tour, and discussions of potential partnerships and exchange opportunities. The international visitors learned about many of Bennett’s ongoing initiatives, including our Fulbright partnership, the Women’s Business Center collaboration, Bennett’s Green Team initiatives, campus aquaponics, and the About Love Scholarship, Strada Scholars, and the Peloton partnership.
The IVLP is the U.S. Department of State’s premier professional exchange program. Through short-term visits to the United States, current and emerging foreign leaders, in a variety of fields, experience this country firsthand and cultivate lasting relationships with their American counterparts.
Since 1940, with the help of a dedicated network of community-based non-profit organizations, the IVLP has introduced over 225,000 participants from a variety of fields to communities throughout the United States.
Over 500 IVLP participants have ultimately become heads of state or government employees in their home countries, proving that this opportunity to develop relationships with emerging leaders creates long-term global influence.
We were honored to host the IVLP participants during their stay, and we hope to welcome more groups in the future as we continue to build networks and strengthen city-to-city diplomacy.
