The Summer 2010 issue of Howard magazine focuses on the topic of “Merging Global and Local Perspectives” and the university’s dedication to upping the number of minority students who study abroad:

“Howard is committed to doing its part to increase the number of African-American students and people of color studying abroad,” Betty Aikens [director of the Ralph J. Bunche International Affairs Center at Howard] says. “We are a leader in this area, but we must continue to do more.”

Howard is working to boost the number of minorities who study abroad (only four per cent of the 260,000 Americans studying abroad were African-American, according to 2009 IIE Open Doors statistics) by offering a range of opportunities in a variety of disciplines. These include business study in London, engineering service-learning projects in Panama, Brazil, and Kenya, social work and development studies in South Africa, and liberal arts studies in “scores” of countries ranging from Europe to the Middle East to the Caribbean.

The cover article also mentions U.S. government efforts to increase American study abroad participation, noting in particular the pending Sen. Paul Simon Study Abroad legislation and the State Department’s very successful Gilman program.

This issue of Howard also features pieces on the first Edmund S. Muskie fellow researching and studying at Howard, Diplomat-in-Residence Barbara Cummings’ efforts to recruit more minority students into the Foreign Service, and profiles of Howard alumni working in international affairs around the globe.