CSU Superclusters, global study on right track

BYLINE: Jim Cooney

The April 6 op-ed piece in the Coloradoan about Colorado State University's internationalization strategy sets out two points that are easy to agree with: (1) "Internationalizing Colorado State University to address society's needs of critical priority around the world is a worthy goal;" and (2) "International education is an important emphasis in internationalizing CSU." The author goes on to criticize CSU for not understanding "critical needs" in potential areas of involvement, for supporting research that is too narrowly focused and for thinking about international education too narrowly.

Fortunately, as the author examines more closely what Colorado State University is doing to internationalize the university, I think that his concerns will be alleviated.

The Supercluster model that CSU is developing is a particularly innovative approach to advancing interdisciplinary scholarship and research to promote economic development.

Describing the role of CSU research scientists recently, President Larry Penley said, "Our Superclusters model encourages their direct collaboration with industry experts, enabling them to focus on what they do best - innovation and research into the great global challenges - and taking advantage of the corporate drive to market for that research for the benefit of the public."

Senior Vice President and Provost Tony Frank made a similar statement about MicroRx, the business arm of the Supercluster in the biomedical area. He explained, "MicroRx will translate groundbreaking scientific research from Colorado State, so that public health solutions are developed faster for the people who need them. Our primary goal is to expeditiously commercialize intellectual property for society's benefit."

In brief, Colorado State University is viewing the Superclusters as a means to solve broad, global problems. Rather than being oriented to single disciplines or colleges at CSU, as the author seems to fear, the Superclusters are, by necessity, multidisciplinary. Through the Supercluster approach, CSU is enabling groundbreaking research to move to the market as quickly as possible.

The author also criticized CSU's emphasis on international education. The importance of international education is increasingly recognized throughout the world, and CSU is a model for how a land-grant university should foster internationalization in the 21st century. Study Abroad remains critical, and the U.S. Congress passed legislation two weeks ago to authorize $80 million per year to dramatically increase the number of American students studying abroad. At CSU, more than 8 percent of our undergraduates participate in international programs before they graduate, and we hope to double that in the next few years.

Most importantly, CSU recognizes that international education takes place on many levels. We involve our students and our faculty in short-term and long-term programs. We build bridges between faculty members and disciplines. We establish institutional partnerships with other international research universities and institutes ranging from China Agricultural University, to the Nehru Center for Advanced Research in India, to the Universidad Autonoma de Yucatan in Mexico.

The Superclusters are at the forefront of these internationalization efforts at Colorado State University, and they are likely to make an important contribution to economic development and to meeting the critical needs of society globally and in Colorado.

{dcidc}Jim Cooney is the associate provost and director of International Programs at Colorado State University.