Purpose of the Project
As a U.S. State Department grant funded project, the primary goal is to foster a partnership that aims to promote academic interchange between Karakoram International University (KIU) in Gilgit, Pakistan and the University of Oregon (UO) by bringing faculty members into conversation about research and teaching, especially regarding innovative curricular development at KIU in environmental sustainability and entrepreneurship.
Project Activities
Over the course of three years:
- Five groups of four KIU faculty members each will spend approximately three months at the UO. During this time, they will focus on working with UO research and teaching faculty, as well as professional development staff on curriculum development and academic scholarship
- In turn, five groups of UO faculty members and professional development staff each will spend approximately two weeks at KIU working with teaching faculty and professional development staff to review curricular and program developments
- Establish an interdisciplinary Center for Environmental Sustainability; this may be incorporated into the existing IMARC (Integrated Mountain Area Research Centre) but with a distinct mandate
- Establish a Teaching Effectiveness program and an English institute to assist KIU faculty as part of establishing a Continuing Faculty Professional Development Center
- Explore possibilities to establish a Center for Sustainable Entrepreneurship at KIU
- Develop and enhance library resources at KIU to increase access to information for students and faculty
- Provide funding for professional equipment as identified in the course of the partnership
All exchanges will explore potential research collaborations. The Partnership will strive to develop enduring academic and institutional relationships that will persist after the grant period concludes.
For more details, click here to read the official project announcement.
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