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International Students Study Abroad Faculty Annual Report International Studies
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Faculty Development International Seminar Visiting International Faculty Program
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Faculty Development International Seminar Malaysia Final Report Faculty Development International Seminar "MALAYSIA: CROSSROADS OF DIVERSITY IN SOUTHEAST ASIA" Prepared by: I. INTRODUCTION Macalester College has conducted to date three Faculty Development International Seminars. The first seminar was held in Hungary in the summer of 1995 with a thematic focus on "Transition and Globalization in Central and Eastern Europe". The second was conducted in Brazil in the summer of 1997 and emphasized "Landscape, Culture and Globalization". The third seminar, focusing on "Transformation and Multiculturalism in the New Millennium" took place in South Africa in January of 2000. Building on the foundations of these three seminars, a fourth seminar, in January of 2002, aims to further internationalize Macalester's brand of liberal arts education by engaging participants in an intensive intellectual and cross-cultural seminar in Southeast Asia. This fourth seminar focuses on the achievements and challenges of a country that has long been the crossroads of major civilizations: Malaysia. The format and content of the seminar is designed to fit the intellectual and cross-cultural interests of both Macalester College and our local partners by focusing on important themes and issues in the sciences, the arts, the humanities, and the social sciences. The proceedings of the Malaysia-based seminar, in the form of commissioned papers and Macalester faculty essays, will be published in Volume XI of the College journal of international studies, the Macalester International. An outline of the purpose, theme and subtopics, structure, sites and partner institutions, expectations, expenses, application and selection process, list of participants, and detailed working schedule follows. II. PURPOSE At Macalester College, the internationalization of liberal arts education, faculty (teaching staff), and administrators takes many forms. Among others, these include the hiring of tenure-track professors with diverse cultural backgrounds; the granting of sabbatical and other leaves to pursue international research; the Visiting International Faculty Program, which brings several scholars to campus for one- or two-year positions; the Faculty Exchange Program (currently with Japan); the International Roundtable, which brings diverse scholars together with our faculty, staff and students on campus each Fall semester; opportunities to be involved with study abroad programming and advising (approximately 50% of Macalester's U.S. students study overseas as part of their degree programs), and to work with an internationally diverse student body (Macalester enrolls degree-seeking students from nearly 80 countries worldwide); and other college-wide, departmental or individual undertakings which bring internationalism to campus or take faculty or administrators abroad. The January 2002 Faculty Development International Seminar had several explicit and inter-related purposes: A. To have Macalester faculty jointly explore, with host society scholars, practitioners and others, an interdisciplinary theme in a particular zone of the world;
III. THEME AND SUB-TOPICS To accomplish the explicit goals of the Seminar, presentations and activities were organized well in advance around a broad theme - Malaysia: Crossroads of Diversity in Southeast Asia - which is designed to introduce participants to the multiplicity of civilizations, cultural and intellectual achievements, and natural environments in Malaysia as a dynamic society in the Southeast Asian region. The overall theme is designed both to be focused enough to add depth to the content of the seminar and supple enough to stimulate each individual participant’s intellectual interests. Among the countries of Southeast Asia, Malaysia stands out both historically and contemporaneously in its experience to capture and illustrate some of the challenges and achievements of building a multi-civilizational society. The seminar coordinators, the participants themselves and our collaborators in the region jointly craft the sub-topics of the seminar. In broad stroke, the main areas of inquiry include the following: A. Cultural Diversity. This includes study of the Malaysian experience as a text for interpreting the challenges and successes in building a peaceful and productive society of peoples of diverse races, languages, religions and worldviews; The January 2002 Macalester Faculty Development International Seminar is designed to help ensure that participants grapple - both intellectually and through hands-on personal experience - with these and other compelling issues facing Malaysia in the context of Southeast Asia in this unfolding epoch of globalization. The Seminar is also designed to capture an important moment in Macalester College’s fundamental mission of educational excellence in the context of the inter-related ideals of internationalism, multiculturalism, and service to society. To help accomplish this, the Seminar includes carefully selected commissioned papers and guest presentations; discussions with scholars and practitioners from various fields; guided and independent visits to cultural, educational, ecological and historical sites; opportunities for independent study and collaboration with colleagues in Malaysia (or, by special arrangement, in neighboring countries); visits with host families; and various forums for sharing the experience and the learning gained through the Seminar.
IV. SEMINAR STRUCTURE The basic structure of the Seminar, as outlined in detail below, included the follow components: * Several pre-departure discussions, guest presentations, and orientation meetings at Macalester College upon confirmation of participation in May 2001 and during the Fall Semester 2001.
V. SEMINAR SITES AND PARTNERS The primary sites of the academic program, apart from those which Seminar participants may visit in conjunction with their independent projects, are two of Malaysia’s most important and attractive areas: Penang and Kuala Lumpur. The Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) in Penang and the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) in Kuala Lumpur are the Seminar’s main partner institutions. While many Malaysian scholars, professionals, and Macalester alumni play important roles in this seminar, Macalester’s key contact people in each of the two main seminar sites are: Dr. Syed Ahmad Hussein Dr. Abdul Rahim Ibrahim Dr. Jamal Hisham Hashim
VI. SEMINAR EXPECTATIONS Following are the College’s expectations of Macalester participants in this seminar: A. To engage actively in all seminar presentations, discussions, field visits, and alumni events in Malaysia, as well as in all related meetings at Macalester both prior to departure and upon return;
VII. SEMINAR EXPENSES Macalester College covers most of the direct administrative and academic costs of Seminar design, implementation and evaluation, as well as the cost of honoraria and travel for speakers and authors. Our co-sponsoring institutions in Malaysia provide facilities and other in-kind support, administrative assistance, and support toward receptions. Macalester College provides funding for the following Macalester participant expenses: * International Airfare (or equivalent funding at group rate) Macalester participants themselves will be expected to cover other costs, including: * Most dinners and some lunches
VIII. APPLICATION AND SELECTION All tenured, tenure-track, and adjunct faculty at Macalester College were invited to apply for the Malaysia seminar. In additional, two places were held for strategically identified administrator applicants. Following the April 17, 2001 application deadline, the Advisory Committee on International Studies and Internationalism (ACISI) reviewed and ranked applications and made its recommendations to the Faculty Professional Activities Committee (FPAC). Items requested in the application included the following:
IX. MACALESTER PARTICIPANTS Following are the 13 Macalester faculty and administrators participating in the Malaysia seminar: *Seminar coordinators Following are the independent study project topics of the Macalester participants:
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