Spring Arbor University welcomes students and faculty from Russia for the inaugural Russian-American Symposium on Teaching and Learning Civic Engagement. This event takes place Nov. 9-12, on Spring Arbor University’s main campus and at Michindoh Conference Center. The community is welcome to attend the complimentary sessions.

Faculty members from Nizhny Novgorod, a Russian state university, and Spring Arbor University will be presenting papers about civic engagement.

The symposium will open with a welcome address by Spring Arbor University’s James Coe, Gainey School of Business dean, and Naomi Larsen, School of Arts and Sciences dean. The day will then include two sessions of presentations, the first at Michindoh Conference Center and the second in the Poling Center for Global Learning and Leadership on the campus of Spring Arbor University. Three more sessions will follow with a closing ceremony scheduled for 11:30 a.m. on Thursday, Nov. 12. View the complete schedule [PDF].

According to Coe, when the government in Russia changed, so did many traditional teaching areas. One area in which Russian faculty and students alike know very little is volunteering and working to improve social issues in their communities. “Several Spring Arbor professors began to discuss this topic and decided that a mutual sharing of ideas would benefit both universities—our faculties and, ultimately, our students,” says Coe, who has had close ties with faculty at Nizhny Novgorod for several years.

Globalizing the University
This symposium marks another international initiative at Spring Arbor University. In October 2008, Charles Webb, SAU president, announced in his inaugural address his plan to continue the globalization of Spring Arbor University. This symposium is just one more example of the University’s follow-through to Webb’s plan.

“The entire SAU community benefits each time we have international visitors to our campus,” says Coe. “Tuesday evening, students can interact with the Russian visitors at the Poling Center to learn more about their culture and education system.”

Last month, Spring Arbor University also signed a five-year agreement to continue the academic exchange relationship with Wuhan University of Technology, which began in 2002.

For more information about the Russian-American Symposium, contact Coe at james.coe@arbor.edu or Larsen at naomi.larsen@arbor.edu.