EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State University has honored 10 individuals who have advanced international studies and programs and contributed to international understanding in the community.
Winners of the 1999 international awards were announced recently at the ninth annual International Awards ceremony, held on April 14 at the Kellogg Center.
The recipients and their awards are:
- Evangelos A. Petropoulos, professor of physiology and director of the Institute of International Health at MSU - Ralph H. Smuckler Award for Advancing International Studies and Programs at MSU.
- John (Jack) Schwille, professor of teacher education and director of international studies in education at MSU - Ralph H. Smuckler Award for Advancing International Studies and Programs at MSU.
- Khaled M.R. Abdulghani, former mayor of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and chairperson of the board of AZM Contracting - Joon S. Moon Distinguished International Alumni Award.
- Barbara Fuller, reverend and co-director of the Interfaith Council for Peace & Justice, Ann Arbor, Mich. - Glen L. Taggart Award for Community Contribution to International Understanding.
- Samuel Asuming-Brempong, doctoral student in agricultural economics - Homer Higbee Award for International Educational Exchange.
- Carolyn O'Mahony, doctoral student in teaching and educational policy - Homer Higbee Award for International Educational Exchange.
- Wei Megs Tan, student in communications - Homer Higbee Award for International Educational Exchange.
- Krystal S. Shepard, student in special education - Homer Higbee Award for International Educational Exchange.
- Lois Sollenberger, chairperson of scholarship committee of Community Volunteers for International Programs - Homer Higbee Award for International Educational Exchange.
A special recognition award was given posthumously to Blake Wales Hendee Smith, former specialist in the Department of Family Practice at MSU.
RALPH H. SMUCKLER AWARD FOR ADVANCING INTERNATIONAL STUDIES AND PROGRAMS AT MSU
EVANGELOS A. PETROPOULOS
Evangelos Petropoulos has received an M.D. and a Ph.D. in experimental medicine from the University of Athens Medical School and a Ph.D. in endocrinology from the University of California. Currently he serves as the director of the Institute of International Health at Michigan State University and is a professor of physiology.
Petropoulos has built the international health program at MSU with funds obtained from foreign governments, international organizations, U.S. federal agencies and private foundations. Through this institute he has facilitated international cross-cultural connections among faculty members from every college on the MSU campus. Many of the cross-college research and teaching projects on campus today originated from the intellectual communication and collegiality cultivated by Petropoulos.
During the past 10 years Petropoulos has developed numerous mutually beneficial international health programs between MSU and the rest of the world. These programs include the Minority International Research Training Grant, the Cardiovascular Health Program in Eastern Europe, and the Environmental Health Program in the Balkans. In addition, he has conducted extensive research in southern Africa on child survival and the prevention of AIDS. Petropoulos is the author of over 50 professional publications and has served on a number of international committees for health and education planning/implementation, including the World Health Organization and the Organization of African Unity. Petropoulos also has served as the dean of the School of Medicine at the University of Zimbabwe, an International Fellow of Primary Health Care and Health Care Management for the W. K. Kellogg Foundation, and project coordinator for two major USAID efforts in Egypt and Bulgaria.
RALPH H. SMUCKLER AWARD FOR ADVANCING INTERNATIONAL STUDIES AND PROGRAMS AT MSU
JOHN (JACK) SCHWILLE
Jack Schwille received an A.B. degree from Harvard University and a Ph.D. in comparative sociology and politics of education from the University of Chicago. Currently he serves as the assistant dean, International Studies in Education at Michigan State University. He also is professor of educational policy and social analysis in the Department of Teacher Education and adjunct professor in the Department of Sociology.
Schwille's research in West Africa on how to provide effective organizational support and incentives for teachers to take more responsibility for their own development has pioneered an approach to in-service education based on needs expressed by teachers themselves. The program began as a pilot program funded by the World Bank and has now expanded and is operational throughout Guinea and held in high esteem within the World Bank. Schwille also has participated in the international planning committee for the design of the second International Association for Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) cross-national civic education study, which involved 20 participating countries. Schwille also is the director of the MSU subcontract to Harvard University for the USAID-funded BRIDGES project, which focuses on research on the quality of primary education in developing countries. He also serves as the BRIDGES team coordinator in Burundi.
Schwille has served on the boards of numerous organizations, including the National Academy of Sciences, the Comparative and International Education Society, the Committee on International Relations, the American Educational Research Association, and the Board on International Comparative Studies in Education.
In addition to these activities, Schwille is a professor of comparative education and has played a lead role in developing, staffing and supporting one of the first transcollegiate courses "Growing Up and Coming of Age in Three Societies." Schwille continually encourages colleagues to include international components. He also carries a heavy load of doctoral advisees, averaging 12 committees a year while chairing three to four dissertations.
JOON S. MOON DISTINGUISHED INTERNATIONAL ALUMNI AWARD
KHALED M. R. ABDULGHANI
Abdulghani received both an M.A. and a Ph.D. in civil engineering from Michigan State University. After completing his degree and returning to Saudi Arabia, Abdulghani became the mayor of the city of Jeddah from 1987 to 1997. As mayor, Abdulghani was recognized by national, regional and international organizations with more than150 certificates.
Abdulghani received the first-place award from Arab nations for his improvements to the environment of Jeddah. His extensive landscaping, development of an improved wastewater collection system and beautification of the city won him that award over 400 other cities that competed. He received the same honor in another year for his efforts in preserving the history of Jeddah.
Abdulghani's efforts to improve the public transit system in Jeddah were recognized by an international award of excellence from the International Mass Transit Association in Washington, D.C. He also has received accolades for his housing expansion center to accommodate visitors en route to Mecca during the Haj.
Prior to being selected as mayor of Jeddah, Abdulghani served as assistant professor at the King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals for four years where he served on the Council of Deans. He then became assistant deputy minister of transportation for Saudi Arabia. In 1998 Abdulghani became chairman of the board of AZM Contracting, which works in environmental remediation. Abdulghani also serves on the boards of several charities and non-profit science organizations.
GLEN L. TAGGART AWARD FOR COMMUNITY CONTRIBUTION TO INTERNATIONAL UNDERSTANDING
BARBARA FULLER
Barbara Fuller is a graduate of the University of Michigan and the University of Chicago Theological Seminary and was ordained by the Michigan Region of the Christian Church and Memorial Christian Church in Ann Arbor in 1980. Both she and her husband, retired pastor Russell Fuller, are employed by the Interfaith Council for Peace and Justice, a local organization that promotes world peace and understanding.
In 1946 Fuller served as the chairperson of the World Student Service Fund, a student group that worked to raise money for students in Europe struggling to overcome the consequences of World War II. In the years that followed she continued helping youth activities by serving as the campus minister assistant at the University of Michigan and as a youth minister at the University Church in Chicago. She also has served as a member of both the General Board of the Christian Church and the Council on Religious Affairs at the University of Michigan. From 1968-1971 she was the president of the Disciples Peace Fellowship.
In 1965 Fuller and other religious leaders launched an interfaith organization which would facilitate the objections of the religious community to the Vietnam War. That organization still exists and now has five major programs of peace and justice work. After the Vietnam War, she led 13 separate delegations to Vietnam to promote peace and reconciliation. These delegations visited national and local government officials, churches, private citizens and non-governmental organizations.
HOMER HIGBEE AWARD FOR INTERNATIONAL EDUCATIONAL EXCHANGE
SAMUEL ASUMING-BREMPONG
Samuel Asuming-Brempong has compiled an impressive academic record while at MSU and at the same time has contributed significantly to the community. He is completing a Ph.D. in agricultural economics.
As a teaching assistant, Asuming-Brempon's energy and enthusiasm has raised students' international awareness and interest in international development issues. As an articulate spokesperson for Africa, he is continually invited to speak to classes.
Asuming-Brempong has provided leadership to numerous academic organizations on campus. He is a board member of the Society for International Development and president of the Graduate Student Organization in the Department of Agricultural Economics. He also is a member of the department's Graduate Policy Committee.
He is a graduate student representative on the Academic Council and the University Committee on Academic Environment.
He has been extremely active in the African community, serving as president of the African Christian Fellowship, Training of Disadvantaged African Children (TODAY) International, and the Association of Ghanaians and Friends, Greater Lansing Area.
Recently Asuming-Brempong assisted the African Studies Center in exploring the possibility of a study abroad program between MSU and the University of Ghana Legon.
He has volunteered to help the new international students as they arrive on campus. He has made numerous presentations to Lansing/East Lansing schools under Community Volunteers for International Program (CVIP) Speakers Bureau Program.
HOMER HIGBEE AWARD FOR INTERNATIONAL EDUCATIONAL EXCHANGE
CAROLYN O'MAHONY
As an experienced teacher, not only in her native New Zealand, but also in the inner city of London, and in international schools in Paris and Yokohama, Carolyn O'Mahony brings a large view of the world to the College of Education where she is working on her Ph.D. in curriculum, teaching and educational policy.
She is a member of the planning committee for LATTICE: Linking All Types of Teachers to International Cross-Cultural Education, which works to promote and support efforts at cross-cultural understanding in local K-12 schools.
O'Mahony's contributions include active participation in orientation programs for international students and teaching assistants and in the Intercultural Communication Workshop sponsored by the Office for International Students and Scholars.
She also is on the Board of The State News, MSU's student newspaper, where she works to assure that issues of diversity at both the local and international level are being addressed and structures are being put into place that will help ensure cross-cultural understanding.
HOMER HIGBEE AWARD FOR INTERNATIONAL EDUCATIONAL EXCHANGE
WEI MEGS TAN
Wei Megs Tan is a senior communications major from Malaysia. She is a creative and energetic leader making a difference in the campus community. Along with her academic achievements, she has volunteered for many activities that enrich the lives of students at Michigan State and allowed her to put her interest in communication into practice.
For the last several years Wei Megs Tan worked with new international students. As a coordinator of orientation activities, she specialized in recruiting and training the 200 volunteers who work during orientation week for the Office of International Students and Scholars. She was a panel member for numerous programs, including the On-Campus Employment Seminar for international students.
As a volunteer for the Community Volunteers for International Programs (CVIP) Gobal Festival, she was in charge of the Game Room, visited by nearly 500 area children this year. This past year she was chosen to be the emcee for cultural performances at the festival.
She was chosen as an international teaching assistant for the interpersonal communication laboratory course in her department, and served as treasurer of the Undergraduate Communication Association. She was the association's first international student executive board member. Her visibility encouraged other international students to participate and helped to recruit more members for the association.
She is a member of the Golden Key National Honor Society. She is also treasurer and public relations chairperson for the nationality club, International Chinese Entity.
HOMER HIGBEE AWARD FOR INTERNATIONAL EDUCATIONAL EXCHANGE
KRYSTAL S. SHEPARD
Krystal S. Shepard entered MSU as a freshman with the desire to change the world. Now, as a junior majoring in special education, she remembers her first major international experience when she was chosen as the only high school senior and African-American delegate of the Michigan Chapter of the Anti-Defamation League. As a result, she was sent to Israel for two weeks, where she had the opportunity to interview many students and families who were victims of the strife in the area.
Shepard is on a constant quest to expand her knowledge of diversity and to promote cross-cultural understanding. She has extended herself to others through her membership in the Multi-Racial Unity Project and as an English tutor. As a resident assistant she has planned international educational programs for the students in her housing area. Her students have learned to respect others and have developed an interest in having more cross-cultural programs.
She also is a member of Phi Beta Delta Honor Society for International Scholars. She has participated in study abroad in London and with Michigan State's Alternative Spring Break Program in Merida, Mexico.
HOMER HIGBEE AWARD FOR INTERNATIONAL EDUCATIONAL EXCHANGE
LOIS SOLLENBERGER
Lois Sollenberger has been a member of the Community Volunteers for International Programs (CVIP) since 1991 when she joined as co-chair of its scholarship committee. As she has moved into greater and greater responsibility as chairperson, she has made her committee work a full-time operation. She collects and stores the international items suitable for re-sale at the annual Global Festival in November. Her initiative produced contributions and sales exceeding $4,400 at the 1998 Global Festival.
The longevity of the program has been assured by Sollenberger's initiative in establishing an endowment fund for the continuation of the scholarships. She is currently responsible for the administration and the award of scholarships to eligible applicants. These grants have made it possible for the growing number of MSU international spouses to share in the academic benefits of the university.
She is also an active member of CVIP's Every Tuesday Committee, which offers opportunities for interaction and friendship between many of the international spouses and their children with CVIP members.
SPECIAL RECOGNITION
BLAKE WALES HENDEE SMITH
Blake Smith received a Master of Public Affairs with a focus on international politics from Princeton University and a Ph.D. in administration and higher education from Michigan State University. He was a specialist in the Department of Family Practice at MSU until the date of his death, which was Aug. 18, 1998. Smith was active in developing collaborative programs with Jamaica, Japan, Thailand, and Vietnam, and provided support to the Institute of International Health since its inception at MSU. He also served as an Africa-Asia Public Service Fellow at the Pakistan Academy for Rural Development in East Pakistan.
In the Department of Family Practice, he helped foster a program in which international health and development experts worked with MSU specialists to establish planning programs for improving life in Benton Harbor, Mich. Smith pioneered the development of a primary care development program with Japan, which over the past three years has brought Japanese physicians to MSU to participate in the Methods in Family Medicine Education Training Program. He also was instrumental in developing a Vietnamese interest group on campus that encompassed experts in the fields of health, agriculture, education and forestry.
Smith led a team that obtained a grant to establish an experimental course on primary health care in developing countries. The course has since been implemented at Michigan State University and the universities of Wisconsin and Minnesota. He also coordinated the development of a course for first- and second-year medical students, Primary Health Care in Developing Countries, which has been taught for 11 years at MSU and provided over 130 students with an opportunity to focus on international health issues.