The Office of International Advancement:  Brown News for International Alumni, Parents and Friends - June 2012: Vol. 4, No. 4
Upcoming Events

International Brown Clubs Host Brown Faculty

July 11 - Paris
Professor of Political Science John Tomasi will speak about "Free Market Fairness."
Contact: Julia Furman '06

September 5 - Rome
Professor Emeritus of Classics Kurt Raaflaub P'96 will lecture on "Peace as the Highest Good and End? The Role of Peace in Roman Thought and Politics." Contact:
Jeffrey Greenbaum '81

Facts About Brown

Brown admitted 2,760 students for the Class of 2016, 9.6 percent of the 28,742 applicants. Brown received 4,711 international applications from 141 countries; admitted 416 students from 81 countries; and enrolled 239 students from 62 countries. The top countries of admitted students are China, Canada, the United Kingdom, India, Korea, Singapore, and Brazil.

World Leaders @ Brown

Romano Prodi, former prime minister of Italy and Brown professor-at-large, delivered a lecture on "China and Europe in a Globalized World" on April 9. The lecture was co-sponsored by the Year of China initiative and the Watson Institute for International Studies.

Ricardo Lagos, former president of Chile and Brown professor-at-large, delivered a lecture titled "China and Latin America" on April 16. The lecture was co-sponsored by the Year of China initiative and the Watson Institute for International Studies.

Alumni/ae News & Notes

Bill Rhodes '57 LHD'05 hon., Brown Trustee emeritus and professor-at-large, has been meeting with world leaders and international finance ministers to advise on the current global economic situation. He is written about and interviewed widely by world media, including BBC (United Kingdom), Bloomberg, and SIC Noticias (Portugal).

Dartmouth College President Jim Yong Kim '82 DMS '09 hon. has been elected to lead the World Bank, a 187-nation organization that focuses on fighting poverty and promoting development. Kim, a Korean-born physician, is widely recognized as a global health expert for his pioneering work in advancing treatment for HIV, AIDS, and tuberculosis.

Roberta Jacobson '82 was sworn in as Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs on March 30. As assistant secretary, she is responsible for promoting U.S. interests in the region by supporting democracy, trade, and sustainable economic development.

Cushman & Wakefield, the world's largest privately held commercial real estate services firm, announced that its Chairman of the Board, Carlo Barel di Sant Albano '87, (United Kingdom), will oversee the firm's operations in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa effective July 1.

Ken Munekata '81 P'14 (Japan), former president of Sony Pictures Entertainment Japan, has been appointed president of BBC Worldwide Japan.

Brown Club News

Since 2005, the number of Brown Clubs has risen from 58 to 115. For the same period, the number of international Brown Clubs has grown from 13 to 39.

Alumni/ae History Corner

Zue Sun Bien, Class of 1912, was Brown's first Chinese graduate. Following him, a succession of Bien family members completed degrees at the University. Zue Sun Bien was appointed a James Manning Scholar for excellence in college studies in 1912, and in 1920 became manager of the Tientsin office of the Bank of China. In 2010, his diary from 1914 to 1968, with over one million Chinese characters, was published by Bien family descendants and was distributed to university libraries and scholars around the world. A copy of the diary is available at Brown's Rockefeller Library.

Brown Links

Brown Alumni Association

Friends of the Watson Institute

Giving to Brown

The Plan for Academic Enrichment

Arab Revolutions and Scholarship Conference
Brown hosted the Arab Revolutions and Scholarship Conference on April 5 and 6 at the Joukowsky Forum in the Watson Institute for International Studies. The conference brought together leading scholars to discuss what the Arab Spring means for the study of the Middle East. Asef Bayat, Brown's inaugural Aga Khan Visiting Professor in Islamic Humanities, delivered the keynote address.

Professor Bayat

Photo: Professor Bayat delivering the keynote address.
Credit: Jose Torrealba/Brown University

Year of China
On May 21, the Year of China marked the end of its yearlong exploration of Greater China's rich culture, economy, and history with a special closing ceremony. Festivities included a traditional tea ceremony in honor of President Ruth Simmons, music, and modern dance performance.

President Simmons and Professor of Physics and Director of the Year of China Chung-I Tan P'95 P'03

Photo: President Simmons (left) and Professor of Physics and Director of the Year of China Chung-I Tan P'95 P'03 at the tea ceremony at Andrews Dining Hall.

Commerce, Organizations, and Entrepreneurship Concentration to be Renamed
Brown's COE concentration will be renamed Business, Entrepreneurship, and Organizations effective July 1. Concentrators graduating in 2013 will be the first to earn degrees under the new name. The COE curriculum has undergone an extensive review by the Dean of the College, which resulted in changes that will enhance and strengthen the coursework for concentrators in all three tracks.

 
Brown in the News

Brown Ranks among Top 10 "Dream" Colleges
A survey by Princeton Review has placed Brown among the top 10 "dream" colleges in the country. The results were part of the 2012 College Hopes and Worries survey. College applicants were asked where they would go to school if money and acceptance were not factors. Brown ranked ninth on the list.

   
Granoff Center

Brown's Granoff Center for the Creative Arts among Amazing Examples of College Architecture
The Perry and Marty Granoff Center for the Creative Arts ranked number 10 among the 50 most amazing examples of college architecture by Top Colleges Online, which aims to provide college rankings for prospective students.

   

Brown Confers Honorary Degrees on Ruth Simmons, Wei Yang PHD'85, and Seven Others
During its 244th Commencement on May 27, Brown conferred honorary degrees on President Simmons; Wei Yang PHD'85, president of Zhejiang University in Hanzhou, China; and seven others.

   
Mehves Tangun

Annual International Reception at Brown
The Office of International Advancement hosted its annual reception for nearly 300 graduating international students and their families and international alumni/ae in reunion on May 26 at Rochambeau House. During the reception, Senior Regional Director for International Advancement Vijay Chitnis '94, an advisor to the Brown International Scholarship Committee (BISC), introduced Mehves Tangun '13, president of the BISC, who spoke about the scholarships for which they are raising funds. These scholarships provide financial aid for talented international students from around the world to attend Brown.

Photo: Tangun '13 addressing at the reception.

Faculty News & Notes
Professor Peter Andreas

Peter Andreas Named Interim Director of the Watson Institute
Professor of Political Science and International Studies Peter Andreas will be interim director of the Watson Institute for International Studies during the 2012-2013 academic year. Professor Andreas' work focuses on nontraditional security issues, such as border policing, transnational crime, and international crime control.

   
Director Donoghue

Brown Professors Garner Further International Attention
Director of Brown Institute for Brain Science John Donoghue PHD'79 P'09 P'12 MD'16 and Associate Professor of Engineering Leigh Hochberg are co-authors of a new study in the science journal Nature that reports that two people with tetraplegia were able to reach for and grasp objects in three-dimensional space using robotic arms that they controlled directly with brain activity. This study drew international media attention, including BBC (United Kingdom), The Globe and Mail (Canada), Globo (Brazil), iafrica.com (South Africa), la Repubblica (Italy), Sydney Morning Herald (Australia), and Tiede (Finland).

Photo: Professor John Donoghue

   

Carlos Fuentes: A Valuable, Enduring Legacy
Carlos Fuentes, the esteemed Mexican novelist and Brown professor-at-large, died on May 15 in Mexico City. Fuentes was awarded an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters by Brown in 1997 and was a much-admired member of the Brown community. He served as professor-at-large in Brown's Department of Hispanic Studies since 1996.

Student Achievements
Fulbright winners

Thirty Brown Students Win Fulbright Awards
A total of 30 Brown students and alumni have received Fulbright awards for the academic year 2012-2013. Twenty-six seniors, two recent alumni, and two graduate students who have been awarded Fulbrights will pursue course work and/or independent research projects or teach in 22 different countries.

Photo: Some of Brown's Fulbright winners.

   
Global Initiative Conference attendees

Brown Students Selected for the Clinton Global Initiative University Conference
Eleven Brown students were selected to attend the Clinton Global Initiative University Conference, which took place from March 30 through April 1 in Washington, D.C. The annual meeting brings together students, national youth organizations, topic experts, and celebrities to discuss solutions to pressing global issues. Each student who attends must participate in a Commitment to Action—an initiative to improve a specific community in the world.

Photo: Seven of the eleven Brown attendees

   
Cranes on the College Green

Brown Students Commemorate Japanese Earthquake
Throughout March and April, the Japanese Cultural Association—a student organization at Brown—organized a series of events commemorating the earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan one year ago. On March 11, the JCA invited students to place a paper crane on the College Green to show solidarity with victims of the tragedy. Other events included a talk by Japanese high school students who were orphaned during the tsunami and a lecture series titled, "Rethink, Rebuild, Remember," which featured three experts who discussed existing misconceptions about the earthquake.

Photo: Cranes on the College Green
Credit: Mike Cohea/Brown University

Collaborations & Partnerships
IE MBA Commencement

IE Brown MBA Holds Its First Commencement
Brown and Spain's IE Business School celebrated the graduation of the inaugural class of the IE Brown Executive MBA program with a ceremony on June 8 in Segovia, Spain. During the ceremony, 23 graduates from around the world received diplomas. Several senior members of the Brown administration, including Vice President for International Affairs Matthew Gutmann P'14, traveled to Spain to participate. Over the course of the 15-month program, the class took part in five face-to-face learning sessions that alternated between Brown and IE's Madrid campus, with the remainder of the learning conducted online.

Photo Credit: Juan Carlos Sastre

   
President Simmons and Sir Steve Smith

Brown and Exeter Agree to Closer Faculty Ties
President Simmons and Professor Sir Steve Smith, president of the University of Exeter, signed two memoranda of understanding, partnering for faculty exchanges under the Brown Global Forums initiative and further strengthening ties between the two universities. Brown Global Forums, an initiative of the Office of International Affairs, fosters closer research ties between Brown and select partner institutions through a short-term faculty exchange program.

Photo: President Simmons (middle) and Sir Steve Smith (right) signing the memoranda.
Credit: Molly Quinn

   
Vice President Gutmann and IMPA Director César Camacho

Brown and Instituto Nacional de Matemática Pura e Aplicada Establish Partnership
During a visit to Brazil by Vice President for International Affairs Matthew Gutmann P'14 and Regional Director for International Advancement Geoffrey Kirkman '91, Brown and the Instituto Nacional de Matemática Pura e Aplicada (IMPA), a leading mathematics research institute in Rio de Janeiro signed a memorandum of understanding on March 26 to promote exchanges, conferences, and research collaborations. David Mumford, Brown professor emeritus of applied mathematics, gave a lecture at the IMPA to celebrate the new agreement.

Photo: Vice President Gutmann (left) and IMPA Director César Camacho signing the agreement at the IMPA.
Credit: Geoffrey Kirkman '91/Brown University

   
Jane Ohlmeyer and Katherine Bergeron

Trinity College Dublin Joins Brown Plus One
Brown has partnered with Trinity College Dublin in Ireland as part of the Brown Plus One program for students interested in international study. Jane Ohlmeyer, vice provost for global relations at Trinity College, visited Brown to sign a partnership agreement on April 25. Trinity College is the third international partner in the Brown Plus One initiative, joining the University of Edinburgh and the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

Photo: Jane Ohlmeyer (left) and Katherine Bergeron, dean of the College, signing the agreement.
Credit: Frank Mullin/Brown University

   

Brown and Janaagraha Collaborate on Indian Citizen Index
Brown and Janaagraha—a nonprofit organization that aims to strengthen democracy in India—have teamed up to work on developing an index to measure the quality of citizenship in India. The Janaagraha-Brown Citizen Index can be used to compare different cities in India for their level of citizenship and also see how these levels of citizenship have changed over time. Ashutosh Varshney, Sol Goldman Professor of International Studies and Social Sciences and director of Brown-India Initiative, leads the partnership. During Brown's Commencement/Reunion Weekend, Professor Varshney also teamed up with Professor of Sociology Patrick Heller, steering committee member of the Brown-India Initiative, to deliver a lecture on key themes and objectives of the Brown-India Initiative at a Commencement Forum.

Office of International Advancement

Ron Margolin, Vice President for International Advancement and Senior Advisor for Leadership Philanthropy
Josh Taub '93, Assistant Vice President for International Advancement
Vijay Chitnis '94, Senior Regional Director for International Advancement
Geoffrey Kirkman '91, Regional Director for International Advancement
Carol Beliveau P'96, International Advancement Program Coordinator
Connie DiPanfilo, International Advancement Coordinator
Suncha Lee P'98 P'98, Coordinator for International Advisory Councils
Russell Picozzi, Executive Assistant to the Vice President and Program Manager
Theresa Saritelli, International Advancement Coordinator

For more information about the Brown University Office of International Advancement, or to unsubscribe from this newsletter, please e-mail Suncha_Lee@brown.edu. We also welcome your comments, critiques, and ideas for future issues of our newsletter.