Mason's School of Public Policy in the World

George Mason University is known for its diversity of students and subject matter. In 2006, the university received the Andrew Heiskell Award from the Institute of International Education. The award recognized the university’s contribution to international education and its services and support for international students.

When asked to participate in Mason’s Celebration of International Education event on April 8, the School of Public Policy (SPP) was faced with the daunting task of briefly summarizing its many international contributions.

Results can be seen in the map below and following are some highlights of SPP’s global presence.

Australia: Professor Tojo Thatchenkery presents “Endogeny within the Endogenous” (cowritten with Professor Jessica Heineman-Pieper) at the International Workshop on Regional Endogenous Development.

Austria: Professor Jack Goldstone participates in an international conference on resistance and decline in empires.

Beijing: Associate Dean Roger Stough presents “Principles of Leadership in Regional Development: Applications to Chinese Development Experience” at the Chinese Leadership Assessment Center.

Berlin: Professor Desmond Dinan holds a Jean Monnet Chair and is honored at a European Union conference hosted by the German government. The EU Commission notes his significant contributions to teaching awareness on the European integration process.

Chile: Professor Tojo Thatchenkery presents research on innovation, knowledge sharing, and appreciative intelligence at the University of Adolfo Ibanez in Santiago.

Croatia: Professor Janine Wedel presents “Shadow Elite: The Privatization of Power,” sponsored by the Faculty of Law at the University of Zagreb, the Croatian Sociological Association, and the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung.

European University Association: Professor A. Lee Fritschler serves as the only non-European on Steering Committee.

Garmish, Germany: Professor Jack Goldstone lectures on military operations in fragile states at the Marshall Center for Security Studies.

Germany: Professor Jeremy Mayer travels throughout Germany as part of a State Department-sponsored trip and presents “Politics at the Speed of Light: The Effect of the New Media on American Political Campaigns” to academics, journalists, and policymakers.

Greece: Dean Kingsley Haynes receives a Regional Science Association International Fellows Award at the European Regional Science Association meeting.

Haiti: Professor David F. Davis conducts research in support of the State Department to collect expert knowledge for the Haitian Stabilization Initiative.

Hungary: Professor Zoltan Acs receives a honoris causa doctor from the University of Pecs for scholarly work and data development activity on the General Entrepreneurship Monitor and his development of an entrepreneurship program at the university.

India: Professor Ramkishen Rajan researches Indian macroeconomic policies as part of his appointment by India’s National Institute for Public Finance and Policy, and the Ministry of Finance’s Department of Economic Affairs.

Ireland: Professor A. Lee Fritschler, appointed by the government of Ireland, decides on allocation of science research money to universities in Ireland, serves on the awards committee for the Royal College of Surgeons, and is a board and founding member of the Irish American Higher Education Research Organization.

Istanbul: Professor Mark Rozell lectures at Faith University on the separation of church and state in the United States.

Italy: Professor Kenneth Button gives the keynote address, “Air Transport, Airports, and Regional Economic Development,” to the European Union-sponsored Conference on Guidelines for Planning the Development of Regional Airports.

London: Professor James P. Pfiffner serves as the S. T. Lee Professional Fellow at the University of London and conducts research and lectures on executive power throughout Great Britain.

Malaysia: Dean Kingsley Haynes, Associate Dean Roger Stough, and Professor Laurie Schintler present papers at conferences and conduct research in economic development and regional science.

Mason Enterprise Center: Assistant Dean Keith Segerson and Director of the Center Roger Stough host conferences at the center with participants from China, Japan, India, Europe, and the United States.

Nepal: Professor Stephen R. Ruth directs the International Center for Applied Studies in Information Technology, which oversees telemedicine, technology, and other projects. One such project was managed by Mahabir Pun, winner of the prestigious Raman Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership.

The Netherlands: Andrew Hughes Hallett advises the minister of finance on a keynote speech for the EMU (Economic and Monetary Union)@10 Conference held in Brussels and works on a project that examines challenges of the euro.

Paris: Professor David Hart participates in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development conference on international migration.

Peru: Professor Ann C. Baker teaches as part of Fulbright Program.

Poland: Professor Allison Frendak-Blume, Professor David F. Davis, and Ambassador William Farrand (ret.) conduct postconflict modeling workshops involving peace operations.

Russia: Professor Louise Shelley conducts research as director of School of Public Policy’s Terrorism, Transnational Crime, and Corruption Center.

Scotland: Professor Andrew Hughes Hallett attends quarterly meetings of the Council of Economic Advisers to the Government of Scotland.

South Korea: Professor John Petersen receives the Fulbright Distinguished Lectureship Award and will travel to Yonsei University in Seoul in spring 2009.

Sweden: Associate Dean Roger Stough receives a honoris causa doctor from the Jönköping International Business University for his scholarship in regional economic development and assistance in developing a PhD program at the university.

Tokyo: Professor Christopher Hill is member of the Super Centers of Excellence Program Review Panel for the Japan Science and Technology Agency.

United Kingdom: Professor Monty Marshall delivers to a cross-Whitehall meeting of the British government the plenary address, “Security and the Potential for Conflict,” about future security challenges in Africa.

Winnipeg, Canada: Professor Kenneth Button presents “Distance and Competitiveness: Emerging Continental Network Barriers and Strategic Partners” to the Gateway and Corridor Workshop.

A World Ignited: How Apostles of Ethnic, Religious, and Racial Hatred Torch the Globe: Professor Susan J. Tolchin and her husband, journalist Martin Tolchin, write about the rise of anti-Americanism and hatred around the globe. The couple lectures extensively on this topic nationally and internationally.

In addition to the faculty international contributions highlighted above, SPP enrolls many international students. The SPP Graduate Admissions Office even began recruiting in Asia this year.

SPP also offers many international academic program opportunities, such as the Study Abroad Program, which gives students the ability to study in Africa, China, Costa Rica, England, India, Mexico, Southeast Asia, and Turkey. Other SPP offerings, such as the executive education programs, focus on such topics as international affairs involving the European Union, higher education policy for international and emerging trends in Asia and the Middle East, international finance and economics, and public policy courses developed for India’s Management Development Institute.