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There seems little doubt that Carolina should strive to become more of an
international university.
On Nov. 16, during a specially called meeting of the General Faculty in Gerrard
Hall, faculty members focused on whether a proposed undergraduate business
degree program in the Middle Eastern country of Qatar should be part of that
quest.
The hour-long discussion ended with a resolution endorsing the proposal. It
passed with 44 in favor, 25 against and nine undecided. The resolution is meant
to advise Chancellor James Moeser, who will ultimately decide whether to create
the program. His decision will be made in consultation with University
trustees, faculty and students.
The Qatar proposal involves expanding how an existing bachelor's of science in
business administration degree program is offered. The conferring school and
campus would be the Kenan-Flagler Business School and Carolina, but it would be
based in Qatar.
The possibility of creating the program comes by way of an invitation from the
Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development, which would
cover all operating costs.
Moeser set the table for discussion at the Nov. 16 meeting by saying the
decision whether to accept the foundation's invitation is a complex one.
"I have yet to make up my own mind," he said, but added that the more he finds
out about the proposal the more he finds to like.
There is general agreement among faculty members that Carolina should strive to
be a global university, Moeser said, even though he had heard comments saying
that this was a university established by the people of North Carolina for the
people and questioning why the campus would go outside the boundaries of this
country.
That is a limited view, Moeser said, and a limited number of faculty and
students here seem to hold it.
Yes, Qatar is a monarchy, but it is one whose royal family is moving toward
modernization and democratic principles and women's rights, Moeser said. A
majority of the students expected to be in the class would be women from
Qatar.
If the University is to prepare students for a world that is shrinking, it must
look to expand its reach throughout the world in a way that extends and
broadens the learning and research opportunities available to faculty and
students back in Chapel Hill, Moeser said.
"I would also argue that if this was a good idea before Sept. 11th, I think it
is an even more important idea after Sept. 11th."
Several of the speakers at the Nov. 16 meeting echoed the idea of being a
beacon. If the University's mission is to spread light throughout the world,
should it not spread that light to places in the world now in darkness? A
faculty member in political science put it this way: "I don't understand how we
accomplish anything by staying home."
Other speakers questioned whether Carolina should establish a program in a
country that still lags behind Western standards of democracy. They also
questioned whether the University was pursuing the program because of the money
involved. Still others said an overseas presence wasn't needed because Carolina
already extends its reach internationally by bringing foreign students and
scholars here to the Chapel Hill campus.
Moeser said a decision would have to be made in a matter of weeks if the
University is to go forward with the project. The foundation will create a
program, he said, with or without Carolina.
Moeser said his own favorable impressions were bolstered by the survey results
of the 42 people who accompanied him on a trip to Qatar earlier this month. The
survey found that 69 percent of the people who went on the trip felt that the
University should move forward and negotiate an agreement.
Several of the trip participants spoke at the Nov. 16 meeting, saying they had
felt safe in Qatar and that they had been impressed by the country's efforts to
modernize.
A separate e-mail survey that went to all faculty in the Kenan-Flagler
Business School and the College of Arts and Sciences found overall sentiments
were roughly split -- 43 percent vs. 43 percent -- among the 305 total
respondents who responded either favorably or negatively to a question about
whether the University should begin negotiations to create the program in
Qatar.
In another effort to get input from the campus, Moeser has responded to a
proposal by Student Body President Justin Young to form a student seminar to
study what the University's mission in Qatar might be.
Students also got a chance to weigh in on the proposal at a Nov. 14 forum
sponsored by Student Government and the Campus Y. That forum attracted about
100 people, including several faculty who traveled to Qatar and helped answer
students' questions about the proposed program.
About 25 students in Qatar would be admitted into the initial class as freshmen
under the proposal. Those students would be required to meet admission
standards for both Carolina and Kenan-Flagler.
The College of Arts and Sciences would be responsible for freshmen and
sophomores in the program, and the business school would oversee the junior and
senior years of study. The University would control each aspect of the program,
from the caliber of students admitted to the curriculum they would follow.
Kenan-Flagler and Carolina would retain control over the design of the program,
non-discriminatory admissions standards of students, faculty appointments and
program management.
For more information about the Qatar proposal, go to http://www.unc.edu/chan/qatar
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