McRobbie Becomes U.S. Citizen

Indiana University President Michael McRobbie has been sworn in as a U.S. citizen, reports Inside INdiana Business. The Australian has been in the U.S. for more than a decade and was named IU president in 2007. His three college-age children, who were born in Australia, also took the oath of citizenship.

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International Conference on Cloud Computing in Indy

The second IEEE International Conference on Cloud Computing Technology and Science will be held 30 November through 3 December in the University Place Conference Center and Hotel on the campus of Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis. It is hosted by the Pervasive Technology Institute at Indiana University.

The mission of Pervasive Technology Institute is to improve quality of life in Indiana and the world by inventing, developing, deploying and delivering innovations in information technology.

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IU to Lead International Networks

The National Science Foundation is providing Indiana University with $9.2 million to lead two high-speed international network services, reports Inside INdiana Business. IU will receive $4.6 million to continue the TransPAC3 network connection to Asia and an additional $4.6 million for a new connection to Europe called ACE or America Connects to Europe.

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McRobbie Honored by Australia

The government of Australia announced yesterday (14 June) that Indiana University President Michael A. McRobbie (pictured), a native of that country, has been appointed as an Officer in the General Division of the Order of Australia, a national award signifying "distinguished service of a high degree to Australia or to humanity at large."

Recipients of the award were announced in the "honors list" published 14 June, which is the official birthday of Queen Elizabeth II of England, who is also the Sovereign of Australia. McRobbie was among 21 Australians to receive the "Officer in the General Division" designation, according to the report by the IU News Bureau.

The Order of Australia, which was created by Queen Elizabeth in 1975, is one of the highest honors an Australian can receive in recognition of outstanding or meritorious service.

McRobbie came to the United States from Australia in 1997 to serve as the university's first vice president of information technology and chief information officer. He later assumed the additional duties of vice president for research. In 2006, he was named interim provost and vice president for academic affairs at the Bloomington campus, and in 2007 he was chosen by the IU Board of Trustees to become the university's 18th president.

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IU Law Prof Moderates Water Scarcity Workshop

Professor Eric Dannenmaier (pictured) has been working with Italy’s National Research Council, Institute of Geosciences and Earth Resources, as part of the Scientific Committee responsible for designing and moderating the workshop, “Environmental Security: Workshop on Water Security, Management and Control,” set to take place in Marrakech, Morocco, 31 May through 3 June, according to the Indiana University School of Law - Indianapolis.

The workshop will convene Northern African and European government representatives and scientists to examine emerging risks to regional water resources and the potential for scarcity to generate conflict. Participants will discuss new approaches to the strategic assessment of critical factors (including land use practices, deforestation, water scarcity, and water quality) as a means to prevent domestic and international conflict. It is sponsored by NATO’s Science for Peace and Security Programme and co-hosted by Morocco’s Ministry of Higher Education.

Prof. Dannenmaier, who is Associate Professor of Law and Dean's Fellow, will chair a two-part simulation among participants to deepen their understanding of institutional roles in facing and defusing water scarcity crises. He will also present a paper in the Workshop’s opening session on “Identifying Stakeholders and Engaging Policymakers,” which examines the emerging concept of environmental security and its relevance for water scarcity and degradation concerns in the Southern Mediterranean region.

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International Jurist Comes to Indy

The Honorable Patrick Lipton Robinson (pictured), President of the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague, will be honored at a reception 14 May at the Indiana University School of Law - Indianapolis. The event will begin at 4 p.m. in room 385 at the law school, and members of the legal and international communities and the public are invited to attend.

Hon. Patrick Lipton Robinson, originally from Jamaica, has had a long and distinguished career in international law on the bench and in government service. He currently is principal advisor to the United Nations Commission on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and has served on the International Bioethics Committee, Word Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and several world and regional bodies including the Commission of Truth and Justice – Haiti.

Following introductory remarks, President Robinson will accept questions from those attending at the reception. Admission is without charge but attendees are requested to make reservations by email, or 317:274-1917.

This event is co-sponsored by the following law school groups: PIHRL, International Human Rights Law Society, Amnesty International Law Chapter, Master of Laws Association, as well as the following organizations: Human Rights Works and the Center for Victim and Human Rights.

President Robinson was invited to Indianapolis by Christian Theological Seminary where he will receive an honorary doctorate degree at the seminary commencement exercises.

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IU to Establish Offices in China

Indiana University says it will use a recently awarded $250,000 grant from the Henry Luce Foundation to establish a permanent presence in Beijing, China, reports Inside INdiana Business. Fifteen academic and research centers at IU are also providing nearly $450,000 to help the Research Center for Chinese Politics and Business (RCCPB) open offices in the Chinese capital later this year. The RCCPB will be one of the first American university-based research centers operating in China.

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Karua To Speak at IUPUI

The Honorable Martha Karua will speak on "Justice, Human Rights and National Cohesion" from 5-7 p.m. 5 April in the Wynne Courtroom of the Indiana University School of Law in Indianapolis, 530 West New York Street, Indianapolis. Ms. Karua is a Member of Parliament, former Minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs and renowned activist in the promotion of justice, accountability, women’s rights and other human rights in Kenya. Refreshments to follow in the Law School atrium.

Her appearance is co-sponsored by Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis' Office of International Affairs, Multicultural Center, Office for Women, Human Rights Works Program in International Human Rights Law at IU Law-Indianapolis, the Indiana University-Kenya Partnership and The University College.

The presentation and reception are open to the public at no charge.

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Indiana University's EU Moot Court Team Advances

A team of law students from the Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis campus has advanced to the regionals of an international moot court competition, reports the IUPUI News Bureau

Indiana University School of Law-Indianapolis students Douglas Clough, Kyle Kimble, Lumi Nodit and Nathan Seger will participate in the oral round of the European Union Law Moot Court Competition 25-27 February at the European University Institute in Florence, Italy.

The EU Moot Court Competition is an annual international event in which teams compete in a written and oral competition arguing the merits of a hypothetical case involving a series of legal questions prevalent in the European Union. The written competition involves the preparation of two written briefs, applicant and defendant in a hypothetical suit before the European Court of Justice.

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Second Annual Hunger Banquet

The Second Annual Hunger Banquet begins at 6:30 p.m. 20 February in Room 450 of the Campus Center at Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis. It's sponsored by IUPUI Campus and Global Health Student Interest Group and co-sponsored by the IUPUI Common Theme Project and by Partnership: Africa.

This is an "awareness and advocacy event", which will feature diverse cultural entertainment, sales of fair-trade Kenyan crafts from Imani Workshops, and ethnic food from restaurants around Indianapolis. Tickets are $12. All proceeds benefit IU-Kenya Orphans & Vulnerable Children Program" (pictured).

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Kenya Project Receives $5 Million to Expand Care

A partnership between Indiana and Kenya is receiving a 3-year, $5 million grant from USAID to expand health care in western Kenya, reports Inside INdiana Business. Academic Model Providing Access to Healthcare (AMPATH), a collaboration between the IU School of Medicine and Kenya's Moi University School of Medicine and Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital, will use the grant and other private funds to expand its network of clinics in the sub-Saharan nation.

AMPATH, the joint partnership between Indiana University School of Medicine, the Moi (Eldoret, Kenya) University School of Medicine and Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital, has received a 3-year, $5 million USAID supplement grant to expand health care services in western Kenya.

AMPATH – the Academic Model Providing Access to Healthcare – received a 5-year, $60 million grant from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in 2007 to prevent and treat HIV/AIDS in Kenya. AMPATH is the outgrowth of an IU School of Medicine and Moi University partnership formed 20 years ago.

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State Grant to Train ESL Teachers in Northwest Indiana

A new Indiana University School of Education program that will develop more highly-trained teachers of English as a Second Language (ESL) -- ESL Professional Communities for Expertise and Leadership Development -- has received $154,000 in funding from the Indiana Commission for Higher Education, reports the I.U. News Bureau. The grant will focus on preparing minority ESL teachers in two high-need Indiana school corporations in East Chicago and South Bend through on-site workshops, graduate courses, summer institutes and a capstone project. Pictured are (left to right) Beth Samuelson, Faridah Pawan and Michelle Greene, who will help develop more highly-trained teachers of English as a Second Language.

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Purdue, IU Team Wins Global Idea to Product Competition

GlucaGo LLC, a life sciences company led by a trio from Purdue and Indiana universities, captured the 2009 Global Idea to Product Competition and claimed the $10,000 top prize, beating 14 other teams that qualified by winning local competitions, reports the Purdue News Bureau.

The Global I2P entrepreneurship event, held 30 and 31 October in Austin, Texas, featured teams from 19 universities and eight countries: Great Britain, Portugal, Japan, Sweden, Germany, Ireland and Brazil, and U.S. competitors from Georgia, Indiana, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Texas, Colorado and New Hampshire.

In addition to winning the McCombs School of Business Global Championship category, GlucaGo received the Best Showcase overall award for developing an emergency kit that automatically mixes and injects medication for diabetics. Leading the GlucaGo team are Rush Bartlett, a doctoral student in biomedical engineering at Purdue who also is completing an MBA at IU; Arthur Chlebowski, a doctoral student in biomedical engineering at Purdue; and Peter Greco, who is pursuing an MBA from Purdue.

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IU Inks Joint JD/MBA Program with Sungkyunkwan University

Leaders from the Indiana University Maurer School of Law and Sungkyunkwan University's Graduate School of Business has announced the creation of a joint J.D./M.B.A. program believed to be the first of its kind between an American law school and an international M.B.A. program.

Candidates in the program earn both degrees in four years, and can pursue opportunities in business and law while studying in both the United States and Asia. Students will be awarded separate degrees from each institution and will be qualified to sit for the bar exam in all 50 U.S. states.

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IU Business Students Head to France

A group from the IU Kelley School of Business Indianapolis will travel to France this weekend for the school's first undergraduate study abroad program in Strasbourg, reports Inside INdiana Business.

The undergraduate students and their advisors will tour companies, visit the European government and cultural institutions, and hear presentations by European Union experts.

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IU and Notre Dame Executive Education Ranked by Financial Times

The Financial Times has ranked two Indiana business schools among the top 65 in its annual survey of international non-degree programs worldwide.

The Kelley School of Business at Indiana University (pictured) was ranked fourth among U.S. public institutions, 11th nationally and 26th overall in Executive Education.

The only other Indiana school on the list was the University of Notre Dame, which was ranked 56th overall.

The rankings are compiled from responses to two sets of questionnaires. The first is a client survey, compiled from telephone interviews of the top corporate executive education purchasers. The other is a survey of statistical data completed by the business schools. The data from the client questionnaire accounts for 80 percent of the school's final score.

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Partnership Inked Between School of Education at IUPUI and Indy Latino Groups

A partnership between the Indiana School of Education at Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis and the Indianapolis Latino community was signed last Thursday (30 April).

The memorandum of understanding formalizes the partnership and describes the creation of a unit within the School of Education's Center on Urban and Multicultural Education (CUME) at IUPUI dedicated exclusively to the study of Latino education in Indiana. Working as a federation of local neighborhood organizations, school districts, university researchers, and other key stakeholders, the unit would set and oversee implementation of a collaboratively-derived agenda built around these goals:

* Create a knowledge base on the status of Latino education in the state
* Enrich the public discourse bearing on Latino education issues
* Provide technical assistance in educational practices that work best for Latinos
* Advance policies and programs that address issues and needs.

U.S.-China Business Cooperation Conference

Indiana University and several of its research centers and schools in business, law and international studies are coming together to host an ambitious conference on U.S.-China business cooperation that is designed to assist entrepreneurs and promote the prosperity of both countries.

More than 50 speakers from China and the United States are participating in the free conference, "U.S.-China Business Cooperation in the 21st Century: Opportunities and Challenges for Entrepreneurs."

The first day of the program will take place 15 April in downtown Indianapolis; the conference will then move to the IU Bloomington campus for 16 and April.

Presenters will include Michael Barbalas, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in China; IU President Michael A. McRobbie; Vincent Mo, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of SouFun Holdings Ltd.; Daniel Wright, senior vice president of Stonebridge International and former managing director of U.S.-China Strategic Economic Dialogue; and Ling Lanfang, chairman of the board of the Silk Road Group, a diversified, 2,000-employee company based in Zhejiang Province.

Also participating will be Stephen Akard, director of international development for the Indiana Economic Development Corp.; Stephen Sterrett, chief financial officer of Simon Property Group; and scholars from IU's Kelley School of Business, Maurer School of Law, College of Arts and Sciences; Zhejiang University, the Thunderbird School of Global Management; Arizona State University and Peking University. The mayors of Indianapolis and Columbus, Ind., will offer their perspectives on economic development, as will other participants from Cummins Corp., Eli Lilly & Co., NICO Corp. and Baker & Daniels.

There is no cost to attend the conference, but registration is required. Complete information is available online. This program is part of the Initiative in Entrepreneurship and U.S.-China Business Cooperation, undertaken by IU's Research Center for Chinese Politics & Business.

The second day, which will be from 8:30 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. in Alumni Hall of the Indiana Memorial Union, 900 East Seventh Street, Bloomington, will tackle entrepreneurship issues. Panels will discuss regional entrepreneurship patterns, business innovation in China, challenges presented by the issues of globalization and protectionism and the legal and political environment.

On the third day, the Elmore Entrepreneurship Law Clinic in the IU Maurer School of Law and Kelley School of Business will present a morning-long workshop about legal services available to startups in both countries. For some, there also will be a tour of leading companies in central Indiana. In the afternoon, Vincent Mo, leader of China's largest online real estate market resource and an IU economics alumnus, will give a presentation and meet with students and others interested in China.

The conference's primary organizers are the Research Center for Chinese Politics & Business and the IU Office of the President. They are being supported by the IU Center for International Business Education and Research in the Kelley School, the College of Arts and Sciences, the IU Maurer School of Law and the offices of the vice president for international affairs and for engagement.

UPDATE (14 April 2009):
Indiana University announced that Huang Ping, consul general for the People's Republic of China in Chicago, will visit Indianapolis to participate in the conference. Also, China's deputy consul general in Chicago, Maoming Chu, will join more than 50 other speakers from the two countries at the conference.

The university also announced that the first day of the conference will be available for live viewing on the internet, from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Huang Ping will be part of an opening panel that also will include Yang Wei, president of Zhejiang University; Gregory Ballard, mayor of Indianapolis; Michael McRobbie, IU's president; Mat Orrego, president and chief executive officer of Cornerstone Information Systems; Barbara Flynn, director of the Center for International Business Education and Research in IU's Kelley School of Business; and Scott Kennedy, director of the Research Center for Chinese Politics and Business and conference organizer.

Huang has been the consul general of the People's Republic of China in Chicago since 2007. He previously served in several top positions in the Chinese government: deputy director general of the Consular Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2004-2007); vice mayor of Shaoxing in Zhejiang Province (2002-2004); counselor and consul general of the Chinese Embassy to Canada (1999-2002); division chief, Consular Affairs in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (1990-1997); and attaché and then third secretary of the Chinese Embassy to the U.S. (1988-1990). Born in 1963 in Anhui Province, Huang Ping graduated from East China Normal University. Before assuming his current position as deputy consul general in Chicago, Maoming Chu was councilor for press affairs at the Chinese Embassy to the U.S. He also has worked at the Department of Press Affairs in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Chinese Embassy to Barbados and the Chinese Embassy to St. Lucia.

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Legal Aid Center in Kenya

A legal aid organization has been established in Kenya thanks to the efforts of Judge Patricia Riley, Indiana Court of Appeals, and Fran Quigley, director of operations for the Indiana University partnership between the IU School of Medicine and Moi University in Eldoret, Kenya.

The Legal Aid Center of Eldoret (LACE) officially started in September 2008 with a small staff and initial funding from the Reuben Family Foundation and the Indianapolis Rotary Club. LACE is currently located in the hospital where the AMPATH program has IU physicians and medical students helping Kenyans living with HIV/AIDS.

Riley and Quigley, both of whom are alumni of the IU School of Law in Indianapolis, started LACE because many of the medical patients are in need of legal as well as medical help.

The law school plans to collaborate with LACE by offering a Kenyan lawyer or lawyers a full scholarship to attend the LL.M. program in Indianapolis on condition that they agree to work at least two years as a staff attorney at LACE, as well as to coordinate legal work assistance for LACE from volunteer LL.M. graduates and students while enrolled as an LL.M. student.

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IU President to Lead Delegation to Asia

Indiana University President Michael McRobbie will lead a delegation to South Korea and China later this week, according to Inside INdiana Business.

The group hopes to form new partnerships with several leading research universities during its six day visit in South Korea. Some will continue on to Beijing, where McRobbie will visit Peking University and speak at the Fifth Beijing Forum about IU's International Strategic Plan.