Recent News

Incoming SIS Student Awarded Scholarship for African Development Project

Tina Dicks, incoming student to the School of International Studies (SIS), has been awarded the first ever Wes & Lou Watkins Matthew 25:40 Scholarship. Tina, whose focus area in SIS will be Human Development, Society & Education and who will also be a Peace Corps Master’s International student, will travel to Sierra Leone this summer to develop 4-H- and FFA-type programs for the country’s large youth population (over 50%). Congressman and Regent Watkins have endowed four Matthew 25:40 Scholarships to incentivize students to travel abroad taking projects to developing countries. Congressman Watkins presented the check for the endowed scholarships to OSU President Burns Hargis at the 10^th Anniversary Celebration of SIS in April. Tina’s project is especially dear to Congressman Watkins because of his heavy involvement in FFA as a youth. In fact, he credits FFA with being the vehicle that opened his eyes to a world that eventually led to him becoming a US Representative from Oklahoma. Tina is the daughter of SIS Faculty Member, Dr. Mike Dicks, in the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources.

On June 18^th, Congressman Wes Watkins (right) presented Tina Dicks (left) with the first ever Wes & Lou Watkins Matthew 25:40 Scholarship.

10th Anniversary - School of International Studies

On April 9^th, dignitaries from around the world were welcomed to the Wes Watkins Center to honor the School of International Studies for its first decade of service to OSU and its students. This year also marked the 17^th installment of the Wes Watkins Distinguished Lectureship, where H.E. Dr. Adnan Badran, former Prime Minister of Jordan and OSU alumnus, was the featured speaker. In addition to the Lectureship, SIS celebrated its 10^th Anniversary with a morning reception for Japanese Consul General at Houston, the Honorable Tsutomu Osawa, and afternoon panels that covered Foreign Policy, the Economy and African issues. The morning reception welcomed members of Stillwater’s Sister Cities Council and Oklahoma’s Secretary of State, the Honorable M. Susan Savage. The afternoon panels were chaired by Dr. James Scott, head of OSU’s Political Science Department (Foreign Policy); Dr. Stephen Miller, director of SIS’s Graduate Program (the Economy); and, Dr. Stephan Wilson, dean of OSU’s College of Human Environmental Sciences (African issues). For the list of the panels’ distinguished participants, click here. The day ended for the public with the dedication of the Wes Watkins Center Global Plaza where OSU Regent Andrew Lester, National Sister Cities Chairman Michael Hyatt, OSU Regent Lou Watkins and the Honorable Wes Watkins spoke. That evening, a special reception and dinner were held for the speakers during the day’s events.

H.E. Dr. Adnan Badran, former Prime Minister of Jordan and OSU alumnus, was the featured speaker for the 2009 Wes Watkins Distinguished Lectureship and SIS 10th Anniversary Celebration. For more pictures of the day’s events, please click the link to the right. To order any pictures (from Party Pix) of the event, click here then choose Watkins - SIS - 10YR CELEBRATION 4.9.09 under Search Results

OSU Students Garner Two Fulbright Awards

The Fulbright Resource Center within the School of International Studies has helped two more students attain a prestigious Fulbright grant. Fulbright Teaching Assistantships were announced April 28th for Andrew Moore and Emily Lehenbauer. Wanting to increase its efforts to help students through the extensive application process for Fulbright grants, OSU created the Fulbright Resource Center and made it a unit of SIS. Last year, OSU put forth six applications, and this year, it doubled that number to twelve. For more information about OSU’s Fulbright efforts and application process, visit http://fulbright.okstate.edu. To read about this year’s awardees and the projects for which they were awarded their Fulbright grants, click here…

2009 OSU Student Fulbright Winners Andrew Moore(l) and Emily Lehenbauer (r).

SIS Alumnus & Oklahoma State Representative Speaks to Contemporary Issues Class

Cory Williams, alumnus of the School of International Studies’ Graduate Program, was elected in November 2008 to serve as State Representative for Oklahoma’s District 34, which includes Stillwater. On April 23rd, he visited with SIS’s Contemporary Issues class to talk with students about his experience as a student in the Program and how it prepared him for what he is doing now in state politics. Williams’ election to state government further strengthens OSU’s position in state politics. In addition to Rep. Williams’ election to the State House, former OSU President (and former professor of SIS’s Contemporary Issues class), Dr. James Halligan, was elected to serve in the State Senate representing District 21.

Representative Cory T. Williams, Oklahoma District 34

OSU-Mexico Liaison Office Assists with CEAT Faculty Travel to Mexico City and Puebla

From March 24 to March 28, 2009, Dr. Alan Tree, Associate Dean and Professor of Chemical Engineering; Dr. Dan Fisher, Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace; Dr. John Veenstra, Head of Civil & Environmental Engineering and Dr. Martin Hagan , Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering traveled to Mexico City and Puebla Mexico.

In Mexico City, they visited with officials of the Ministry of Public Education, the Mexican Foundation for Education, Technology and Science and the National Council of Science and Technology, CONACYT (Mexican Equivalent to NSF). They also met with faculty and administrators from the top Public Higher Education Institutions in the city: UNAM, IPN, UAM.

Dr. Alan Tree, Associate Dean and Professor of Chemical Engineering; Dr. Dan Fisher, Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace; Dr. John Veenstra, Head of Civil & Environmental Engineering and Dr. Martin Hagan , Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering traveled to Mexico City and Puebla Mexico.