The Education Agent Issue in the US: Like a Bad Penny

It’s reminiscent of those trick candles that delight children and adults alike.  (OK, some adults.)  You blow them out and they continue to relight themselves – like magic!  While the US was late to the agent debate, actions that have been taken to date, while most would agree represent progress, have clearly not assuaged everyone’s … Continue reading The Education Agent Issue in the US: Like a Bad Penny

The Fat Lady Finally Sings: Bob Kerrey Quietly Resigns from Fulbright University Vietnam Leadership Position

Below is an excerpt from my latest CounterPunch article about Bob Kerrey and Fulbright University Vietnam.  Think of it as the 2017 bookend to my 2016 CP article, Bob Kerrey and Fulbright University – What were they thinking?, published a month after the controversy erupted.  Follow this link to read it in its entirety.  MAA … Continue reading The Fat Lady Finally Sings: Bob Kerrey Quietly Resigns from Fulbright University Vietnam Leadership Position

What is Your Ikigai?

Everyone I know who is happy is working well at something they consider important.  Abraham Maslow I had the opportunity to speak to about 150 10th graders at one of the more selective high schools in Hanoi earlier this week.  I chose to speak to them not about overseas study in general or study in … Continue reading What is Your Ikigai?

Just Because the Golden Arches are in Vietnam Doesn’t Mean the US Won the War

Here's my latest CounterPunch article, in response to a statement in a TV interview by a Pulitzer Prize-winning Vietnamese-American author that the US won the war because Viet Nam shifted to a free market economy.  Here's an excerpt to whet your appetite: Last December, Viet Thanh Nguyen, a chaired professor of English and American Studies … Continue reading Just Because the Golden Arches are in Vietnam Doesn’t Mean the US Won the War

Breaking into Cambodia: Asia’s new tiger economy

My latest article, this time about Cambodia, was published by The PIE Blog with this introduction: An economic transformation, demographic change and greater access to digital resources are all driving demand for study abroad among Cambodian students. Mark Ashwill, managing director of Capstone Vietnam, shares why the market is ripe for overseas institutions looking to recruit international students, … Continue reading Breaking into Cambodia: Asia’s new tiger economy

Viet Nam Moves Up to 5th Place Among Sending Countries

In my latest University World News article I write about the increase in the number of Vietnamese students studying in the US from November 2016 to March 2017, and the fact that Viet Nam was the only country to move up in the ranking of sending countries, displacing Canada in fifth place, as I predicted … Continue reading Viet Nam Moves Up to 5th Place Among Sending Countries

You Don’t Have to Study Business to Do Business

Forbes Vietnam published an article by me with the above title in its February 2017 (#45) issue.  An expanded English version, which focuses more on the value and advantages of a liberal arts education and includes more examples, will be published this spring.  Here's a brief introduction: Viet Nam currently ranks 6th among all countries … Continue reading You Don’t Have to Study Business to Do Business

US Mission Viet Nam Response to Open Letter to Vietnamese Parents & Students

Below is a response I received from Molly Stephenson, Counselor for Public Affairs, US Embassy, and Matthew Wall, Public Affairs Officer, US Consulate General, in response to an "open letter" I wrote last December to Vietnamese parents and students who may be concerned about the outcome of the US presidential election.  Reprinted with permission. This … Continue reading US Mission Viet Nam Response to Open Letter to Vietnamese Parents & Students

Latest Executive Order Undermines America’s Safety & Values (NAFSA)

To the students, scholars, doctors, refugees, family members and others who wonder if the United States has lost its commitment to its core values as a nation of freedom, opportunity and welcome, let me unequivocally state that American citizens will not tolerate policies such as these that undermine our values and endanger our safety. We … Continue reading Latest Executive Order Undermines America’s Safety & Values (NAFSA)

“The turn to nativism hinders international education”

What the United States desperately needs is more patriots and global citizens (the two are not mutually exclusive) and fewer nationalists. The golden question is how to transform the latter into the former. Can this be accomplished through education and training, or are there other factors at play that make this impossible? Here's my latest … Continue reading “The turn to nativism hinders international education”