by Peter Mertz
LARAMIE, the United States, Aug. 1 (Xinhua) -- Anthony Ogden wrote the book on recruiting Chinese students to the United States.
Literally.
The career educator, hired just one year ago at the University of Wyoming (UW), had promoted international student exchanges at Penn State (98,757 students), Michigan State (50,453), and Kentucky (30,464) before coming to Wyoming.
Ogden had played in the big leagues for 25 years, and this was not his first rodeo in international education.
"If you had told me I was going to Wyoming before I took this job, I would have said no way," admitted the international student expert.
"But after coming here, meeting the amazing staff and exploring the community and spectacular location, I regret not coming here sooner," he told Xinhua.
Upon arrival, in Larimer, Ogden got busy. UW's top brass, after seeing an underrepresentation in Chinese students, created a senior position -- Associate Vice Provost for Global Engagement, and hired Ogden to run it.
GLOBAL CONCERNS
Since the Millennium began, the number of students coming to the United States from China has exploded -- from 36,000 to 363,000 -- a 10-fold jump, according to a 2017 U.S. State Department posting.
More significantly, the Opendoors.com posting cited the economic impact that the students from China wield -- 14 billion U.S. dollars in 2016.
"That figure is way conservative -- trickle-down economics and service-sector revenues alone would triple that amount," said career educator Douglas Hubscher.
"The Trump administration is shooting itself in the foot with this new trade stumble," Hubscher added.
Hubscher was referring to White House threat to cancel Chinese student visas.
Not surprisingly, for the first time in 20 years, the number of Chinese students coming to America is on the decline.
Last month, Forbes said "the University of Illinois recently took out insurance policies against the potential loss of Chinese enrollment," because the president wants to punish education by snuffing out China's import of billions of dollars to the U.S. academic community.
With the ominous signs toward revenues dropping across America from the world's most populous nation, UW officials looked to stem the negative tide.
George Washington wrote in 1779 that an offense is the "surest and sometimes only defense." In line with America's founding father, the country's least populous state called on a seasoned international educator to get the ball rolling.
Enter Ogden, stage left.
THE BOOK
First, Ogden formed a 35-member panel from people across UW, taking a "China Audit" to see what connections and contacts existed, and where he might be able to enhance a Chinese audience.
Ogden discovered that there were ongoing relationships and partnerships with some 40 universities in China but there was no cohesive strategy. So, he put one together.
The booklet Ogden finalized and printed breaks down internationalization into three areas -- regions, themes, and partnerships.
With China already identified as a key region and existing partner, UW is working with an international advisory council to assist in developing a comprehensive China theme.
"This university is a large land public university and offers most of the programs other large state universities offer," he told Xinhua.
"But because Wyoming (12,475 students) is relatively small size, the experience for Chinese student studying there would be very unique and rewarding," he said.
"They are going to be in a safe, welcoming environment with good academic qualities, "he noted.
Ogden told Xinhua that UW has "some of the highest ranked academic programs," such as, engineering, atmospheric science, and water resource.
"Wyoming stands at the top of the many areas that would be viable for Chinese student interest," Ogden said, adding it is also more affordable than many other state universities.
One year after he was hired, the first fruits of Ogden's labor were realized.
Just three weeks ago, Ogden and his team traveled to Shanghai for the signing of several historic agreements between UW and the Shanghai University of Sport, including the creation of an International Kinesiology Center.
"We have other big plans on the horizon with China," he said with a smile. "China is very, very important to us here in Wyoming, and we look forward to many more student engagements in the near future," he said.
