Saint Mary’s University, Canada’s international university, is once again welcoming faculty and administrators from Beijing Normal University, Zhuhai to Saint Mary’s University’s 5th BNUZ@SMU Summer Institute.
Between July 10th and 21st, 32 faculty and administrators from BNUZ will participate in a professional development program on various aspects of university education and administration. They will work with SMU faculty and staff on topics related to learning and teaching, while also experiencing Nova Scotia and Halifax culture and heritage. The partnership between BNUZ and SMU began in 2002. The Summer Institute at Saint Mary’s began in 2012, with approximately 30 delegates from BNUZ attending each time. Saint Mary’s has also sent faculty and staff to BNUZ as part of its intercultural development strategy.
Some of the highlights of the BNUZ@SMU 2017 schedule include:
- Welcoming & Opening Ceremonies: Monday, July 10, 9 a.m.
- Port of Halifax Tour: Monday, July 10, 1:30 p.m.
- Demo of Role-Play Pedagogy: Thursday, July 13, 9 a.m.
- Enactus Presentation: Friday, July 14, 9:00am
- Tour of Halifax, including Halifax Public Library, Citadel Hill, Museums : Saturday, July 15
- Tour outside the city to Peggy’s Cove, Lunenburg and Hubbards: Sunday, July 16
- “Open Space” Discussion Forum: Tuesday , July 18, 9 a.m.
- Family dinners for delegates in the homes of faculty and staff: Tuesday, July 18
- Closing Ceremony: Friday, July 21, 3 p.m.
At the same time, over 40 students from Beijing Normal University and Beijing Normal University, Zhuhai have come to Saint Mary’s for a field school on Cross-Cultural Communication: North American Studies. SMU faculty are offering a series of academic sessions, and The Language Centre is providing a program for English language development.
Saint Mary’s University established a satellite campus at BNUZ in 2014 for joint delivery of the B.Comm degree in Finance. This year Saint Mary’s University will launch Canada's first Arts 2+2 program in partnership with BNUZ with the first cohort of 40 students slated to arrive at Saint Mary’s in September 2017.
Saint Mary’s University currently has six student exchange agreements and credit transfer agreements with 14 Chinese institutions.