Drexel and University of Cienfuegos Renew Partnership
CIENFUEGOS, CUBA – On March 24, 2022 The University of Cienfuegos welcomed Drexel University, Dornsife School of Public Health for a full day of working meetings highlighted by a hybrid ceremony in which the two institutions renewed their memorandum of understanding.
For the MOU re-signing ceremony, Rector Dr. Orquídea Urquiola and Dr. Victor Millo Carmenate, Director of International Relations, represented the University of Cienfuegos. Idris Robinson, Director of Gobal Health Engagement represented Drexel University. Dr. Rogelio Miñanta, Vice Provost for Global Engagement represented Drexel virtually.
“The signing of our renewed agreement illustrates the shared excitement for impactful international collaborations. Just six years ago, I was part of the delegation that signed the historic agreement, which fortified the initial partnership”, Robinson stated. “This recent signing is testament that beyond our academic and research goals being met, our shared values have truly fueled the continuity of our growing relationship. This moment serves as unmistakable evidence that international education is a tool for solidarity, even amid a global pandemic.”
In addition to the meeting, Robinson met with six of the seven deans for the University of Cienfuegos. The group updated content for their current joint program, Community, Health, and Environment (CHE). The CHE program started in 2016 as a short-term study abroad program to challenge conventional US-centric perspectives on global health. Students come to the island to learn how public health is addressed within a Cuban context. The program has grown in the years since to provide additional opportunities for engagement such as health-related Spanish language courses and joint environmental research projects conducted by US and Cuban undergraduate and graduate students.
“This exchange is an opportunity to strengthen and deepen the collaboration between both universities,” states Dr. Odalys Medina Hernandez, Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences for the University of Cienfuegos. “Our university has proposed opportunities to form interdisciplinary teams of student and faculty to research topics where students and professors can collaborate in a hybrid format (face-to-face and online) to expand the period of joint work between UCf students and Drexel students.”
The sessions also explored how the two universities can work together to further expand opportunities for their students. For example, the group explored how to narrow down some of the topics from CHE so that they can be explored more deeply. Other collaborations will include publishing results from joint research for peer review and joint academic communication.
“We trust that this union will progress into a successful alliance of fellowship and knowledge sharing,” added Dr. Noharis Sochi Alzuri Barr, Dean of the Faculty of Humanities for the University of Cienfuegos. “The meeting was a great success; both universities joined efforts in favor of the development of science and innovation.”
The relationship between Drexel and the University of Cienfuegos started after in 201t5 after the first Workshop of Strategic Alliances for the Internationalization of Higher Education, known in the United Sates as Cuba TIES. Two months later, a multidisciplinary delegation representing Drexel returned to the University of Cienfuegos to attend their Management of Fragile Ecosystems workshop. There the two universities planned the first CHE program.
Drexel and the University of Cienfuegos plan to launch their next edition of the CHE Program in early September of 2022. Click here to learn more about the Drexel CHE program.