Other programs include an annual international career fair for community college students, professional development workshops, and teaching resources.
From human rights to environmental sustainability to economic stability, today's college students will encounter challenges that transcend national and cultural borders. Stanford Global Studies programs are partnering with community colleges across the country to prepare students to thrive in an interconnected workforce through instruction that emphasizes a deep understanding of different regions, societies, and languages.
"Global education equips students with the ability to work effectively in diverse teams and international contexts," said Rowena Tomaneng, deputy chancellor of California Community Colleges, the nation's largest system of higher education serving more than 2 million students.
Tomaneng was one of 80 attendees from 38 institutions who attended Stanford Global Studies' Education Partnership for Internationalizing Curriculum (EPIC) symposium this spring. Featured speakers included educators completing Stanford Global Studies' one-year fellowship programs for community college faculty and administrators.
Representing a range of disciplines including business, law, and political science, this year's EPIC faculty fellows worked with Stanford faculty to reimagine courses with a focus on global competencies while EPIC leadership fellows tackled campus-wide initiatives such as creating study abroad programs and redefining institutional priorities through a global lens.
"Allowing two-year institutions the opportunities that their four-year peers have aids in the development of a stronger and more connected community," said Nicole Trevena Flores, department chair for social science and global education coordinator at Southeast Community College in Nebraska. "Global competency is about building bridges between differences, breaking down barriers for a more successful person and overall a more successful workforce."
For Lisa Gilbert, professor of geology, oceanography, and environmental science at Cabrillo College in Aptos, California, the EPIC fellowship supported revamping an introductory environmental science course to go beyond teaching isolated concepts and examples to include case studies that place local and global issues into comparative perspective.
"The revised curriculum doesn't just add international examples - it uses them to frame and illuminate local issues," said Gilbert, who also worked on developing a certificate program in global competencies for Cabrillo College as part of her fellowship. "A case study on water justice in Kenya or Chile can directly inform students' understanding of water equity in the Monterey Bay region. My hope is that this comparative method avoids the pitfall of othering non-Western places and instead emphasizes interconnection and mutual relevance."
Joel Blank and Cirian Villavicencio, professors and co-chairs in San Joaquin Delta College's political science department, took students on a study abroad program to Italy - the first of its kind at their college - as part of their joint EPIC project. Students collaborated with University of Parma graduate students on policy issues including affordable housing, climate action, crime, and economic and workforce development.
"Our project aimed to introduce students to an international and comparative public policy perspective by examining local governance issues that increasingly have global dimensions," said Villavicencio.
"This experience helped me develop a more holistic understanding of European and international politics," said Jourieal Quizin, an SJDC student who spoke about his participation in the program to elected officials and community leaders at a public policy forum held on the San Joaquin Delta College campus.
"Many community college students don't have the financial resources or social connections to travel beyond their communities, let alone gain global experiences," said EPIC faculty fellow Jacob Vazquez, an agriculture business instructor at Butte College in the California Central Valley. "As faculty, it is our responsibility to expand their horizons and prepare them to succeed in a diverse workforce."
The fellowship programs are the cornerstone of a broader set of community college outreach initiatives sponsored by the Stanford Global Studies Division in the School of Humanities and Sciences and its Center for East Asian Studies, Center for Latin American Studies, and Center for Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies, all of which are designated as National Resource Centers (NRCs) by the U.S. Department of Education and supported by funding under Title VI of the Higher Education Act of 1965.
Stanford's NRCs collaborate with campus partners, including the Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education, the Center for Spatial and Textual Analysis, and the Center to Support Excellence in Teaching, to host an international career fair for community college students, professional learning workshops, an alumni network, and open-access teaching resources. These programs build on partnerships with community college educators to promote accessible learning with direct relevance for students' career development.
The annual community college student fair invites students from across the country to explore international careers with Stanford experts in fields such as business, government, medicine, and technology. Fran Faraz, associate professor of global and peace studies at Golden West College in California and a 2023 EPIC faculty fellow, attended this year's fair and said such opportunities expose students to fields, institutions, and perspectives they may not encounter in a traditional classroom.
"They also highlight the importance of adaptability, communication, and global awareness - skills that are essential in a rapidly evolving workforce," she said. "By hearing directly from students and professors, participants gain insight into real-world applications of their education and are inspired to envision themselves as part of a broader, global future."
EPIC outreach initiatives create shared experiences between Stanford and community colleges in ways that not only expand possibilities for international education and workforce development but also fuel collaborations that are the lifeblood of global engagement.
"Being able to bounce ideas and experiences off of each other created a strong sense of teamwork and worked as an idea generator," said Stacye Fraser Thompson, executive director of Study Alabama at Jefferson State Community College. Thompson drew on those experiences to launch a Global Distinction Certificate program at her college that combines interdisciplinary coursework, community engagement, and a capstone project with a global focus.
"One of the key insights I gained from the EPIC program is that global education can enrich every field of study," said Villavicencio, whose study abroad initiative with Blank will take students to Costa Rica and Japan in years to come. "When integrated intentionally, it equips students with the knowledge and skills needed to address complex transnational challenges."