Last modified: Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Newly named provost looks to extend IU Bloomington's global outreach
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 27, 2012
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Before she officially lands in her new role as Indiana University Bloomington provost, Lauren Robel will seek to further the university's international engagement efforts while on a trip to China and Australia.
Lauren Robel
Last week, IU trustees named Robel executive vice president and the next provost at IU Bloomington, effective July 1. The former dean of the IU Maurer School of Law and current president of the Association of American Law Schools, Robel is participating in the second-annual Sino-U.S. law dean's summit in Shanghai and Suzhou, China. The conference draws several of the leading law school deans from the U.S. and China to discuss the impact and importance of globalization in legal education and models for enhanced Sino-U.S. collaboration in the field.
On July 1 to 4, Robel will visit the University of Sydney Law School in Sydney for the Australasian Law Teachers Association Annual Conference, which includes, among its participants, former Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd and several of Australia's top judges.
While in China and Australia, Robel will seek to advance existing IU partnerships with institutions in those nations, while forging new relationships that generate international teaching, research and study abroad opportunities for IU students and faculty. Robel has also arranged several visits with IU alumni living overseas.
"It is such a privilege to represent Indiana University and the Association of American Law Schools in China and Australia," Robel said. "As the world becomes increasingly interconnected, our partnerships with universities and professional associations abroad are vital for creating opportunities for students and faculty to work, learn and teach internationally. China and Australia are particularly important to Indiana University, and I am delighted to strengthen our relationships here, and to meet with alumni and friends."
Under Robel's leadership, the IU Maurer School of Law significantly strengthened its international presence and established a new Center on the Global Legal Profession. Launched in 2009, the center examines the challenges and opportunities that globalization has created for lawyers, law schools, policymakers and the public.
Robel also participated in IU President Michael A. McRobbie's first trip abroad as president. On the presidential trip to China in 2007, IU signed an agreement with the Guanghua School of Law at Zhejiang University to begin exchanges of law students and faculty. During her tenure at the Maurer School, Robel also helped further exchange agreements with the Peking University School of Transnational Law in Shenzhen, China, as well as with the China University of Political Science and Law in Beijing.
