SUNY Chancellor Nancy L. Zimpher Announces Robert Gosende as 2010-11 John W. Ryan Fellow in International Education

Albany – State University of New York Chancellor Nancy L. Zimpher today announced that the John W. Ryan Fellow in International Education for the 2010-11 academic year will be Robert Gosende. 

"SUNY will benefit greatly from Ambassador Gosende's service as our John W. Ryan Fellow in International Education,” said Chancellor Zimpher. “His vast experience in the international arena and deep familiarity with SUNY's international programs position him to make a critical contribution to the conversation about the role we can play in world affairs."

“I’m delighted to welcome Ambassador Gosende as a Ryan Fellow at UAlbany,” said University at Albany President George M. Philip. “His knowledge and insights regarding the role international education plays in public diplomacy will be of tremendous benefit to our students and faculty.”

Gosende will be based at the School of Education at the University at Albany where he will teach and collaborate with students and faculty. His focus will be on the crucial role that international education plays in the public diplomacy of our country and, specifically, how we can be more broadly engaged in this process through SUNY’s international programs. As SUNY’s Ryan Fellow, Gosende will also lecture at other SUNY campuses and at the Levin Institute in New York City.

After serving for over three decades as a career U.S. Foreign Service officer in the U.S. Information Agency and at the U.S. Department of State, Gosende came to SUNY in 1998.  His Foreign Service specialization was educational and cultural affairs but as an international affairs generalist he also served tours of duty as President Clinton’s Special Envoy (Ambassador) for Somalia, 1992-93, and as the senior State Department official supervising voter education activities in the run-up to the election of Nelson Mandela as president of South Africa in 1994.

In 2000, Gosende was appointed by the SUNY Board of Trustees as associate vice chancellor for international programs. He served in that position until his retirement this month.

Gosende is also the recipient of the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Professional Service for his work over this past decade expanding and enhancing SUNY’s international activities and reputation. Along with his colleagues in SUNY’s Office of International Programs, Gosende was a recipient of the Institute of International Education’s Andrew Heiskell Award in 2007 for their work in Turkey establishing academic partnerships between Turkish universities and State University campuses. These programs now enroll more than 2,300 students including 750 graduates and as such are the most extensive of their kind in our country.

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