Inside the Affiliation Monterey's new Yu Administrators travel to Cali for the inauguration of new MIIS president

Author: Polly Johnson

On Saturday, April 22, Clara Yu became the 12th president of the Monterey Institute for International Studies (MIIS), an affiliate of Middlebury College since Dec. 22, 2005. Yu was formerly a faculty member, vice president for foreign languages and director of the Center for Educational Technology at Middlebury. She succeeded Steve Baker as the president of the MIIS.

Several hundred people turned out for the event, which took place outdoors on the lawn in front of the town of Monterey's historic town hall, Colton Hall. The ceremony was attended by MIIS and Middlebury trustees, faculty and staff and Monterey students and local residents. Rick Fritz, chair of the Middlebury College Board of Trustees; Bill Kieffer, head of the Monterey board; Monterey Mayor Dan Albert and representatives of Monterey's students, faculty, staff and alumni all contributed to the welcoming remarks, while Felix Rohatyn '49, a former U.S. ambassador to France, delivered the keynote address. In it, he discussed the challenges faced by the United States and the global community at large, explaining that the focus on an international education by both Middlebury and MIIS is vital to the future.

President of the College Ronald D. Liebowitz spoke at the ceremony, beginning his speech by saying, "Listening to Felix Rohatyn's remarks, I found myself thinking about how common it has become for people in the modern world to go to any length - including violence - to isolate themselves from ideas, customs, and beliefs that are different from their own."

He continued by discussing the necessity of not isolating ourselves from the problems of the world and of building strong connections with our global neighbors, noting that it is through the international education of MIIS and Middlebury students that this goal can be achieved. He continued, "Our two institutions, with their unique approaches to foreign language and culture study, and their record of success in preparing graduates for leadership positions around the world, represent the best hope in international education, and we need to take that seriously."

Rohatyn, who delivered the keynote address, like Liebowitz, stressed the importance of an international education. He also discussed the growing dilemma in American higher education regarding the decrease of international students enrolling in American colleges and universities. His reasons ranged from the restrictive measures placed on immigration following the attacks of Sept. 11 and the difficulty in attaining visas to enter the United States. In emphasizing the importance of international student enrollment, Rohatyn said, "Not only is global perspective critical to the quality of our students' education, in today's shrinking world global awareness is indispensable."

When Yu finally spoke, she first welcomed all in attendance and joked about "what an impossible brat [she] was when [she] was 10 years old." She spoke of the affiliation between MIIS and Middlebury College, recognizing what a huge step toward global awareness and education it was, noting, "This partnership between a 200-year-old liberal arts college in Vermont and a 50-year-old graduate school in California brings together two leaders in the field of international education with deeply shared commitment to global education, based on cultural understanding and language fluency." She talked about the problems facing Americans on both a local and a global level, from problems of wasting water and climate change to war and its effects on human beings throughout the world. MIIS, she explained, can begin to respond to these problems. "We need to network globally, to educate, communicate, and collaborate. We need to remove ignorance, and provide access to knowledge, without boundaries." She concluded on a positive note, illuminating the goals that MIIS and Middlebury can achieve, and expressing her feelings of gratitude to all those involved in the realization of an international education and the peace, equality, understanding and prosperity it can bring.