The work of CEHD International Initiatives is rooted in respect and reciprocity. This means listening seriously to the needs of our global partners. A few years ago, our partners in Brazil asked if we could send faculty to teach research methods courses during their winter break. In response, we developed the International Faculty Residency Program that was successfully piloted in 2024. This summer we expanded and sponsored three faculty residencies in Brazil, Vietnam, and Kazakhstan. The program supports faculty with placements at partner institutions abroad for short-term residencies, each tailored based on the needs of our global partners. These residencies leverage existing relationships to facilitate immersive experiences for CEHD faculty.
Vichet Chhuon
Vitoria, Brazil
For 3 weeks in Brazil I teach a graduate seminar called “Identity, Politics, and Responsibility in Research Methodology” at Universidade Federal do Espirito Santo (UFES). This university is the largest public university in the State of Espirito Santos, Brazil. Similar to the University of Minnesota–Twin Cities, UFES is a vibrant and sprawling urban campus located in the state’s capital of Vitoria. I find that Vitoria is similar to Minneapolis/St. Paul in many ways—a large but manageable metro that is neither Sao Paolo or Rio De Janeiro (think New York and Los Angeles) with its own rich history and vibrant arts and restaurant scene.
While I have been a visiting professor at UFES for two years, my engagement with Brazil began in 2018 when I was part of a CEHD delegation that traveled to Brazil to attend the 5th World Conference on Racial Remedies. Since then, the faculty residency at UFES has been a significant part of my teaching, research, and professional growth. My course is taught entirely in English because my Portuguese is limited— though I am learning! Translation throughout the course has been conducted by two CEHD international students from Brazil. In Vitoria, I’m an international guest and these talented young scholars have helped me consider the role of language, expertise, and authority across the translation process.
As much as my own background and academic training has shaped my teaching philosophy and practices, this contact with UFES students and faculty has shaped my pedagogy in tremendous ways.
The course I offer broadly explores the philosophical underpinnings of different research processes. The course also responds to local issues in Brazilian universities and society by engaging the ways that diverse histories, identities, and politics shape research goals. Like the U.S., Brazil has a troubling and complex history with Black slavery and Indigenous genocide. Brazilian higher education has been wrestling with matters of affirmative action, reparations, and educational access for decades. It has been eye opening to learn about these issues from Brazilian students, faculty, and community members.
Some of the most wonderful experiences I’ve had through the faculty residency in Brazil include: bumbling linguistic exchanges in the hallways, new research connections forged, and generous invitations to meals at colleagues’ homes.
As a scholar anchored in Asian American Studies, I have been learning much about the history of Japanese and Chinese migration to Brazil. Something that I learned quickly is that the U.S. and North American paradigms we know so well are often not compatible to Brazil’s unique history. The exciting synergies that developed and intellectual curiosities shared through this international faculty residency cannot be understated.
2025 UFES-CEHD Cohort, Vitoria, Brazil. Vichet Chhuon is second from right.
Ken Bartlett
Almaty, Kazakhstan
I have been privileged and most fortunate to have visited many countries, seen incredible landscapes all over the world, and learned stories and histories from the people connected to these places. Over 65 countries have been stamped into my passport! Of all these global adventures, my Scholar in Residence program this summer in Kazakhstan will stand out as a very special international trip and it will be long treasured for the unique experiences afforded.
I spent three weeks this summer in Almaty, the largest city and former capital city of Kazakhstan from 1929 to 1997, and now home for two million residents. Almaty is a bustling, but not hectic city with a mix of historic old wooden buildings, concrete Soviet- style architecture, and ultra-modern, stunningly designed new glass and steel office and apartment towers. The majority of my time was spent at KIMEP University (Kazakhstan Institute of Management, Economics and Forecasting), a private university founded in 1992 with a campus in the heart of the city. During my time at KIMEP, I presented a workshop based on my employee engagement research to senior leadership. I later participated as a plenary speaker for the Central Asia Higher Education Workshop Conference. The theme for this one-day conference, and a dominant topic of conversation among faculty through the region, was the decline in reading activity and broader reading skills crisis in higher education. I was also the co-leader for a five-day workshop for faculty from KIMEP and several other private colleges and public universities from Almaty across the country.
In the weeks since my return from Almaty, I am beginning to understand the unique aspects of a residency program rather than shorter international engagements often associated with a conference, presentation of a single workshop, or completion of a specific phase of a research program. The opportunity to meet many people from a broad range of academic disciplines, visit their campus, and engage in deep conversations, often across several meetings on issues related to research and teaching, is different in both process and outcome from the more fleeting international engagements. I am eager to apply what I saw and learned in my teaching and research. My teaching of the undergraduate level “Introduction to Organization Development and Change” course will now have additional international examples. In fact, in many ways the speed and magnitude of change experienced by higher education institutions, government agencies, and the private sector in Kazakhstan since its 1991 independence from the Soviet Union provides examples and lessons for current and future organizational leaders in the United States and globally.
Ken Bartlett checking out the petroglyphs at the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Tanbaly in Kazakhstan. There are over 5,000 rock carvings dating from the second half of the second millennium BCE at the site.
Ka I Ip
Hanoi, Vietnam
My global residency journey began at Vietnam National University (VNU), located in the vibrant city of Hanoi, Vietnam’s capital. Hanoi offers a blend of historic charm and rapid modernization, its streets buzzing with motorbikes weaving around tranquil lakes and historic temples. While my initial engagement at VNU didn’t yield extensive immediate outcomes, it opened crucial doors for conversations with scholars at Vietnam Japan University and colleagues within VNU’s Psychology Department.
Unexpectedly, the most transformative part of my residency occurred beyond Vietnam, in neighboring Laos. Through an unforeseen yet invaluable extension of the global residency program, I was invited by CEHD International Initiatives to visit its new graduate internship program in Luang Prabang and support a student conducting critical observations at two local schools. This summer internship aimed to strengthen teaching methodologies and infrastructure for immersive language education targeting international learners. The experience was deeply enriching, highlighting Laos as a particularly promising and underexplored site for developmental and educational research. It opened my eyes to the powerful impact that targeted educational research could have in resource-limited contexts, inspiring new directions in my professional growth and research trajectory.
Reflecting on this residency experience, I’m struck by how working across diverse cultural and educational contexts broadened my perspective on global education and research. I learned through this experience that building research capacity is fundamentally about relationship building. Even if immediate outcomes are not apparent, the seeds planted through these relationships can bear significant future fruit. It underscored the importance of flexibility, openness, and cross-cultural sensitivity in developing sustainable international collaborations. The insights and connections I gained will undoubtedly enhance my teaching by incorporating international case studies, innovative teaching methodologies observed abroad, and insights into the balance between technology and critical thinking. My research will be enriched through expanded international collaborations, potential joint grant proposals, and new scholarly avenues inspired by observations in resource-limited educational environments. Additionally, sharing my international experiences, especially personal stories of resilience and insights into educational strategies, will provide valuable international perspectives, enriching my students’ global awareness and analytical capabilities.
Ka I Ip with Dr. Trinh Thi Linh, an associate professor and head of the psychology department at Vietnam National University.
Our goal now is to engage new faculty in these opportunities. Some of the barriers that faculty have shared include their lack of awareness of global opportunities and difficulties aligning their research and teaching with international partners. These residencies offer a structured opportunity for CEHD faculty. We hope that in the years to come more faculty, regardless of international experience, will benefit from this unique opportunity.
- Marina Aleixo, Ken Bartlett T, Vichet Chhuon, Ka I Ip