Carole Weinstein International Center

At Richmond, it’s rare to find a student with two feet squarely planted on one continent, let alone in one department or academic program.

Many students opt to double-major and, with plenty of interdisciplinary majors, minors, and concentrations to choose from, most students spend their academic careers (when they’re not studying abroad) running from one end of the campus to the other, sampling a diverse menu of courses along the way.  

For many students, the common thread that connects their academic program is international in nature, and in those cases, students will find their academic experience forever changed this fall. With the opening of the new Carole Weinstein International Center, students with an internationally-oriented academic focus will find they’re spending a little less time running across campus and a lot more time in what’s become the university’s international hub.

“Richmond has long been seen as a leader in international education,” said Andy Newcomb, dean of the School of Arts & Sciences. “Majors that touch on global themes are some of our most popular.  This new space, designed to foster the connections between those majors, provides the opportunity to further heighten student learning and achievement in international contexts.”

When the center is dedicated, it will become the new home of the Office of International Education; the Center for English as a Second Language; the departments of Modern Literatures and Cultures, Latin American and Iberian Studies, and Geography and the Environment; the International Studies and American Studies programs; the Global Studio; the spatial analysis lab; seven classrooms; two art galleries; a small theater; a café; and an outdoor classroom complete with amphitheatre seating and a slate chalkboard.

The building will also be home to several faculty members in Richmond’s School of Law, all of whose work has an international focus.

“I’m one of those professors with a joint appointment in international studies,” said Yvonne Howell, a Russian studies professor and chair of the Department of Modern Literatures and Cultures.

“Having [the international studies program] in the same building will create all kinds of synergy because so many international studies majors double major in French or German studies. They’ve always done it but now they’ll physically be in the same space. It allows for much better communication. ”

Kim Klinker is a geography professor whose research interests and expertise in the Middle East frequently throw her together with scholars approaching the same topic from the departments of history, political science, and modern literatures and cultures. This past year, a team of them worked together to launch a new academic concentration in the Middle East for international studies majors.

Unpacking her office in the new International Center, she said, “It’s nice to be in close proximity to the people with whom I serve on the Middle East Advisory Board. It’s easier for folks like them to see what geographers do and what our capabilities are in the lab.”

Sharon Feldman, chair of the Department of Latin American and Iberian Studies, echoed Klinker’s sentiment.

“We now have Latin Americanists from several disciplines housed under one roof, and this will likely generate original collaborations in terms of both teaching and research,” Feldman said.

The Carole Weinstein International Center was certainly built with collaboration in mind. Not only are there collaborative spaces and common areas galore but the classrooms are equipped with technology that will allow any professor to initiate global conversation and collaboration with colleagues in classrooms half a world away.

Olivier Delers, a French professor in the Department of Modern Literatures and Cultures, is entering his fourth academic year at Richmond.

“The offices and classrooms are really nicely laid out. It’ll be easy to work with students because everything can be moved around. The university announced that this building would be going up when I had just arrived on campus. It’s been a pleasure to be a part of the excitement surrounding the planning and construction of the center,” said Delers.

The Weinstein family, longtime supporters of the university, has given the university yet another game-changing gift. The challenge now will be making the best possible use of it.

“We are excited about the prospect of working with faculty in other units to organize lectures, symposia, seminars, and performing arts events under the banner of the new center and expect that these activities will stimulate what is already a rising interest on campus in all things international. Having the new space is a dream come true; now the exciting part will be working to fill it with intellectually intriguing events and activities,” said Feldman.