BY JAMES J. LIDINGTON

If globalization is the wave of the future, John Heyl, executive director of international programs, intends to keep Old Dominion University on the crest of that wave.

When he came aboard June 1, Heyl said he found the infrastructure already in place to support comprehensive international programs.

Each year, the office interacts with more than 3,000 students who study overseas or come to Old Dominion for higher education.

"It's a tremendous foundation to build on," Heyl said. "The challenge for the future is to think strategically about internationalization here. We have many attractive options internationally, and we need to see that each new initiative supports our strategic goals."

Heyl succeeded JoAnn McCarthy, who headed the office for seven years before leaving in August 1999 to accept a deanship at the University of South Florida.

Heyl oversees more than 50 employees in international recruitment, international admissions, international student and scholar services, study abroad and the English Language Center.

His office works with approximately 1,230 international students who are in the United States on temporary visas for their education, plus several hundred permanent-resident students from other countries. In addition, the office advises about 400 students who study abroad over the course of the year, Heyl said.

"A world-class education in the 21st century is an education about the world," Heyl said. "All universities that claim to be first-rate ... will be global universities. I think we're very well positioned to further develop our global identity in the next few years."

Furthering the goal of making Old Dominion the premier international university in Virginia drove the appointment by Provost Jo Ann Gora of a new Council on International Initiatives (CII) last August.

The group meets monthly during the academic year and includes representatives from all the university's colleges. CII developed the Provost's Award for Leadership in International Education and is working on a plan to establish an endowment for international education.

CII is also reviewing the university's international partnerships and building a Web site on faculty international funding to expand the global orientation of the faculty.

The council last semester introduced the Passport to Learning Program, which reimburses all incoming freshmen and transfer students at the Norfolk campus for U.S. passports.

"The passport program is largely symbolic," Heyl said. "But it increases students' understanding of the importance of global mobility, a hallmark of an effective 21st-century manager and professional."

In conjunction with the Career Management Center, the office is funding a position for a graduate student to develop internship opportunities abroad that can be combined with study abroad; implementing a new dean's award for a study abroad scholarship program; and working with the alumni relations office to develop an international alumni program.

Heyl would also like to increase the number of students studying abroad by incorporating opportunities into other academic programs on campus. Currently, international business is the only undergraduate major that requires study abroad. The College of Arts and Letters is the university's largest source for study abroad students.

Other events, like the Film and Video Festival, the World Affairs Council's visiting speakers program and cultural festivals, raise

awareness of cultural diversity and stimulate students' desire to travel, Heyl said.

Next fall Heyl plans to teach a course on "Globalization in Historical Perspective" in the history department.

"The whole phenomenon of globalization fascinates me," he said. "As a historian, obviously I've thought about it for some time. This job has added to my understanding in terms of international exchange. Now I'm eager to develop a course on the nature of the process of globalization, how it's changing lives."

Heyl lives in Ghent with his wife, Kathy. His two daughters live and work on the West Coast.