St. Mary’s University has formalized a new educational partnership with Shanghai Lixin University of Commerce that will foster international learning and research opportunities between the two schools.

The memorandum of understanding was signed during a ceremony on the campus of St. Mary’s University. This is the second such agreement between St. Mary’s and a Chinese institution of higher learning this year. In March, St. Mary’s signed a similar agreement with Wuxi South Ocean College in the People’s Republic of China.

“St. Mary’s University is committed to educating students who will one day become leaders, and offering enriching educational opportunities around the globe is an integral part of developing graduates prepared to lead in the new reality of a highly interdependent global setting,” said St. Mary’s President Charles L. Cotrell, Ph.D. “This agreement with Shanghai Lixin University will foster greater understanding and learning between our students and the visiting scholars, while increasing the network of international learning that St. Mary’s offers.”

A delegation of officials from Shanghai Lixin University of Commerce, including President Haiyan Tang, were on campus for the memorandum signing and to tour St. Mary’s. The five-year agreement will allow undergraduate and graduate students to complete course work at both institutions, while also allowing faculty from both to teach and collaborate on research.

This latest agreement is part of a concerted effort by St. Mary’s to internationalize the educational experience by partnering with institutions both in the Americas and overseas. Earlier this year, St. Mary’s signed a cooperative agreement with the University of Applied Sciences – Schmalkalden in Germany to allow business graduate students to complete coursework and earn degrees at each institution, and a memorandum of understanding with Wuxi South Ocean, which allows undergraduate students to take three semesters at St. Mary’s in areas including marketing, international business, information systems management, and computer science. In fall 2006, St. Mary’s signed a research agreement with Instituto Tecnólogico y de Estudios Superiores de Occidente (ITESO), a Jesuit university in Guadalajara, Mexico.

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