BGU and University of Illinois at Chicago Sign Agreement
BGU and University of Illinois at Chicago Sign Agreement
July 21, 2011
Leadership, Awards & Events, Press Releases
CHICAGO, July 21, 2011 — Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) and the University of Illinois at Chicago formalized an agreement today on BGU’s Beer-Sheva, Israel campus to collaborate on scholarly and scientific interaction between the institutions’ departments of public health through the promotion of exchange opportunities for faculty, staff and students, announces the Great Lakes Region of American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (Americans for Ben-Gurion University).
Illinois Governor Pat Quinn (left) and BGU Faculty of Health Sciences Dean Prof. Shaul Sofer
Illinois Governor Patrick Quinn represented the University of Illinois at the signing ceremony as part of a trip to Israel with a delegation of state officials, businesspeople and representatives of the Jewish United Fund of Metropolitan Chicago, which organized the trip.
“This agreement is designed to expand and enrich people’s lives, and is an excellent partnership between two world-class universities. I look forward to the results of their efforts,” said Governor Quinn, who is on the Illinois University’s board of trustees.
The agreement was signed by the governor and by the dean of BGU’s Faculty of Health Sciences, Prof. Shaul Sofer. BGU’s President Prof. Rivka Carmi and Illinois State Senators Ira Silverstein and Jeffrey M. Schoenberg also participated in the ceremony.
“The Jewish United Fund of Metropolitan Chicago has been proud and pleased to be able to play a role in advancing the relationship between BGU and UIC. Today, that partnership moves to a new stage which is sure to bring benefits to both universities and to both of the communities which they serve,” Michael Kotzin, executive vice president of the Jewish United Fund, said following the ceremony.
Before the signing, the delegation was briefed by BGU’s Vice President for External Affairs Prof. Amos Drory and Dr. Limor Aharonson-Daniel, the founding director of BGU’s Prepared Center for Emergency Response Research, in response to the governor’s request for information on homeland security matters.
BGU lecturer and award-winning author and screenplay writer Etgar Keret will join the governor for dinner tonight.
ABOUT AMERICANS FOR BEN-GURION UNIVERSITY
By supporting a world-class academic institution that not only nurtures the Negev, but also shares its expertise locally and globally, Americans for Ben-Gurion University engages a community of Americans who are committed to improving the world. David Ben-Gurion envisioned that Israel’s future would be forged in the Negev. The cutting-edge research carried out at Ben-Gurion University drives that vision by sustaining a desert Silicon Valley, with the “Stanford of the Negev” at its center. The Americans for Ben-Gurion University movement supports a 21st century unifying vision for Israel by rallying around BGU’s remarkable work and role as an apolitical beacon of light in the Negev desert.
About Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev embraces the endless potential we have as individuals and as a commonality to adapt and to thrive in changing environments. Inspired by our location in the desert, we aim to discover, to create, and to develop solutions to dynamic challenges, to pose questions that have yet to be asked, and to push beyond the boundaries of the commonly accepted and possible.
We are proud to be a central force for inclusion, diversity and innovation in Israel, and we strive to extend the Negev’s potential and our entrepreneurial spirit throughout the world. For example, the multi-disciplinary School for Sustainability and Climate Change at BGU leverages over 50 years of expertise on living and thriving in the desert into scalable solutions for people everywhere.
BGU at a glance:
20,000 students | 800 senior faculty | 3 campuses | 6 faculties: humanities & social sciences, health sciences, engineering sciences, natural sciences, business & management, and desert research.
For all press inquiries, please contact:
James Fattal, J Cubed Communications
516.289.1496
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