Angelina Rodríguez has been named Professor of Practice in Global Citizenship in the College of Education

Angelina Rodríguez has been named the new Director of Global Citizenship and Professor of Practice in Global Citizenship in the College of Education.

Rodríguez brings to Lehigh an interdisciplinary research background and a career of teaching and leadership experience in Latin America, the U.S. and, most recently, the Middle East. Her research and creative work focus on how we encounter and make sense of difference.

“I am fascinated by the wide range of strategies people, cities and nations employ – consciously or unconsciously – to confront their multiple others, whether these others are spatial, sensorial, social or linguistic,” she says. “As an intercultural practitioner engaged in coaching and consulting, I am also exploring to what extent decolonial and critical global citizenship perspectives might inform executive leadership development within a global context and what the impact of such work might be.”

The Global Citizenship Initiative is an interdisciplinary undergraduate certificate that prepares students for engaged living in a culturally diverse and rapidly changing world. It began more than 15 years ago with a grant from the Mellon Foundation, and is now a partnership between the Office of International Affairs and the College of Education. It engages across all five colleges and, as part of OIA, connects with Lehigh’s growing portfolio of international engagement. The current program requires five core courses, which Rodríguez will teach, as well as two electives and two international experiences, one of which is a group trip over winter break led by the director.

“Anglina is a very exciting choice given her deep experience in higher education coupled with her standing as a scholar,” say Bill Gaudelli, dean of the College of Education. “Her leadership will be crucial in developing a robust program that resonates with the times and guides students toward meaningful engagement in their community and the world.”