The Texas A&M Phi Beta Delta Honor Society hosted Lori Taylor, professor and director of the Mosbacher Institute for Trade, Economics and Public Policy at the chapter’s second induction ceremony.
The honor society was founded in the Fall of 2016 by Yashwant Parkash Vyas, a graduate student of the Bush school pursuing his master’s in public affairs & administration, who currently serves as the chartering president of the organization. Vyas said that there was a need for a globally-minded organization on campus.
“In the era of globalization that we are in, it is very important that people understand the global interdependence,” Vyas said. “Most of the problems and world issues that we are facing with the globalization, the advancement in technology, it’s not limited to one area, everybody’s getting affected. So we need to understand that international interdependence, and I think education is where we get that understanding of international interdependence.”
The faculty and student-run organization focuses on recognizing high achieving students and international faculty members or have experience with international programs such as study abroad.
“The mission of Phi Beta Delta is to recognize achievement in international educational interchange,” Vyas said. “And to serve as a catalyst to increase the recognition, credibility, and importance of international experience and develop a network of individuals of international experiences.”
Jordan Threadgill, chapter officer and study abroad representative, said that he recognized the value of an organization with an international focus on a campus like A&M.
“A&M’s reach is far and wide and it’s getting bigger, but another thing is this big move on campus to become more internationally focused, not only in our experiences here, but helping our students have those experiences abroad, have those experiences on campus,” Threadgill said. “We live in a global world and so an organization like this connects students, leaders, the international education community, it connects students with a broad international community.”
Dr. Kristia May, chapter coordinator and advisor, explained her personal philosophy on the globalization of the academic community.
“Making connections beyond our borders is I think incredibly important, especially I feel like now there’s a real political urgency because the tendency has been to isolate,” May said. “You know there’s this impulse to close our borders, we want to keep people out. This I really think is just counter to everything that I stand for. As a scholarly community one way we can connect with each other is to read each other’s work talk about each other’s work and you know make those connections beyond our border which I think is really important.”
Keynote speaker, Taylor, said that organizations such as Phi Beta Delta are key to better understanding how our world has been evolving through globalization.
“The Mosbacher Institute has, as part of its mission, the recognition that the world is becoming increasingly global and that we need to chart away forward under very different conditions than were available in the past,” Taylor said. “And an organization like this just emphasizes the importance of exchange of ideas across international borders. And by that exchange of ideas I think we are all enriched.”