Program Overview, Objectives, and Priorities

The Faculty Exchange Program is requesting the design and delivery of training activities for

African university professors in Veterinary Science.

BACKGROUND

The Faculty Exchange Program (FEP) began in 1995 to bring junior- or mid-level university

professors from countries in the Former Soviet Union to the United States for one semester to

increase their knowledge of, and ability to teach, agricultural economics, marketing, and

agribusiness management at their home institutions. The program was funded by the Department

of State under the Freedom Support Act. Program activities in this area ended in 2018. Over the

years the program has evolved to include agricultural scientists from Eastern Europe and the

Former Soviet Union. Today the program focuses on improving veterinary education and

research in selected African nations for early to mid-career instructors at Colleges of Veterinary

Medicine in Ghana, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Ethiopia. Training programs are designed and

organized in conjunction with U.S. universities, USDA, and other government agencies. FEP

emphasizes improved and updated course and curriculum development, teaching and student

assessment methods, exposure to current research techniques and practical field experiences

while studying in the United States. FEP includes follow-up visits by U.S. host professors to the

participants' universities to assess progress in implementation of courses developed and

encourage collaboration between U.S. and participating universities. Since 2016, the program

has hosted 54 veterinary faculty participants from Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania, and

Uganda.

Objectives

The purpose of the Faculty Exchange Program is to assist developing countries to improve their

university agricultural education, research, and extension programs by providing a one semester

training program at U.S. Land Grant Agricultural Universities. Participants are able to upgrade

their technical knowledge in their subject area, but they also learn new teaching methods through

class observation, and they will learn new research methods though experience in the lab or

through short courses or one-on-one instruction. Each participant revises and modernizes their

class outlines for introduction at their home university after they return. Participants also travel

to laboratories, farms agribusinesses, and government offices to gain an understanding of how

the veterinary science and animal health systems operate in the United States. Faculty mentors

visit each participant in their home country 3-9 months after the conclusion of the U.S. based

program to provide follow-on support and advice.

USDA will select Fellows based on similar backgrounds in research areas and place them in groups of ten Fellows. Each group will be placed at a Land Grant University specializing in their topic.

Education

• Private institutions of higher education
• Public and state institutions of higher education