USF is international asset

When Ponce de Leon named this area La Florida in 1513, there were already 40 universities in the world. All of them were highly internationalized. From Fez to Bologna to Salamanca, they were global in the students they drew, the scholars who taught them and the knowledge they produced. These universities also fueled the development of their host cities.

For many years, higher education in Florida has also been an engine of growth to build an educated populace and develop local industry. The University of South Florida now has an important global vision that could transform the Tampa region into the world's next great education city.

The leadership of USF is seeking to attract students and researchers from all over the world, developing the workforce and building globally networked businesses and activities that create jobs and economic development.

International education is America's fifth largest export of services, and Florida hosts the fifth largest number of international students in the nation. Last year Florida hosted more than 30,000 international students. These students spent more than $800 million for tuition and the goods and services they purchased. But equally important, they began forging the cultural, personal and commercial ties that will link this region to the world.

I saw this at close range in May when I participated at University of South Florida's commencement ceremonies. It was a great honor to witness the largest number of students - and the most diverse student population - to graduate in the university's history. The USF System now welcomes more than 47,000 students from across the country and around the globe, hosting more than 1,800 international students and 200 research scholars from over 130 countries.

USF is already one of the nation's top 25 research universities. With a $1.8 billion annual budget, the USF System has an annual economic impact of $3.2 billion and receives close to $400 million in research contracts and grants. Along with student success, research and innovation, community engagement and integrated, interdisciplinary inquiry, the university lists global literacy as one of its five strategic priorities.

I was struck especially by a new research center that applies cutting-edge technology to solve global sustainability challenges. As the scientists involved in this center lend a hand with the Gulf oil spill, others are working with Tampa-area businesses to develop even greater insights into freshwater problems and solutions of interest to many countries.

International education can play a major role in supporting Tampa's economy. It's no accident that globally diverse higher education institutions support the successful high-tech regions of our nation such as Research Triangle Park in North Carolina and Silicon Valley in California.

USF and the Tampa Bay region should leverage its growing resource of international scholars, students and partnerships - and aspire to become an "education city" for the world we share.