During the 2008-09 academic year Penn State Greater Allegheny will move its Teaching International focus to Latin America and the Caribbean. Faculty will attempt to increase overall participation in the initiative through inter-disciplinary collaboration, team-teaching, and promoting knowledge of current events while connecting and collaborating academic and policy debates. Various cultural activities as well as an International Film Series have been scheduled throughout the academic year to increase student awareness of this area of the world.
In 2007-08 the campus's international focus was on Teaching South Asia. Over 20 Greater Allegheny faculty and staff members cooperated in exploring and reflecting on various aspects of South Asia's history, culture, and economic, social and political reality.
Greater Allegheny's Teaching International initiative began in 2004 with a Teaching Haiti theme. In 2005-06 the initiative focused on Africa and in 2006-07 on India. In each academic year faculty developed course lectures, supported student research projects, developed service learning components to their courses, produced theater productions, hosted films and scheduled guest lecturers as components of the chosen academic focus.
The overall objective of the Teaching International initiative is to increase the student's global perspective and to broaden their understanding of intercultural and international issues. The initiative also supports the overall University goal of fostering diversity throughout the Penn State system.