Why is internationalization important to discuss at all?
Internationalization improves, enhances, and benefits higher education institutions. It has become the challenge for higher education leaders today because of the political, social, economic, and cultural mega-changes that are occurring outside the walls of academia and affecting (and possibly changing) internal priorities. One needs to unpack all the internal variables for curricular and system-wide internationalization to understand how each fits in with the current interests and priorities of the external environment. First, separating the different strands of internationalization is essential for clearly perceiving the evidence of internationalization. (The strands include internationalizing curriculum, study abroad participation, faculty overseas research/teaching projects, contributions of international students/scholars on the campus, leadership-driven visions, missions, and goals, as well as other components). Second, discovering how these strands are currently operating, strug
