Soon, though, his city—which is located near the metropolis of Shanghai—will receive much more of Duke than a piece of its memorabilia.

A five-building Duke campus is set to open in the region by January 2012, when it will host some of the Fuqua School of Business’ programming. And Kunshan is not the only region partnering with Fuqua, which has connections with London, Dubai, New Delhi and St. Petersburg, and has plans to establish programs in other areas as well.

Because of Duke’s growing international presence, the University created a new Office of Global Strategy and Programs April 16.

“We have been doing global programs since 1995, so having a brand for global business education is not new,” said Fuqua Dean Blair Sheppard. “What’s new is having a physical presence that supports the activity.”

Although the business school is the driving force behind much of Duke’s internationalization efforts, it is not the only area at Duke that is looking to conduct programs abroad. A June delegation sent to the Kunshan site included the deans of many graduate programs as well as Steve Nowicki, dean and vice provost for undergraduate education.

Outside of Kunshan, the University has ties in Singapore, with the Duke-National University of Singapore Graduate Medical School, completed February 2009.

As the University becomes increasingly global, it is using its locations across the world partially to enhance its international presence.

“At the Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore, you drive up the hill and the first thing you see is Duke,” Sheppard said. “The more people we have wearing Duke T-shirts in Shanghai, the more people we have wearing Duke bags... it’s a funny thing, it helps brand our brand. And that’s our goal.”

Venturing abroad

The University’s presence abroad dates back to the 1990s, when the office of the vice provost for international affairs position was created in 1994. In the 2006 “Making a Difference” strategic plan, administrators cited challenging international events, including the attacks of Sept. 11 and invasion of Afghanistan, as reasons why the University “must forge international partnerships to enhance education and research.”

And as Duke establishes more programs abroad, more international students are coming to study at the University. The number of international students in the Trinity College of Arts and Sciences alone has increased by at least 12 percent in the past five years.

In an increasingly global world—and with more international students studying at Duke’s Durham campus—making connections with foreign countries is important, said Sanford School of Public Policy Dean Bruce Kuniholm, who formerly served as vice provost for academic and international affairs.

Sanford already has several international programs, including the new Global Semester Abroad projected to start next Spring, in which participants will spend half of a semester in China and the other half in India. Additionally, the Duke Center for International Development, which is part of Sanford, currently trains foreign officials in Durham through its Executive Education programs

But Kuniholm, who was a member of the early June delegation that visited the site in Kunshan, said Sanford has plans to set up more international programs, possibly partnering with Fuqua.