US Consulate and CUSAT Sign MoU to open new 'American Corner' in Kochi

The American Center Chennai will directly support the new American Corner, the release said, adding that past collaborations include an intensive two-week residential STEAM camp for girl students, and a business communication programme.

The US Consulate General Chennai and Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT) on Friday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to establish an 'American Corner' at the varsity here. US Consul General Christopher W Hodges and CUSAT Registrar Prof Dr V Meera signed the MoU in the presence of CUSAT Vice Chancellor Dr P G Sankaran on the sidelines of a visit by a US Education Trade Delegation of 18 US universities to CUSAT.

The Consulate said the American Spaces programme is a flexible partnership model the United States runs globally. ''The new American Corner at CUSAT will eventually join a network of more than 600 American Spaces spread across India, Asia, and around the globe. The Corner will renew the vibrant programs of an American cultural space in Kerala since the 1970 closure of the USIA cultural centre in Thiruvananthapuram,'' the consulate said in a release.

Consul General Hodges said the faculty- and student-led-project will enable the people of Kerala to build a close relationship with the United States According to the release, he said it would enable the consulate to also ''...to support the amazing work that CUSAT and the Centre for Science in Society is doing to inspire and empower the next generation of STEAM [Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics] enthusiasts, future scientists, researchers, innovators, and entrepreneurs.

He said the US Consulate welcomes this opportunity for sustained partnership with CUSAT in support of ''our common values'', including a commitment to empower girls and women in STEAM, to promote hands-on-learning opportunities and STEM for social good, and to improve access to science and cultivate the next generation of change makers. The American Center Chennai will directly support the new American Corner, the release said, adding that past collaborations include an intensive two-week residential STEAM camp for girl students, and a business communication programme. In 2020, CUSAT hosted US Consulate General Chennai’s Disaster Management workshop focused on Sustainable Infrastructure Development as part of the ''America with Kerala'' project. The new American Corner will offer reliable academic and research resources via its eLibraryUSA platform, English language, skills and professional development programmes, media literacy workshops, exchange opportunities with US Institutions and advisory services for study in the United States, the release said. It added that the American Corner partnership will also serve as a basis to create more opportunities for student exchanges and research partnerships between CUSAT and American universities. ''Like all American Corners around the world, the activities at American Corner CUSAT will be free of charge and open to all. The corner is expected to open in 2024,'' the release said.

American Corners are independently operated and run by host institution partners, but receive funding, training, and support from the US government to run programmes in six key areas--Alumni Engagement, English Programmes, STEAM Programmes, Information about the US, Education in USA and Cultural Programmes and Community Engagement, according to the release.

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