South American college officials tour campus

Eighteen South American university and college officials and government leaders toured FSU Panama City on Thursday as part of the Community College Administrator Program.

The six-week program, which is funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of State, trains representatives from international institutions to develop programs similar those in America’s colleges. Representatives from schools in Ecuador, Brazil, Columbia and Peru will tour colleges throughout the state, such as Santa Fe College, the University of Florida, Broward College and Florida State College at Jacksonville.

During the morning tour, the visitors learned about FSU Panama City’s crime scene investigation program with professors Charla Purdue and Mike Zinszer. The tour continued in the afternoon at Gulf Coast State College.

“It was an honor to share FSU Panama City’s programs with these international administrators,” FSU Panama City Interim Dean Randy Hanna said. “Collaborations such as these strengthen partnerships and fosters diversity within our programs.”

Florida State’s Learning Systems Institute has previously hosted groups from India, Indonesia and Ukraine and recently was awarded an additional grant for future collaboration with schools in other countries.