University of Freiburg
Freiburg, Germany
http://www.uni-freiburg.de/
Penn State Global contact: Alexandra Persiko, assistant director for Europe and Oceania partnerships (1-814-867-5941, axp1225@psu.edu)
History
Penn State and the Albert Ludwigs University of Freiburg have had linkages since 1997, which have grown into a strong strategic partnership. The first Memorandum of Understanding between the Pennsylvania State University and the University of Freiburg was signed in 2011, laying the foundation for a multidisciplinary undergraduate student exchange. The following year, the partner universities engaged in faculty exchange activities. An agreement between the Schreyer Honors College and the University College Freiburg signed in 2013 established student exchange opportunities on a prominent level. In 2014, the memorandum was renewed and the collaboration was expanded towards a strategic partnership.
From 2016 on, a new Collaboration Development Program was providing seed monies for long-term programs integrating faculty and junior researchers from both universities. In July 2018, the universities cooperatively launched the Penn State - Freiburg Joint Collaboration Center. One of the Center’s goals is to enable stakeholders on all levels to benefit from a strong, successful and mutually beneficial partnership. This includes the highly esteemed alumni from both universities.
In July 2019, Penn State and the University of Freiburg signed an agreement for a large-scale joint venture as part of a Memorandum of Understanding to support research in living materials — embracing biological principles to develop infrastructure for a more sustainable society. Additionally, a Memorandum of Agreement was signed with the College of the Liberal Arts.
Opportunities
The Collaboration Development Fund Program
The Collaboration Development Fund Program, a jointly financed Seed-fund program, was launched to facilitate collaborative research and teaching projects to become sustainable, self-supporting, long-term activities. Penn State and the University of Freiburg committed Seed funds in 2017, 2018 and 2019.
Virtual Classroom Award
PSU News Press Release: https://news.psu.edu/story/606957/2020/02/05/academics/penn-state-university-freiburg-announce-virtual-classroom-award
Penn State and the University of Freiburg awarded two grants to joint teams in January 2020 to create collaborative, integrated virtual classroom courses between university programs. The teams addressed important energy and environmental concerns, challenges and possible solutions for renewable energy systems, on the one, and declines in insect biodiversity and abundance, on the other hand, by providing Freiburg and Penn State students with the opportunity to collaborate through online means. The two sets of classes strove to develop a model structure and leverage complementary academic capabilities of the universities to create learning opportunities not possible without the partnership.
Project 1: Bringing International Experts in Integrated Pest and Pollinator Management (IPPM) to the Classroom (Professor Natalie Boyle, Entomology)
Project 2: Solar Energy Integration and Economics (Professor Mark Fedkin, John Dutton E-Education Institute/Energy and Mineral Engineering)
Key Activities
The partnership with Freiburg is broad, having spanned a large number ofcolleges and departments at Penn State, both at University Park and Commonwealth campuses. These projects involve both faculty and students and address the missions of the respective universities: research, education and service.
2017 Seed Funding
|
Project Name |
Contact |
|---|---|
|
Faculty Exchange on Water Resources |
Tom Richard: tlr20@psu.edu |
|
Global Health – Strengthening Capacity Building Through the Pan Institute of Global Health |
Caprice Knapp |
2018 Seed Funding
|
Project Name |
Contact |
|---|---|
|
Insomnia Phenotypes – Treatment and Health Consequences |
Alexandros Vgontzas: axv3@psu.edu Julio Fernandez-Mendoza: jjf19@psu.edu |
|
Statistics for Geometric Data and Applications to Anthropology |
Matthew Reimherr: mlr36@psu.edu |
|
Contacting Crystals and People: A Research Project and Plan to Develop a Self-Sustaining Student Exchange Program |
Suzanne Mohney: sem2@psu.edu |
|
Philosophy in the Age of the New Wars |
Nicolas de Warren: |
2019 Seed Funding
Penn State and the University of Freiburg funded three projects in March 2019.
|
Project Name |
Contact |
|---|---|
|
Framing and Analyzing Novel Interventions for Sustainable Communities in Africa |
Michael Jacobson: mgj2@psu.edu
|
|
Machine Learning Models for Human Disease Discovery and Prediction |
Pransenjit Mitra: pum10@psu.edu |
|
Ultrasensitive Liquid Biopsy for Early Cancer Diagnostics |
Tak-Sing Wong: tswong@psu.edu |
Highlights of the Partnership
- In 2019, Penn State and the University of Freiburg signed an agreement for a large-scale joint venture to support research in living materials
- In 2019, Penn State and the University of Freiburg announced that they would embark on a novel new program in the realm of online learning.
- Penn State and the University of Freiburg collaborate on a wide variety of initiatives. Some examples can be seen in this video outlining the partnership.
- The Albert Ludwigs University was successfully granted two Clusters of Excellence in Germany’s Excellence Strategy in 2018.
- In September 2022, University of Freiburg Rector Kerstin Krieglstein presented the Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg – University Medal to Martin Trethewey, Penn State emeritus professor of mechanical engineering, for his efforts in forging a global collaboration between the two universities)
