LIU Global Institute enters second year

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Former Congressman Steve Israel and student Thomas Pallini Photo by Tiffany Miller)

By Tiffany Rose Miller

Former Congressman Steve Israel, a resident of Oyster Bay, became chairman of the newly created Long Island University Global Institute on Jan. 4, 2017.

He recently spoke with the LIU Post student newspaper, the Pioneer, to reflect on the Global Institute’s first year.

When Israel was in Congress, he represented the second and third Congressional District of New York, an area LIU is included in. He called Long Island University, a “jewel in the crown” of his district, so when LIU President Kimberly Cline called him after he announced his retirement from Congress and asked if he would be interested in creating an initiative at LIU, he was intrigued.

While the university assisted in the initial funding for the Global Institute, a part of Israel’s responsibility is fundraising.

Israel wants to engage students interested in law, public policy and an array of other fields. “Any program we do, we start with the [LIU Post] students; we have breakfast sessions with diplomats that students are invited to, we provide tickets to events at discounted rates for them, sometimes at no cost at all,” he said.

This spring the Global Institute Student Fellowship Opportunity was created for LIU students.

It seeks “civic-minded” students with an interest in politics, community engagement and global affairs.

Students in the fellowship program participate in assisting the planning, set up and execution of events, promote Global Institute events to the student body, make phone calls to members of the community on behalf of the Institute, and work with staff to update and maintain paperwork.

Five LIU students are currently participating in the fellowship program.

Thomas Pallini, an LIU Post junior political science major, is part of the Global Institute Fellowship.

“Through working with Congressman Israel as a fellow of the Global Institute, I’ve been privileged enough to help coordinate the student-oriented events of the Institute and help provide my peers a deeper understanding of the seemingly complicated world we live in today,” he said. “This fellowship has provided me with a foundation in politics, and has allowed to me realize what my true passion is,” he added.

Israel is also teaching a course this semester for the first time at LIU, a political science elective called Politics, Media, & Culture.

Madeline Nunley, an LIU Post senior digital art and design major, is in the class. “Getting to learn about Congress and politics from someone who has dedicated their life to it is something special,” she said about the course.

Israel has connections with many political leaders, both Republicans and Democrats.

He has already invited a few to speak on campus and plans to invite others. “When I was in Congress, I really tried to focus on building relationships with people on either side,” he said. “If we can get people from the Democratic and Republican side to meet as Americans and for their best interest, you can make progress.”

Israel said he loves his new role at LIU. It allows him to “be an explorer and really sit down with political leaders to have meaningful conversations with them that last longer than the one-minute maximum he was given while in Congress.”

Last week, former Vice President Joe Biden spoke at the Tilles Center. Other speakers have included General Colin Powell, Congressman Adam Schiff, former CIA Director General David H. Petraeus, and former President Bill Clinton. Next fall, Israel plans to bring former President George Bush to LIU.

This article was originally published in the Pioneer, the award-winning student newspaper of LIU Post, www.liupostpioneer.com, and is republished here by Blank Slate Media with the permission of the Pioneer.

 

 

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