Bloomfield partners with Korean community college

^{By:  Andrew Mees, Director of College and Athletics Communications              communications@bloomfield.edu}

BLOOMFIELD, N.J. – Bloomfield College continued its expansion abroad by welcoming another international partner on Feb. 24, as the comprehensive college officially announced an alliance with Vision College of Jeon Ju, a Korean community college in the nation’s Jeon Buk Province.

“The creation of this new relationship is part of the College's global educational mission,” Bloomfield President Richard Levao said. “Through it we enrich learning, not only young men and women from Vision College who will spend time at Bloomfield College, but we continue to enrich the opportunities for our American students to meet and develop friendships and broader awareness of the extraordinary backgrounds and perspectives of different peoples around the world.”

Ranked 7^th among 147 community colleges and designated a “World Class College” in Korea, Vision College students will participate in Bloomfield’s short-term programs beginning in summer of 2014. Eighty students will take part in the programs at the outset of the partnership, their majors including nursing, tae kwon do, and cosmetology. Students will be participating in information seminars, and conferences such as United Nations debriefings, among other educational activities. 

The bond brings Bloomfield’s international partnerships with high schools and colleges to a total of 70.  Founded in 2003, the International Students Program at the institution is comprised of students hailing from 34 countries, including Korea, France, China, Brazil and the Czech Republic. With the emergence of globalization in the field of higher education, the college has made significant strides in transforming the institution into a global academic destination.

“By agreeing to partner with Vision College, we will be providing these outstanding students with global education as well as short-term workplace experiences,” Bloomfield vice president of Global Affairs and Professional Studies Dr. Peter Jeong said. “I am especially excited to have tae kwon do students who will culturally contribute to our community. I am sure students from both Vision College and our community will benefit from this exchange program, and others like it.” 

A diverse institution in Bloomfield, N.J. that features a student body of 2,145 students, Bloomfield College has recently been named among the best National Liberal Arts Colleges in the nation in U.S. News & World Report's 2014 "Best Colleges" rankings. Offering over 60 majors and concentrations, the four-year institution will welcome a new state-of-the-art, 84,000-square-foot residence hall in the Summer of 2014, doubling the school's on-campus resident population to nearly 600 students.