Promoting Diversity, Globalization, and Internationalization in Appalachia: Experiences of an International University Faculty Member

Most would agree that concepts of diversity, globalization, and internationalization are important for the well-being of society. This notion is perhaps especially true in Appalachia, where the population is predominantly homogenous (Pollard & Jacobsen, 2020), and economic success and educational attainment lags the rest of the US (Greenberg, 2016; Pollard & Jacobsen, 2020). For those fully understanding the abovementioned concepts as well as the Appalachian region, the latter could arguably benefit from embracing the former. I am from China. I have spent 15 years in the US, first obtaining a PhD in adult and postsecondary education in the West, and then obtaining a faculty position at a regional university in the heart (the central subregion) of Appalachia, which has one of the least diverse populations in the country. I have faced challenges and learned lessons as I developed, found my place in, and pursued the promotion of diversity, globalization, and internationalization in central Appalachia. Below, I share my pathway to transformation, and my practice and reflection of teaching, scholarship, and service, in hopes they will help inform an understanding of the importance of infusing diversity and internationalization into institutions and programs of adult learning in the Appalachian area, and beyond. Moreover, learned lessons and techniques described may be of use to adult educators with similar missions all levels ranging from local to global.