Kennesaw State announced a partnership with the Department of State April 1 to establish a Diplomacy Lab to provide collegiate innovation toward solving unique global concerns.
“This program gives [KSU] a chance to demonstrate our research capability as an R2 powerhouse to the federal government,” Diplomacy Lab Coordinator Sherrill Hayes said.
Hayes said that this program will give KSU students unique opportunities to gain experience with formal research by allowing them to tackle issues such as human rights, sciences and foreign policy.
Hayes also said that bids have been submitted for projects regarding the use of artificial intelligence in foreign service training, cryptocurrency’s role in developing nations, social media in China, democratic speech in Africa and general study in labor laws and human rights. Approval has already been granted for two of the projects.
According to the Diplomacy Lab’s website, KSU will join with 35 partner-institutions in this collaborative “course-sourced” program in the fall 2019 semester. KSU will be introducing projects by integrating them into existing courses and capstones.
The lab follows a structure which flows from the top down, according to the website. The coordinator will select qualified university faculty members who will later lead student teams in the approved projects.
Hayes said that while student teams are facilitated and selected by faculty, the student teams require student innovation and effort to move the project forward.
The website states that the ultimate goal for the Diplomacy Lab is to engage student activity in expanding the Department of State’s research power.
Students that wish to become involved with this program are advised to contact shayes32@kennesaw.edu, visit research.kennesaw.edu or go to diplomacylab.org for more information.
