Dedicated students, distinguished colleagues and dear friends,

Happy Friday!

American University of Antigua!? Rochester Institute of Technology in Zagreb!? Johns Hopkins in Bologna!? American University of Duhok!? And the list goes on. In fact, today there are hundreds of American educational institutions around the world, but the global reach of American education is not a recent phenomenon. Of course, international students have been coming to America for education for as long as ships have sailed and planes have flown. But I am talking about American educators who have spent their entire careers abroad establishing institutions, educating the youth of the world and supporting global education since the early 1800s. So, today, on this International Day of Education, I would like to recognize the remarkable service of an American educator of global status: Dr. Samuel Martin Jordan and his team of “Lafayette in Persia.”

Dr. Jordan moved to Tehran, Iran, in 1889 after graduating from Lafayette College and established the American College of Tehran that ultimately became Alborz, arguably the most prestigious high school in Iran. He served as its president for 41 years, committing his entire professional life to educating generations of Iranian students who became doctors and engineers all around the world. In fact, Alborz became the foundation and impetus for the establishment of one of the best institutes of higher education in Iran, the Amirkabir University of Technology. In appreciation of his many services to higher education in Iran, Jordan Boulevard in Tehran was named after him, and a statue of him was dedicated in Amirkabir. It remains on display today and was perhaps the only statue of a Westerner in Iran at the time of its dedication.

Interestingly, before Dr. Jordan, another global-minded educator, James Bassett, had established the first American education mission in Tehran in 1872, and it served as the predecessor to the famed high school.

In my own early years in Tehran, Alborz was the standard by which all other high schools measured themselves: rigorous, disciplined and the gateway to career and professional success.

Here at S&T, our faculty model excellence in teaching, service and experiential learning, and we honor their efforts to create meaningful learning opportunities for our students. And, given the persisting national teacher shortage issue, our teacher education program is addressing teacher vacancies through many efforts, including a 2024 DEWEY Award to support students who are studying to become K-12 teachers. It provides financial assistance for their field experiences and student teaching.

More broadly, we reach out to children as young as preschool age through the Kummer Center for STEM Education, where children first experience S&T through fun, hands-on activities at community events, summer camps, free tutoring, campus visits or our STEM Mobile experiences. In the fall, S&T launched Miners in the Making, a free after-school program for three Phelps County school districts.

Our Project Lead The Way offers a large variety of equipment, training and support for K-12 teachers, and S&T is home to South Central Regional Professional Development Center, which provides training to teachers in 13 counties and from 63 school districts, and our own Dr. Christi Luks is now the president-elect of the American Society for Engineering Education.

Today, on this globally recognized day of education, I express my heartfelt gratitude for Dr. Jordan and his team of Lafayette in Persia, for all our own past educators and supporters of our mission, and those who continue to support our efforts today. Your stories of dedication and selfless participation are inspiring to all of us, and for that we are grateful. 

Warmly,

-Mo.

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Mohammad Dehghani, PhD
Chancellor
mo@mst.edu | 573-341-4116

206 Parker Hall, 300 West 13th Street, Rolla, MO 65409-0910
chancellor.mst.edu