Loading Events

← Back to Events

Ralph J. Bunche International Affairs Center

+ Google Map
2218 6th Street NW
Washington, DC 20059 United States
202-806-4363 http://global.howard.edu/about-ralph-j-bunche-center/

Howard University established an International Affairs Center in 1993 to serve as a focal point for the University’s many and var­ied international activities and interests. Substantial financial support, was provided by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, which made the Center one of only 10 Kellogg-supported Centers of Excellence in the United States . In 1996, with United Nations Secretary-General Boutros Boutros Ghali and members of the Bunche family in attendance, the Center, was re-christened The Ralph J. Bunche International Affairs Center – 2218 6th Street, NW Washington , D.C. 20059 .

The Bunche Center has, in a few short years, had a major, positive and catalytic impact on the University. Not only has it orga­nized and coordinated numerous lectures and other internationally oriented programs, it also has become an incubator and focal point of interdisciplinary pro­grams of study and discussion. During, a single semester the Center hosted programs on women’s issues, economic development, Russia, ethnic con­flict, democratization, civil wars and the global financial crisis, featuring lecturers ranging from professors to heads of state.

The Center serves, in addition, as Howard’s point of contact for a range of inquiries from entities outside the University: foreign embassies, governments, univer­sities and corporations, as well as U.S. government agencies. As lecturers, the Center hosts heads of state and government; Cabinet officers; and a broad range of scholars and officials involved in international affairs.

Not least among the Center’s goals and responsibilities, indeed it may be the most important, is to encourage, support and pre­pare students from Howard, and high schools, nationwide for internation­al and public affairs careers.

In this mentoring role, too, the Center has been highly successful. Large numbers of area high School students have received an inten­sive introduction to world affairs at the Center. Utilizing such program’s Howard University to produce, annually, from its undergraduate, graduate and professional student cadres, even larger numbers of young people, most of them African American, equipped with the edu­cation, experience and training required to move effortlessly into positions of responsibility and Opportunity in government, academics, business and non-governmental organizations.

In this regard, the Center is especially pleased to house the Patricia Roberts Harris Public Affairs Program, which honors a distinguished Howard alumna who became Secretary of Health and Human Services, Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and Ambassador to Luxembourg . The program honoring Patricia Roberts Harris (1924-85) features an annual lecture, visiting fellows, and extensive internships for Howard students in federal, state and local government offices. It has received much of its external funding from, among other sources, the W. K. Kellogg, Henry M. Jackson, and Una Chapman Cox foundations.

The Center and University have also enjoyed considerable tangible support from the U.S. Department of State in the form of Diplomats­-in-Residence. The efforts of the previous diplomats-in-residence, have resulted in record numbers of Howard students being placed abroad in internships at U.S. embassies abroad and Howard stu­dents winning coveted undergraduate and graduate foreign affairs fellowships.

Separately, efforts by the Programs have result­ed in record placements of Howard students in programs offering over­seas travel, conferences and work. Since 1997, the Center has made efforts to establish closer relation­ships with more foundations, U.S. government agencies, and multina­tional corporations, among others.

At the same time, growing interest in international affairs among Howard stu­dents has led to the formation of a student-run Foreign Affairs Society. Propos­als for graduate and undergraduate degree programs in international affairs are pending.

August 2017

Rangel International Affairs Graduate Fellowship Program Information Session

August 22, 2017 @ 6:00 PM - 7:30 PM
Ralph J. Bunche International Affairs Center, 2218 6th Street NW
Washington, DC 20059 United States
free

This session will provide an overview of the Charles B. Rangel International Affairs Graduate Fellowship Program! Rangel staff will highlight each component of the program, application process, and more! This will be an opportunity to gain detailed information about the program and application process. Attendees will also hear from Rangel Fellows and Scholars about their experiences in the program. The events are open to the public – join us! Please RSVP below (or click here).

Find out more »

September 2017

Rangel Graduate Fellowship Information Session

September 14, 2017 @ 6:00 PM - 7:30 PM
Ralph J. Bunche International Affairs Center, 2218 6th Street NW
Washington, DC 20059 United States
+ Google Map
Free

This session will provide an overview of the Charles B. Rangel International Affairs Graduate Fellowship Program! Rangel staff will highlight each component of the program, application process, and more! This will be an opportunity to gain detailed information about the program and application process. Attendees will also hear from Rangel Fellows and Scholars about their experiences in the program. The events are open to the public - join us! Please RSVP at the link below (or click here).

Find out more »

Prioritize & Lead: HBCU Symposium on Study Abroad

September 20, 2017 @ 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Ralph J. Bunche International Affairs Center, 2218 6th Street NW
Washington, DC 20059 United States
+ Google Map
Find out more »

November 2017

International Opportunities Information Session

November 2, 2017 @ 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM
Ralph J. Bunche International Affairs Center, 2218 6th Street NW
Washington, DC 20059 United States
+ Google Map
FREE

You are invited to participate in the International Affairs Opportunities Session on Thursday, November 2 from 5:00 - 6:00PM at the Ralph Bunche International Affairs Center (2218 6th Street NW) to learn more about international opportunities. The following programs and organizations will be featured. Get information about funding for graduate school, the State Department Foreign Service, the USAID Foreign Service, and more! Representatives from all three programs will discuss program benefits, requirements, and the application processes. Thomas R. Pickering Foreign…

Find out more »

August 2019

International Affairs Careers Preparing you for Foreign Service

August 29, 2019 @ 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Ralph J. Bunche International Affairs Center, 2218 6th Street NW
Washington, DC 20059 United States
+ Google Map

Are you an impeccable negotiator? Believe in positive cultural exchanges? Come to Howard University's Bunche Center and learn how you can put your skills to work as a Foreign Service Officer. This event is free and open to members of the public. Requirements for all of the Fellowships are: you must be a U.S. Citizen, had a 3.2 in undergrad, and ready to enter grad school in fall 2020. College seniors and college graduates are welcome to apply. Register at…

Find out more »
+ Export Events