Mike Martin is shedding his title as president of Florida Gulf Coast University, but he is gaining another presidential title.
Martin will be president of the Hanseatic League of Universities for the next year. He is replacing Dong-sung Cho, president of Incheon National University in South Korea.
The league held its third annual conference at FGCU this week, where more than 150 people from around the world attended.
It was the first conference since the Covid pandemic. FGCU offered to hold the conference after Northern Arizona University decided it didn’t want to host.
“I want the university to be seen through this relationship as a global player,” Martin said. “We will never forget we serve Southwest Florida, but we can serve Southwest Florida by being a bridge to a much larger world for our students and for the local citizens.”
The job won’t take up all of Martin’s free time in retirement. One role will be to coordinate the conversation that will take place at next year’s convention in Switzerland.
One of his goals for the next 12 months is to build membership. The league was formed in 2018.
He was worried that the pandemic slowed the league’s momentum, but that has not happened, he said. Members from Albania, the Philippines, Brazil and other countries attended this year’s conference.
“I do believe it can become one of the most powerful international higher education collaboratives that we’ve experienced,” he said.
The league is working on a new ranking system for universities, the World University Ranking Index, Martin said.
U.S. News and World Report and other organizations use a “one size fits all” method, he said. The WURI ranking is different.
“This group is committed to recognize differences in missions and differences in circumstances and give an opportunity to measure university success against the realities they face,” he said.
One measurement will be innovation. Which universities in the world are the most innovative and how can other schools learn from the innovations?
The league is seeking solutions to some challenges facing higher education.
One of the more popular topics during the three-day conference was how to navigate the more political landscape, Martin said.
Freedom of speech and diversity, equality and inclusion are under attack not just at universities in the U.S., but in other countries too, he said. League participants can learn from one another how to respond to the situations.
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