Relevance of the Historically Black Colleges and University (HBCU) and Land Grant Model for Inclusive Transformation in Federal Nepal

Authors

  • Purna Nepali Kathmandu University, Nepal
  • Uttam Gaulee Morgan State University, USA
  • Prakash Baral Ministry of Land Management, Agriculture, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation, Gandaki Province, Nepal
  • Suwas Paudel Value Chain Development Project, Nepal
  • Santosh Khanal Tribhuvan University, Nepal

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.32674/jump.v5i2.3953

Keywords:

Inclusive transformation, Land Grant University, Provincial University, Social Diversity and Inclusion

Abstract

The institutionalization of federalism has created a space for Nepal with an opportunity to transform into a more inclusive and equitable society with a vibrant economy. Towards this transformation, adoption of the elements of the Land Grant model in the higher education system of Nepal can be a key to break the long-stagnant agrarian economy characterized by persistent inequality, structural poverty, and stunted economic growth. This paper attempts to present a perspective analysis of US-based Land Grant Universities/ Institutions (LGUs/LGIs) and Historically Black Colleges and University (HBCU) mission and its possible implications in the agrarian landscape with priority laid on the inclusive agrarian transformation of Nepal through consideration of these models in the spirit of social inclusion and agrarian justice as envisaged in the constitutional provisions, policies and the structural features of country’s stagnant economy.

The grand design of American higher education in the context of the initiatives of LGUs and HBCUs could be an eye-opening lesson for the academic institutions, especially, the new provincial universities of Nepal for engaging the community beyond academic function, building a strong university-community partnership, relationship, and aligning their educational endeavors toward optimizing the use of available natural and human resources in society. A community based inclusive transformation could be coordinated and aligned with the local, provincial and national governments and leaders in line with their political and social aspirations so that the local resources could be leveraged to catalyze local initiatives and promote indigenous innovation while consolidating the commitment to social diversity and inclusion for the overall societal transformation of federal states of Nepal through concerted higher education reforms in lines of LGU and HBCUs.

Author Biographies

  • Purna Nepali, Kathmandu University, Nepal

    PURNA BAHADUR NEPALI, Ph.D. is Associate Professor, and Program Director, Master of Public Policy and Management (MPPM), Kathmandu University School of Management (KU SOM), Balkumari, Lalitpur. Dr. Nepali is a Research Fellow (non-resident), Harvard Kennedy School and Hutchins Center, Harvard University, US where he is undertaking his research on Political Economy of Inclusive Agrarian Transformation: Comparative Analysis of Race-Caste of US and Nepal/South-Asia. He has completed his Fulbright Visiting Research Fellowship (2017-18) at Heller School for Social Policy and Management, Brandeis University, USA. His research was on Reorienting Political Economy of Agrarian Transformations, focusing on marginalized communities in Nepal. For the past decade he has researched land rights and food rights, and advocates for evidence-based policy and reform in South Asia from a civil society perspective. In addition, he teaches/supervises graduate courses for masters and Ph.D. students as an adjunct professor at the Tribhuwan University and the Agriculture and Forestry University in Nepal. As a lead editor of the Journal- New Angle, he recently edited a special issue of the peer-reviewed article called Agrarian and Land Issues.

    He can be assessed at purna@kusom.edu.np , kumar2034@gmail.com , pnepali@g.harvard.edu.

  • Uttam Gaulee, Morgan State University, USA

    UTTAM GAULEE, Ph.D. is the President of STAR Scholars Network and the founding editor of the Journal of Underrepresented & Minority Progress.  He is a scholar of international higher education. His research interests include community college systems, diaspora studies, interdisciplinary perspectives on education policy, global citizenship, and cross-cultural issues in international development and geopolitics. A professor in the Community College Leadership Doctoral Program at Morgan State University, Dr. Gaulee is an advocate of community college as a vehicle for social progress and economic development in and beyond the U.S. Dr. Gaulee has devoted two decades of his academic and professional life promoting solutions related to student success, workforce development, and institutional effectiveness. While serving as program director of the Community College Futures Assembly and Bellwether College Consortium during 2015-16, he collaborated with multiple national commissions and councils of the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) to evaluate and promote best practices among community colleges and hosted national policy summits on workforce development, reverse transfer, and talent pipeline management. Email: uttam.gaulee@morgan.edu.

  • Prakash Baral, Ministry of Land Management, Agriculture, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation, Gandaki Province, Nepal

    PRAKASH BARAL is Agricultural Extension Officer, Horticulture Development Resource Center, Ministry of Land Management, Agriculture, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation, Gandaki Province, Nepal. Previously, he was serving as Assistant Professor in Jibika College of Agricultural Sciences under the Department of Agriculture Extension and Rural Sociology. He has been engaged in different researches related to agriculture, land reforms, policy reforms, and agrarian issues.  Email: pra.brl38742@gmail.com.

  • Suwas Paudel, Value Chain Development Project, Nepal

    SUWAS PAUDEL is Agriculture Officer in Value Chain Development Project, Nepal.

  • Santosh Khanal, Tribhuvan University, Nepal

    SANTOSH KHANAL is an Assistant Professor in the Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science, Nepal under the Department of Extension and Rural Sociology/Tribhuvan University.

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Published

2021-10-01

Issue

Vol. 5 No. 2 (2021): Journal of Underrepresented and Minority Progress

Section

Articles