Mission, Values, and Goals

The American University of Central Asia is an international, multi-disciplinary learning community in the American liberal arts tradition that develops enlightened and impassioned leaders for the transformation of Central Asia.

The American University of Central Asia values responsible freedom in the search for truth and justice. We are honest, self-critical, and respectful. We cherish critical inquiry and investigative learning both for their own sake and for the development of an open, diverse, and just society that suits the region in which we learn and serve.


INTRODUCTION

AUCA serves Central Asia, where young democracies are emerging in nation states accustomed to more restrictive forms of governance.  We develop the skills and the attitude of mind that foster sensitivity to the region’s rich traditions and adaptability for its democratic development.

Proud of the success of our 2,500 graduates, on our 10th anniversary as an independent learning community we launched a plan for academic development designed to enable our University to soar to a new level of excellence.

Our distinctiveness derives from our highly strategic location, where peoples from east and west have been exchanging goods and ideas for millennia. Our University is a small but powerful engine of intellectual freedom and critical thinking that fuels education in a caring, corruption-free, student-centered environment.

We treasure Central Asia’s historic role as facilitator of mutual understanding and entrepreneurial ideas. Students and faculty eager to study and pursue their dreams come to us from 25 different countries, including all the Central Asian states, Afghanistan, China, Holland, Germany, Pakistan, Russia, South Korea, and the United States. Their diverse beliefs, languages and perspectives are openly shared and valued. In this vibrant atmosphere, where the freedom to study is considered a privilege, we design new paths forward for social transformation and international understanding.

To sustain our noble experiment in critical thinking and have a transformational impact on Central Asia for generations to come, we set goals to enhance our academic excellence that will guide our work over the next five years.

Based on our mission and values, our goals enhance our distinctiveness as a learning community grounded in the liberal arts that prepares a new generation of leaders for the democratic transformation of Central Asia and the world beyond.  We are committed to improving the quality of our faculty, our students, and our research oriented curriculum. We are determined to provide the information resources necessary for learning, to broaden the multicultural perspective needed for the transformation of the region, and to enhance our commitment to the common good. We affirm as well the need to deepen and celebrate our distinctive form of academic engagement within and beyond the University.


We will have the best international faculty in Central Asia, teaching primarily in English, to fulfill the mission and values of the University, and to foster a caring and exciting academic environment for the development of enlightened and passionate leaders.

Our faculty will enjoy competitive compensation, new technologies for teaching and learning, interaction with highly accomplished educators both on campus and abroad, and ample space in which to teach and learn. They will continue to inspire critical thinking and creative solutions to contemporary issues.


We will have the best international student body in Central Asia; who read, write, and study primarily in English and who actively pursue their curricular and extra-curricular life in the process of becoming the future leaders of the region.

Essential to our excellence is the quality of the students admitted to the University. Every effort will be made to retain and enhance the quality of our student body with sophisticated international marketing and excellent scholarship and loan opportunities. Students from outside Bishkek and abroad will enjoy living and learning in a safe and comfortable international residence hall. They will take most of their courses in English, enjoy technology-supported learning that links them with students across the world, pursue undergraduate research, travel to international conferences, and have expanded opportunities to study abroad.

We will strive to open new programs that meet our mission and goals, as well as the needs of a new generation of students.

While improving the quality of our existing programs, we will design and develop distinctive new programs that foster a deep understanding of societies undergoing transformation. Capitalizing on our unique location  and  local expertise, the University is exploring interdisciplinary undergraduate programs in Central Asian and Islamic Studies.  We also plan to establish graduate programs in Economics and Public Policy, and an International Baccalaureate Program. Across all programs students and faculty will enjoy access to technology-assisted learning for their general education and their major programs.


We will become the best teaching and research university in Central Asia, distinctive for our emphasis on critical thinking and on faculty and student research. We will make the results of our cutting-edge research available for the use and benefit of the citizens of Central Asia.
                                               
We are passionate about enhancing our commitment to interdisciplinary research as a catalyst for the creative approaches to teaching, learning, and leadership that distinguish our University. The University will become a center of excellence in research with increasing international acclaim and an increasing presence of international scholars and graduate students. Faculty actively engaged in research will enjoy released time, periods of leave, and access to external funding. Students will enjoy increased opportunity for collaborative research and the opportunity to publish their findings together with faculty.


We will transform our library and our computer laboratories into one of the best information centers in Central Asia that also provides our students with the technological literacy to navigate and utilize the vast amounts of information available.

Our learner-centered approach to inquiry demands ready and rapid access to online journals, databases, curricula, and research. Our expanded library and technology resources, including more computer labs and technology-enabled classrooms, will provide access to the latest scholarship and information.  This will transform our learning community into an engine of creativity that generates solutions to global and local problems that will be shared worldwide. To ensure our students will excel in academia and the modern work environment, we will provide both students and faculty with the technology skills to access all the necessary information.


We will increase the academic and cultural synergy in our distinctive international community, celebrating our differences while bringing the world’s best ideas and knowledge to the dynamic development of Central Asia.

AUCA is an international institution with a distinctive mix of cultures that interact well. In the next five years we will build new partnerships, enhance the presence of international scholars and teachers, and provide expanded opportunities for the development of our Central Asian faculty, staff, and student body. Our research supported curriculum will have an increasingly international focus made possible through the enhanced presence of international students and faculty, more opportunities for overseas study, and enriched web-based connectivity. A new international residence hall and conference center will facilitate cross-cultural dialogue and respectful understanding in the search for a peaceful and open society in the region and beyond.


We will increase community-wide engagement with ideas and actions for social transformation and human progress.

AUCA is deeply engaged in the development of ethical citizen leaders committed to providing creative solutions to the common good. Our academic programs, research activity and volunteer programs testify to our rich tradition of service.  Our alumni give back to their communities in their native countries and abroad. We will strive to reinforce the commitment to the development of civic conscience and the common good with academic and service programs that focus on the region and with campus conversations and activities that center on the responsibility to serve. The privilege of achieving academic excellence in a liberal arts university will be enriched with a deepened understanding of the responsibility and satisfaction that comes from a commitment to social responsibility and civic engagement.


We will celebrate and communicate worldwide the achievements of AUCA during our very short history so as to enhance our international appeal, alumni pride, and philanthropic commitment.


AUCA has enjoyed stunning success in very short order. We are twenty years old. We have succeeded as a result of the talents and dedication of our community of donors, leaders, trustees, faculty, students, and staff. The successes of our alumni are ample tribute to a remarkable young University that has become known throughout Central Asia as one of the best.