Association for the Global Advancement
of Universities and Colleges
Welcome to the Association for the Global Advancement of Universities and Colleges (AGAUC)
It is both an honor and a responsibility to address you as the President of AGAUC, an organization founded on a simple but powerful idea: that higher education thrives when knowledge, leadership, and institutional courage transcend borders.
Professor Steve O. Michael founded AGAUC with the help of collegues at a time when many higher education systems—particularly in regions undergoing profound transformation—were seeking not ready-made models but trusted partners. From its early work in the Black Sea region to its expansion across Europe, Asia, Africa, America, and beyond, AGAUC has grown into a global platform for dialogue, leadership development, institutional transformation, and mutual learning. I have had the privilege of working closely alongside Steve for many years, contributing to this vision as colleague, partner, and institutional leader. The decision of AGAUC leadership to entrust me with the presidency of AGAUC is not merely a change of office—it is a continuation of a shared mission, grounded in respect for the past and responsibility for the future. For this trust, I am deeply grateful.
Today, AGAUC stands at a new crossroads. Universities operate in a world shaped by rapid technological change, geopolitical uncertainty, demographic shifts, and profound questions about the role of knowledge itself. At the same time, higher education remains one of the few global institutions capable of forming leaders, cultivating ethical judgment, and sustaining long-term societal progress.
AGAUC’s role is precisely here: to connect institutions and leaders who believe that higher education must remain globally engaged, institutionally innovative, and socially responsible, regardless of national context or sector.
As President, my commitment is clear:
- to strengthen AGAUC as a platform of trust among university leaders;
- to continue to promote institutional internalization;
- to expand its role in leadership development, quality assurance, and institutional strategy;
- to ensure that AGAUC remains open, inclusive, and future-oriented, while staying anchored in academic integrity and institutional excellence, and
- to further institutional advancment, especially in the private higher education sector.
Whether you are a president, rector, chancellor, vice chancellor, provost, dean, faculty member, or policy leader, AGAUC is your association if you believe that universities matter—not only locally, but globally. AGAUC is also open to students who aspire to an academic career and leadership.Welcome to AGAUC.
Welcome to a community that looks forward beyond the boundaries!
Dr. Andy Pusca
President, AGAUC
Dr. Steve O. Michael
Past President, AGAUC
Farewell and Acceptance Speech
Dr. Steve O. Michael
President, The Association for the Global Advancement of Universities and Colleges (AGAUC)
I take this opportunity to thank my family members who see me less often as I travel around the world but still love and support all my activities. They understand that I suffer from “nomadicites,” which I define as an incurable nomadic disease that causes an insatiable desire for global peripatetic. I also wish to extend my gratitude to everyone who has played a role in my career, in one way or another. Although they are too numerous to mention here today, I am confident they will be acknowledged in my future writings.
Thanks to President Huang, the founder of Xian International University, who is today a co-recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award. President Huang was the first to welcome me to China nearly 20 years ago. We became friends. He visited me in the U.S., and I have visited him many times. We co-hosted conferences, and I will never forget the day he introduced me at our first international conference. He said, “Dr. Steve O. Michael is a Chinese man pretending to be an American.” I thought that was a beautiful compliment. Thanks, President Huang, for seeing the Chinese in me.
I recognize another co-recipient, Dr. Sergey Zaprygaev, former Vice Rector of Voronezh State University in Russia, who worked with me for many years to organize conferences, write books in Russian, and travel around the world. I regret that Sergey cannot be here today, but he has certainly sent his greetings and gratitude to all of us. His biggest disappointment was the cancellation of our last conference in Moscow due to international politics — how both of us despise international politics!
Additionally, I want to thank my team from Danubius International University (DIU), who are here at this conference. We have a group of 10 people from Danubius International University in Romania attending. Some of them, like Dr. Andy Pusca, the President of the DIU Board, and the Senate President, Dr. Modiga, have been here before, but many are new to China and XAIU. All they relied on was my word: that China is a great country to visit and XAIU is a wonderful institution to have as a partner.
I especially recognize the new President of the Association for the Global Advancement of Universities and Colleges (AGAUC), Dr. Andy Pusca, who also serves as the President of the Administrative Board at DIU. Starting today, Dr. Pusca assumes leadership of AGAUC, and we can all look forward to greater accomplishments from the Association under his guidance as he takes it to a new level of excellence.
Indeed, I want to thank many people in China, from Inner Mongolia to Xifeng, from Shanghai to Chengdu, from Beijing to Xian, and from Nanchang to Tianjin. Thanks to all my colleagues in Russia, Moldova, Turkey, Australia, and across Europe and Africa. In all these places, I've met people who welcomed me into their families, and in return, they became part of mine. With them, I have built bonds that will last a lifetime. Thanks to the love and friendship of Grace Wang and her family, Mrs. Zhou and her family, Dr. Shawn Chen, Chairman and Founder of Sias International University, President Wei He, founder of He Eye Hospital and University, and Ms. Grace Zhao Ming at He University. I was recently invited back to Jindao to visit one of the schools with which Dr. Tobey Oxholm III and I had signed an agreement, and I was pleased to see so many pictures of us still hanging on their walls. Dr. Oxholm III was the President of Arcadia University, and I served as the University Provost during that visit. In my opinion, very few American college presidents were as effective as Tobey at gaining the love and acceptance of the communities we visited in China.
What we call AGAUC, the Association for the Global Advancement of Universities and Colleges, was created by several of us, including President Huang. It is a gathering of individuals who believe that a university is a global asset with a mission that transcends geopolitical borders. Specifically, it represents the coming together of like-minded scholars dedicated to promoting both public and private higher education sectors worldwide.
A lifetime award is a prestigious honor with a subtle message that hints at the recipient being old. It is an award that gently encourages the recipient to retire and make way for younger leaders. I got the message. However, I appreciate the recognition of over 20 years of traveling across the globe, promoting institutional collaboration, cooperation, and advancement.
In conclusion, I encourage everyone to look beyond current negative international politics. Instead, let us focus on humanity, imagine, and work toward a brighter future beyond our brief time on earth. Focus on what truly matters: not my transient identity as an American, Russian, Chinese, Romanian, or any other nationality, but as human beings who embrace others in their diversity, accepting one another in the spirit of brotherhood and sisterhood. If we can do that, then our education will have accomplished its most important goal—that is, the unity of humankind.
Multumesc! Xie Xie! Mugode!
