Consul General Matt Boyse (far right) on the podium during the panel discussion in Detmold.

International Partnership Day in Detmold, Westphalia
March 5, 2008.
Consul General Matt Boyse visited Detmold on March 5, addressing more than 200 faculty, staff and foreign guests at the Felix Fechenbach Vocational College on the importance of international study to remaining competitive in a globalized world. During a two-hour panel discussion, he and German experts compared vocational training internationally, stressing that it is as important as academic training. The CG presented an overview of American community colleges, describing their diversity, their prominence in teaching applied skills, and their strong orientation to the market and to the needs of employers. Delegations from Atlanta Technical College, as well as schools in Japan, Lithuania, Chile, and the Czech Republic, joined UNESCO official Nainga Yee Mar. The CG also called on Marianne Thomann-Stahl, who governs the district of Detmold, one of the five regional administrations in NRW.

• Felix Fechenbach Vocational College