Terms of Reference (ToR) – International Strategy Board (ISB)
Purpose
1.1. The ISB will provide coordinated strategic leadership for LSE’s international activity, supporting and enabling the School to remain globally competitive and world leading on its education, research and engagement with stakeholders around the world.
Status
1.2. The ISB will be a permanent board of the School Management Committee (SMC)
Responsibilities
1.3. The board would have the following responsibilities:
• Strategic oversight on the delivery of LSE’s international strategy.
• Oversight on the roll-out of the international strategy, and the support it will provide to key academic units and professional service divisions across LSE.
• Oversight and advice on specific significant strategic international opportunities and projects, related to the International Strategy and the recommendations within the strategy.
• Advice on other significant international engagement plans at the university level, among academic departments/centres/institutes, or service divisions.
Membership
1.4. Members
i. Chief Philanthropy and Global Engagement Officer (Chair): Ben Plummer-Powell
ii. Vice President and Pro-Vice Chancellor (Education): Professor Emma McCoy
iii. Vice President and Pro-Vice Chancellor (Research): Professor Susana Mourato
iv. Co-Director, Communications (External): Fiona Metcalfe
v. Executive Director, International Strategy and LSE in East Asia: Dr Brendan Smith
vi. Director, Recruitment and Admissions: Adrian Thomas
vii. Associate Vice President and Pro-Vice Chancellor (Education), Dean, Global Mobility and General Course: Mark Hoffman
viii. Dean, LSE Extended Education: Professor Wim A Van der Stede
ix. Academic Member: Professor Liz Robinson (2024-27)
x. Academic Member: Professor Kevin Featherstone (2024-27)
xi. Academic Member: Professor Peter Trubowitz (2024-27)
xii. Academic Member: Professor Paul Kelly (2024-27)
xiii. Departmental Manager Representative: David Meech-Mazumdar
xiv. Strategy and Projects Senior Manager (ISAP): Stephanie Cloots
1.5. Ben Plummer-Powell will act as the Chair of the Board and Stephanie Cloots will be the Secretary of the Board.
1.6. Five rotating academic colleagues (two of which will be Head of Departments) will be invited to serve for a 3-year period on the committee.
1.7. Where appropriate and for the effective operation of the ISB, other members of the School community can be invited to specific meetings of the Board to discuss and advise on specific areas of the School’s international engagement.
Quorum
1.8. Based on the current proposed membership, a quorum is set at a minimum of 8 board members, the Vice President and Pro-Vice Chancellor (Education), or Vice President and ProVice Chancellor (Research), or the Chief Philanthropy and Global Engagement Officer to be included as part of the quorum.
Meeting Frequency
1.9. It is recommended that the Board meets once a term, i.e. 3 times over the academic year.
1.10. There would be the possibility to call for extra sessions on the recommendation of the Chair and 2 other Board members.
1.11. Other decisions e.g. urgent matters, can have decisions taken by email, where necessary, at the Chair’s discretion.
Receives reports from
1.12. The ISB would receive reports and/or updates from teams across LSE in relation to international strategic aspects of academic partnerships (research and teaching), corporate partnerships (including career related), student recruitment, philanthropy, alumni engagement, and University of London International Programme. The aim is to ensure the ISB has a satisfactory overview of the School’s international engagement in key areas.
Reports to
1.13. The ISB will report to Senior Management Committee (SMC)
Review
1.14. After an initial period of 3 years of operation, over academic years 2023-24, 2024-25, and 2025-26 there will be the opportunity for SMC to review ISB’s work in Autumn term 2026-27.