A delegation from the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), led by Rector, Professor Samuel Kwaku Bonsu, and Faculty of Law Dean, Dr. Kwaku Agyeman-Budu recently visited Temple University.

The team executed an academic partnership/cooperation agreement between GIMPA law faculty and Temple law school to promote student and faculty mobility, including a 3+1 LLB/LLM program enabling GIMPA law students to spend their junior or senior year at Temple to earn credits toward LLM degrees at Temple.

The agreement will also promote student study abroad opportunities, faculty exchanges, executive training and short-term legal education programs among others.

Temple Law has longstanding ties to Ghana. During the 1970s, Temple Law ran an active exchange program in Ghana, working with University of Ghana Professor John Mills, who later went on to be the president of Ghana from 2009-2012. Mills was also a visiting professor of tax law at Temple in 1978-79 and 1986-1987. Over 40 Ghanaian students have earned a Temple LLM degree.

Moreover, Ghanaian jurist Samuel Gyandoh was on the Temple Law faculty from 1982 to 2002. From 1978-79, as Ghana was transitioning from military to civilian rule, Gyandoh was a member of the Constitutional Commission that drafted the Ghanaian constitution of 1979. Samuel's son Mark Gyandoh is a 2001 JD graduate of Temple Law and is now a partner with Capozzi Adler, which specializes in healthcare law services.

"We are delighted to create this partnership with Temple Law," said Dean Agyeman-Budu, "given Temple's well-recognized history in our country, strong academic reputation, and demonstrated capacity to work collaboratively with partners around the world. We are eager for our students and faculty to experience a Temple education while also contributing our knowledge and expertise about Ghana to the law school. And likewise, we welcome Temple students and faculty to visit GIMPA to further strengthen our collaboration."

Dean Rachel Rebouché, the Dean of Temple Law School said that Temple Law is eager to develop our work in Ghana. "I am frequently asked about our Ghanaian program at alumni events," she said, "as Professor Gyandoh left a lasting impression on so many of our students. I'm now proud to say that we are working with GIMPA to create opportunities for students and faculty to extend their research and studies in Ghana. I am sure that everyone will greatly benefit from this collaboration now and well into the future."

Alumnus Mark Gyandoh also joined the meeting, sharing his impressions of his father and his legacy, and pledging to support the partnership. Assistant Dean John Smagula, Director of International Programs Karen McMichael, and Assistant Director for Global Legal Education Sabriya McWilliams also attended, with each adding comments and ideas on how to launch and build the partnership.

During their visit to Temple, Rector Bonsu and Dean Agyeman-Budu, along with their colleagues Ebenezer Adaku from GIMPA business school and Williams Ohemeng from the Department of Economics and Hospitality Studies at the GIMPA School of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, also met with the Provost of Temple University, Gregory N. Mandel, and representatives from Temple's College of Liberal Arts, College of Science and Technology, Fox School of Business and the School of Sport, Tourism and Hospitality Management, the Vice President for Research, and the Office of Global Engagement to discuss collaborations in other disciplines as well.