Mr. Trần Đức Cảnh and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry during President Obama’s recent visit to Vietnam

Mr. Trần Đức Cảnh, who has helped promote and connect U.S. educational programs with Vietnam, including the Vietnam Education Foundation (VEF) and the establishment of Fulbright University Vietnam (FUV), reveals the 20-year journey of preparing to establish a U.S.-standard university in Vietnam.
Progress of Vietnam’s Education
More than two years ago, you helped find land for the construction of FUV. This suggests that the formation of FUV had been prepared for a long time?
That’s right. I have worked with the founding group of FUV for many years, and they have been connecting U.S. educational programs with Vietnam since the 1990s. Following that was the establishment of the Fulbright Economics Teaching Program in Ho Chi Minh City in 1995 and other educational programs. I had some work in Vietnam, so I traveled more frequently. Moreover, I am familiar with the planning and terrain of Ho Chi Minh City, so helping to find a location for the university was a natural task.
During the search for a location, many people helped, including former Fulbrighters and those in the Fulbright economics teaching program, who were the main contacts with the Ho Chi Minh City authorities regarding the construction of FUV. I think the role of the Ho Chi Minh City authorities was very positive in this matter.
The formation of FUV was certainly a significant encouragement for the group implementing FUV from both the U.S. and Vietnam, a great effort over many years. The license for FUV, signed by Deputy Prime Minister Vũ Đức Đam on May 16, marks a major step forward for Vietnam’s education.
Vietnam already has several foreign universities such as RMIT. So what makes FUV so impressive that even the U.S. President mentioned it?
Normally, if a foreign university project applies for establishment in Vietnam, it might not attract much attention. However, this is a university with initial financial support from the U.S. Government and bears the name Fulbright University Vietnam (FUV), so it has garnered significant attention. Fulbright is a global U.S. educational exchange program. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and other U.S. officials have been promoting this university project for many years.
In essence, this is a Vietnamese university, following the model of a U.S. non-profit university, supported by prestigious universities, particularly Harvard University, in terms of program organization, curriculum, and personnel. The goal is to help Vietnam have a university ranked among the world’s top universities.
Three integrated training facilities in the first five years
It is said that the founding group of FUV made efforts to have the university officially break ground during President Obama’s visit to Vietnam. However, for various reasons, this did not happen?
I think that was just an initial plan. If President Obama could have attended the FUV groundbreaking ceremony, it would have been a great honor. However, that depended on the President’s schedule and the timing of his visit to Vietnam.
For FUV, who will the students be, how will tuition fees be managed, and what will be the quality, sir?
I cannot speak on behalf of the FUV Board of Directors regarding upcoming plans and programs. The university representatives have already shared this information with the media. According to the FUV project announcement, in the first five years, the university will focus on building three integrated training facilities: the Fulbright School of Public Policy and Management (providing graduate programs in public policy, international business law, finance, and business administration, research and policy dialogue); the Fulbright School of Technology and Applied Sciences (offering undergraduate and graduate programs in science, technology, engineering, applied mathematics, and medicine); and Fulbright College (providing undergraduate programs in social sciences and humanities).
To date, the current domestic human resources for higher education are excellent if properly utilized. Along with a group of former VEF students, I am building a model for an Engineering and Applied Sciences school, with participants who have earned doctorates from top U.S. universities. Hopefully, this will be implemented soon.
The Chairman of the Fulbright University Board of Directors once ran for U.S. President
Why do you think Secretary of State John Kerry is so willing to support FUV?
More than 30 years ago, Secretary of State John Kerry was elected Lieutenant Governor, while I was assigned a task by the Governor of Massachusetts. My state, Massachusetts, is very small but very dynamic and progressive in the U.S. political system. In addition to having a significant impact on national policies, almost every four years, Massachusetts has a promising candidate for the U.S. Presidency. Massachusetts is a small world, so those who participate in activities are well acquainted.

Mr. Trần Đức Cảnh has more than 41 years of living and working in the U.S., formerly the Director of Training Programs, Workforce Development, and Social Programs for the Massachusetts state government. He was also a member of the Northeast Massachusetts University Board of Trustees. He worked as a World Bank project consultant and was the General Director of Selco-VN Company (awarded the U.S. State Department’s Outstanding U.S. Company award in 2001). Currently, he is an investor and is very interested in domestic education and training. Mr. Cảnh holds a Master of Public Administration from the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University.

I assisted John Kerry in his campaign for Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts in 1982, then for the U.S. Senate in 1984. During Kerry’s 2004 Presidential campaign, I participated in the policy drafting team.
Bob Kerrey, Chairman of the Fulbright University Board of Directors, has also been actively involved with Vietnam-related issues for many years.
Bob Kerrey is one of the Vietnam War veterans; he was injured and lost a leg in a battle in 1968 at the age of 25. He was elected Governor of Nebraska and later became a U.S. Senator.
In 1992, I participated in his Presidential campaign in New Hampshire, a crucial state in any U.S. Presidential election. That year, he faced strong Democratic contenders such as Bill Clinton, Paul Tsongas, Tom Harkin, and Jerry Brown.
I had the opportunity to meet him to discuss whether we shared common views on the issues we cared about. During that meeting, Kerrey convinced me. The simple reason was that he promised that if elected President, he would pay great attention to issues concerning Vietnam. I found in Bob Kerrey the qualities, courage, and style of a leader, along with sincerity.
With his ten years of experience as President of New University in New York after leaving politics, I believe he will help Fulbright University Vietnam develop well. I shared with Bob Kerrey the good wishes for Vietnam’s future that I had had since New Hampshire nearly 25 years ago. I believe he will do his best with his mind and heart. It is also the destiny of Bob Kerrey, John Kerry, John McCain, and other American veterans with Vietnam.
Recently, many people have mentioned Bob Kerrey’s involvement in the Thanh Phong village massacre in the past?
What happened in Thanh Phong village years ago was the pain and loss of war, and it has also been Bob Kerrey’s pain for nearly 50 years. Instead of avoiding it, Bob Kerrey has confronted it in recent years. This shows that Kerrey is a person of courage and responsibility. Kerrey said he would try to do what he can to help Vietnam build a better future.
In my opinion, Kerrey did not necessarily have to return to Vietnam, but he did, with the desire to contribute the rest of his life to the common development of both countries, as he told me 25 years ago. The position he holds is essentially that of the main person responsible for fundraising for the university.
What touched you the most during President Obama’s recent visit to Vietnam?
Besides the agreements between the two countries, what touched me was meeting two American veterans in the same room in Vietnam, discussing building the best university in Vietnam instead of talking about war— a university that I and many others have long cherished.
Thank you!
Source: http://www.baogiaothong.vn/nguoi-trong-cuoc-noi-gi-ve-dh-fulbright-viet-nam-va-bob-kerrey-d152666.html