France and the United States share many values and ideals and have a long history as one another’s “oldest allies. Yet one cannot ignore the things have also divided them: an entrenched tradition of anti-Americanism in France; the American clichés of “Old Europe” and of the French republic as supposedly hostile to religion or unable to move beyond its colonial past in America. One also sees differences in scale and institutions in the funding of higher education, art, or research. Vincent Michelot, Attaché for Higher Education at the French Embassy in the US and director of Campus France USA, will explore the different ways in which France can overcome the obstacles of scale, history, and language in implementing an innovative cultural and educational policy in the United States.
Vincent Michelot is a professor of American Politics at Sciences Po Lyon. He currently serves as Attaché for Higher Education at the French Embassy in the United States and as director of Campus France USA. A Fulbright scholar and administrator, Michelot has over 30 years’ experience in international education and transatlantic exchanges. An accomplished scholar, he has served as the director of Science Po, Lyon, and has written and commented widely on French and American politics.
