June 3, 2012

NYU-Abu Dhabi Behaves Like Careful Guest in Foreign Land

A Careful Guest in a Foreign Land 1

Lee Hoagland, The New York Times

NYU's lofty aspirations for its campus in Abu Dhabi include its being a top research university, a selective liberal-arts college, and a model for other institutions in the United Arab Emirates.

Enlarge Image
close A Careful Guest in a Foreign Land 1

Lee Hoagland, The New York Times

NYU's lofty aspirations for its campus in Abu Dhabi include its being a top research university, a selective liberal-arts college, and a model for other institutions in the United Arab Emirates.

By Ursula Lindsey

Abu Dhabi

Leah Reynolds is the kind of student New York University and the government of Abu Dhabi hoped for five years ago, when they began an ambitious partnership to create a model of academic excellence in the Persian Gulf emirate. Smart, articulate and thoughtful, Ms. Reynolds, a sophomore, is editor of the online campus newspaper. Yet she is keenly aware of the limits of her position, both as a student and as a representative of the institution.

"We're not here to cause trouble," says Ms.