By Mitch Leventhal. We need a national export council for higher education—and we need it now. Education is one of few export sectors where the United States remains the undisputed world leader. The United States is the recipient of about 20 percent of international students who cross national boundaries for education.Global demand for higher education has never been stronger, and it's still growing. The world's middle class has never been so wealthy, and the United States remains the first-choice study destination. Yet we face stiff competition, and our share of the market has been shrinking. Now is the time to leverage our colleges to become engines of export and national growth. In fact, not to do so amounts to squandering a great national treasure.
