IHEC Blog Posts Will Resume After NAFSA Conference

As always before the NAFSA annual conference I’m trying to complete more work than I have hours in the day for so I will resume posting to IHEC Blog during the week of June 1st. Until then visit International Education News & Blogs to see what’s going on in the international education blogosphere and you may want to visit Twitter from time to time and search “study abroad” and see what some of the students are saying…sometimes funny and sometimes stunning. You can actually search Twitter for "study abroad" on International Education News & Blogs!

NAFSA Bookstore to Sell Outside Publications again at Conference

During the upcoming NAFSA conference in Los Angeles the NAFSA Bookstore will be selling international education related titles from other publishers at the NAFSA Bookstore. NAFSA began selling outside publications a few years ago while I was on their Subcommittee on Information Management (SIM) and I learned that this was a big success (for NAFSA and the outside publishers) so I’m pleased to hear that they are continuing trend.

There are some excellent offerings this year from both NAFSA and other publishers. You can learn about all of the various NAFSA publications here on their website. Here is the list of non-NAFSA publications that will be available for review and purchase at the NAFSA Bookstore in Los Angeles:

- Educating Global Citizens in Colleges and Universities - Challenges and Opportunities (Routledge)

- The Handbook of Practice and Research in Study Abroad - Higher Education and the Quest for Global Citizenship (Routledge)

- Higher Education and International Student Mobility in the Global Knowledge Economy (SUNY Press)

- The First Time Effect: The Impact of Study Abroad on College Student Intellectual Development (SUNY Press)

- Developing Intercultural Competence and Transformation (Stylus Publishing)

- Driving Change Through Diversity and Globalization-Transformative Leadership in the Academy (Stylus Publishing)

Additionally, NAFSA members are eligible for discounts on cross- cultural resources from the Intercultural Press which I imagine will have a booth in the exhibit hall again this year.

If you’re interested in proposing a publication or writing for NAFSA I encourage you to visit their “Get Published in NAFSA Publications” page here. I encourage all conference attendees to find some time in their busy schedules to stop by the NAFSA Bookstore as this is a excellent opportunity to pick-up some great literature.

Assessment Toolbox for International Educators presentation at NAFSA May 28th

Are you interested in or in need of assessing international programs on your campus or through your organization? If so, you may be interested in attending a session where I’m presenting as part of a panel at the upcoming NAFSA conference in Los Angeles on May 28th. My part of the presentation will focus on the Global Perspectives Inventory (GPI) by Braskamp, Braskamp & Carter Merrill. Here are the session details:

Session title: Assessment Toolbox for International Educators
Where and when: Los Angeles, California on May 28, 2009
Conference: NAFSA: Association of International Educators Annual Conference
Presenters:

David Comp
The University of Chicago - dcomp@uchicago.edu

Dr. Darla K. Deardorff
Duke University- d.deardorff@duke.edu

Dr. Elaine Meyer-Lee
Saint Mary’s College - meyerlee@saintmarys.edu

Dr. Victor Savicki
Western Oregon University- savickv@wou.edu

Dr. Lee Sternberger
James Madison University - sternblg@jmu.edu

Session handouts and presentation copies are available here.

Exchange Participants as Citizen Diplomats: Best Practices

My University of Chicago colleague Erika Mercer and I will be presenting on this topic at the upcoming NAFSA: Association of International Educators conference in Los Angeles on May 28th at 9:15am. Actually, Erika and I will be doing brief introductions to the topic and then moderating what we hope will be a lively discussion on this topic for the remainder of the session. We will be basing our discussion off the excellent document that Erika prepared for the session which you can download here.

Erika has previously posted to IHEC Blog as a guest blogger and you can access her post entitled “Unintended Consequences of Internationalization” here.

While I'm on the topic of Citizen Diplomats...if you haven't already taken 30 seconds to sign the Global Citizen Diplomacy Initiative petition to President Obama please visit here. The Global Citizen Diplomacy Initiative is a project of The U.S. Center for Citizen Diplomacy.

The Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Foundation Act is included in the Foreign Relations Authorization Act for Fiscal Years 2010 and 2011 (H.R. 2410)

On May 14th the Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Foundation Act was included in the Foreign Relations Authorization Act introduced by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman (D-CA). Last year, the bill passed the House with unanimous support and enjoyed strong bipartisan support in the Senate, including that of then-senators President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, where it was one step short of passage when the legislative clock expired last fall. The Simon Act has been endorsed by more than forty higher education and international exchange organizations and by the 9/11 Comission Chairs.

The Simon Act aims to dramatically increase the number of U.S. undergraduates who study abroad in quality programs across the globe, focusing particular attention on ensuring access to study abroad across the college demographic and encouraging study abroad in the developing world. Less than 10% of U.S. undergraduates participate on educational programs abroad.

Here’s a statement from NAFSA: Association of International Educators Executive Director and CEO Marlene Johnson: “We applaud Chairman Berman for his strong support of the Simon bill and for including it in this important package. By ensuring that the critical experience of study abroad is an integral part of the 21st-century education of our college students, this unique and innovative program would revolutionize America’s capacity to understand, relate to, and lead responsibly in the world. We are encouraged by the support expressed for the Simon bill by President Obama and Secretary of State Clinton when they were in the Senate.”
Want to do more? NAFSA is leading a growing movement online to make sure this legislation gets passed. Here are some ways you can help:

Join NAFSA on Facebook at http://www.nafsa.org/jointhemovement to find out how you can support the Simon bill.

You can learn more about the Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Foundation Act here.

Research & Internationalization at NAFSA's Annual Conference

The following is from my colleague Bryan McAllister-Grande, Assistant Director in the Office of Global Affairs at Brandeis University and the Research & Scholarship Network Leader of NAFSA’s Teaching, Learning & Scholarship knowledge community:

As research and research application become increasingly important in our work, I'd like to highlight two specific opportunities to explore these areas during the LA conference.

**Graduate Student Research Roundtable (open to all)
Wednesday, May 27
3:45 - 5:00 pm
Westin Bonaventure Hotel
Avalon Room

Facilitators: Rebecca Hovey (World Learning), David Rudd (Arcadia University), Lou Berends (Illinois Institute of Technology), David Comp (University of Chicago), with guest Elaine Loveland (Managing Editor, "International Educator" Magazine)

This annual meeting is geared for all who are doing (or interested in) research in international education. We'll be breaking up into small groups for open discussion. Topics include: academic degrees and career paths; publishing in the field; research on student learning outcomes and mobility; "theses and dissertations: what knowledge is of most worth?"; and research on internationalization vs. globalization.

**NAFSA Research Seminar: Legitimizing Internationalization on our Campuses through Research
Thursday, May 28
8:00 - 10:00 am
Los Angeles Convention Center 404 A

Chair: Val Rust - University of California-Los Angeles
Panelists: Ji-Yeung Jang (University of Minnesota), Richard Sutton (Visiting Scholar, Kennesaw State University Siegel Institute for Leadership & Ethics), Larry Braskamp (Loyola University-Chicago), Bryan McAllister-Grande (Brandeis University)

Internationalization is an important goal of 21st-century institutions, yet for many faculty and university leaders it can seem disconnected from the core tasks of teaching, learning, and scholarship. This seminar features expert panelists discussing how research on aspects of internationalization -- including education abroad, international student recruitment , intercultural learning, and broader university strategies for internationalization -- can help position internationalization as a driving force of higher education. We'll also be opening up discussion for seminar participation.

More research-related and Teaching, Learning, and Scholarship (TLS) events and sessions can be found here.

For more information about the Research and Scholarship Network, please contact me at bgrande@brandeis.edu. See you in LA!

Secretary Clinton Highlights Value of Study Abroad & Educational Exchange at NYU Commencement

Yesterday, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton addressed the 2009 graduates from New York University at Yankee Stadium. As I watched/listened to her address this morning I was very happy to hear her talk about the value of study abroad and educational exchanges.

I have copied and pasted her relevant remarks here:



“I know that one of your graduates spent months on the slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro searching for sustainable development models to bring to women and families and help them lift themselves out of poverty. Another of your classmates was studying in China last year when the devastating earthquake struck, and that has led to work ever since to deliver supplies and assistance to villagers in remote areas. International students have gone on to fight for human rights in Rwanda, build civil society in the nation of Georgia, run businesses, and lead governments.”

“I hope many of you will join our ranks in the Foreign Service and the Civil Service, but I know that not all will choose to become professional diplomats, and I also know that the State Department alone cannot tackle these great problems. So my message to you today is this: Be the special envoys of your ideals; use the communication tools at your disposal to advance the interests of our nation and humanity everywhere; be citizen ambassadors using your personal and professional lives to forge global partnerships, build on a common commitment to solving our planet’s common problems. By creating your own networks, you can extend the power of governments to meet the needs of this and future generations. You can help lay the groundwork for the kind of global cooperation that is essential if we wish, in our time, to end hunger and defeat disease, to combat climate change, and to give every child the chance to live up to his or her God-given potential. (Applause.)

This starts with opportunities for educational exchanges, the kind of dorm room and classroom diplomacy that NYU is leading on. I want to commend my friend, your president, the trustees of this great university, for understanding and believing in the importance of educational exchanges.

You know, study abroad is like spring training for this century. It helps you develop the fundamentals, the teamwork, and the determination to succeed. And we want more American students to have that opportunity. That’s why we are increasing funding for Gilman scholarships by more than 40 percent. More than 400 New Yorkers have used Gilman scholarships to spend a semester abroad, including nine students from NYU last year.

Now, of course, study abroad is a two-way street, and we should bring more qualified students from other countries to study here. NYU provides a prime example of what international students can bring to a campus and how they can benefit themselves and their countries. Over 700,000 international students came to the United States last year, and NYU had the second largest number of any school in the country. (Applause.)

Now, the benefits from such exchanges are so great that I am committed to streamline the visa process – (applause) – particularly for science and technology students so that even more qualified students will come to our campuses in the future. We’re also doing more to marry technology with global service. That’s why today I am pleased to announce that over the next year the State Department will be creating Virtual Student Foreign Service Internships to harness the energy of a rising generation of citizen diplomats. Working from college and university campuses, American students will partner with our embassies abroad to conduct digital diplomacy that reflects the realities of the networked world. And you can learn more about this initiative on the State Department’s website.”

You can read the text of Secretary Clinton’s address here.

President Obama’s commencement address at Arizona State University was also very good as well (despite him not being accomplished enough to be awarded an honorary degree) but it was Secretary Clinton’s address at NYU that shined yesterday (at least from my perspective).