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ACE Internationalization Collaborative Annual Meeting 2008

"Faculty Engagement in Comprehensive Internationalization"

February 1–2, 2008

A record number of attendees participated in the 2008 annual meeting of the Internationalization Collaborative, hosted by the Center for International Initiatives at the American Council on Education (ACE). More than 170 administrators, faculty and staff members convened to discuss the theme "Faculty Engagement in Comprehensive Internationalization." Sixty-two institutions of all types were represented at the meeting.

The sessions focused on how administrators and faculty can work together to foster comprehensive internationalization—that is, enhancing the international dimensions of teaching and learning, scholarship, and service. The meeting spotlighted good practice in engaging faculty from a variety of disciplines, and internationalizing the curriculum and community engagement. Plenary speakers included Patti McGill Peterson, Senior Associate at the Institute for Higher Education Policy, and David Ward, President of the American Council on Education.

Highlights from the 2008 Meeting

Workshop A: An Integrated Approach for Advancing Comprehensive Internationalization. This workshop was designed for participants who are new to the ACE Internationalization Collaborative and would like to learn more about an integrative approach for internationalization. This strategy integrates attention to inputs (through an internationalization review and strategic planning process) with attention to outputs (through the articulation of learning outcomes and the development of an assessment plan). Representatives from institutions who have worked closely with ACE in piloting this integrative strategy offered lessons learned and helped participants think about how these processes might be applied at their respective institutions.
Facilitators: Christa Olson, Associate Director, Center for International Initiatives, American Council on Education; Steve Youngblood, Park University; Dan Paracka, Kennesaw State University. [Olson Presentation, 264 KB, ppt; Paracka Presentation, 13 MB, ppt]

Workshop B: International Learning Outcomes Assessment. This workshop engaged participants in discussing the implementation an international learning outcomes assessment plan. Participants in a multi-institutional ACE-FIPSE project on assessing international learning shared their experiences with the group about the development and use of a student survey/ePortfolio assessment methodology, and the lessons learned from this experience. A website of best practices and a web toolkit for assessing international learning outcomes was highlighted.
Facilitators: Duncan Carter, Associate Dean and Professor of English, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Portland State University; Robert Franco, Professor of Anthropology and Director of Planning, Grants, Civic Engagement, Kapiolani Community College, University of Hawaii; Jill Wisniewski, Program Associate, Center for International Initiatives, American Council on Education. [Presentation, 594 KB, ppt]

Workshop C: Integrating Study Abroad and the Undergraduate Curriculum. For many institutions, study abroad may be very separate from both the curriculum and the day-to-day work of faculty, leaving students largely on their own to make sense of the study abroad experience and the connection to degree studies. This workshop was designed for faculty and other international educators to discuss ways in which the curriculum can serve as a platform for preparing students to study abroad as well as to integrate their experiences from abroad into their learning upon return.
Facilitators: Elizabeth Brewer, Beloit College; Ann Fraser, Kalamazoo College; Anne Haeckl, Kalamazoo College; Nancy Krusko, Beloit College; Scott Lyngaas, Beloit College; Edward Mathieu, Beloit College. [Presentation, 856 KB, ppt)

Workshop D: The Globally Engaged Institution. At the heart of internationalization are connections with institutions and organizations in other nations. Most familiar are academic partnerships focusing on student and faculty exchange and collaboration around teaching and learning, research, and development issues. Partnerships also include innovative engagements with museums, governments, foundations, non-governmental organizations and new modalities such as dual degrees. This workshop explored the possibilities open to institutions and engaged participants in reflecting about making sound decisions about how to connect with the world, whether or not to partner, and with whom; how to develop a strategy to pursue global connectivity; and how to ensure quality and assess potential benefits and risks.
Facilitators: Madeleine Green, Vice President, Center for International Initiatives, American Council on Education; Susan Buck Sutton, Associate Vice Chancellor of International Affairs, IUPUI; Jack Van De Water, Dean Emeritus, Oregon State University. [Van De Water Presentation, 68 KB, ppt]

Plenary #1: Worldly Faculty Engaged across the Disciplines
Speaker: Patti McGill Peterson, Senior Associate, Institute for Higher Education Policy, former Executive Director of the Council on International Exchange of Scholars.
Dr. Peterson framed the meeting by focusing on the centrality of faculty to a more globally-oriented campus. Her remarks highlighted specific steps that institutions can take to create a supportive climate for internationalization and ensure that faculty have opportunities to engage internationally. Some of these steps include having an institution-wide strategic plan for internationalization, engaging departments and disciplines in shaping this institutional vision, and integrating study abroad, internships, and co-curricular activities into the strategic plan. Access the full text of her speech (68 KB, word).

Profiles of Worldly Faculty

• Steve Youngblood, Assistant Professor, Communications, Park University
• David Jan Cowan, Professor, Department of Design and Communication Technology, School of Engineering and Technology, IUPUI [Presentation, 4MB, ppt)
• Robert King, Associate Professor of Political Science, Georgia Perimeter College

Plenary #2: Good Practice in Internationalizing the Curriculum
Institutional culture, policies, practices, and structures can help or hinder faculty work to internationalize the curriculum. This panel featured innovative approaches that faculty use to address issues that emerge in internationalizing interdisciplinary, disciplinary, and general education courses. Panelists also addressed how advising processes can be enhanced to maximize student international learning.

Panelists:

• Norah Schultz, Associate Vice President for Undergraduate Education, Arcadia University; Ellen Skilton-Sylvester, Associate Professor/ Director of Global Connections, Arcadia University. [Presentation, 179 KB, ppt]
• Jenifer Cushman, Dean of International Programs, Juniata College; Holly Hayer, Assistant Professor of Spanish; Gerald Kruse, Associate Professor of mathematics and Computer Science; and David Sowell, Professor of History and International Studies, Juniata College. [Presentation, 706 KB, ppt]
• H. Stephen Straight, Professor of Anthropology and of Linguistics, Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education and International Affairs, Binghamton University. [Handout, 63 KB, Word]

Plenary #3: Internationalizing Interdisciplinary Scholarship and Community Engagement
This panel featured innovative ways faculty engaged in internationalizing scholarship and community engagement have collaborated with colleagues across their institutions and communities to advance international knowledge and skills.

Panelists:

• Bob Franco, Professor of Anthropology, Kapiolani Community College; Linda Fujikawa, Professor of Japanese Language, Kapiolani Community College. [Presentation, 27 MB, ppt]
• Mapy Chavez-Brown, Assistant Professor of Education, Wagner College; and Mohammad Alauddin, Professor of Chemistry and Physics, Wagner College. [Presentation, 6.63 MB, ppt]
• Claudia Green, Director, Center for International Business Development, Pace University. [Presentation, 3.5 MB, ppt]

Closing Plenary: Worldly Faculty and the Globally Engaged Institution
Speaker: David Ward, President, ACE

In the final plenary, David Ward connected the changing policy context to practices and attitudes that define the globally engaged institution. He noted the importance of U.S. higher education may as means of engaging other countries in truly reciprocal activities. He encouraged attendees to mobilize their disciplinary and professional societies to internationalize and to continue building international alliances with like-minded institutions. [A complete summary of his remarks will be available soon.]

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This page last updated on: 03/03/2008