Committees & Working Groups

Description: This group will identify and gather resources to help EA professionals better serve and scale their services for today’s education abroad student, including students with disabilities and mental health challenges and students facing post-pandemic situations and social and political challenges.

Expected Deliverables:

1. A list of existing resources/best practices that can support EA services for today’s students.
2. A communication framework and/or strategy for effectively supporting students within the reality of their intended EA program.
3. A team building strategy and/or training to help prepare and develop EA offices to navigate today’s students within their regional and institutional environment.

Timeline: September 2022 – June 2023

Estimated Time Commitment: 2-4 hours a month, inclusive of monthly 1-hour meetings and asynchronous collaborative work

Special skills or expertise needed? Colleagues with experience and knowledge of arranging/providing learning accommodations, disability services, and mental health and psychosocial support services in higher ed/international ed contexts are especially encouraged to apply.

Description: This group will bring awareness and provide guidance to the field on Climate Justice and Education Abroad. Climate Justice views climate change as a civil rights issue that ties together critical topics facing education abroad stakeholders: social, economic, and environmental sustainability; equity, diversity and inclusion; and ethical community partnerships. This group will support the field in using diverse resources to promote Climate Justice.

Expected Deliverables:

1. Identify existing resources to support Climate Justice in education abroad
2. Identify grant opportunities to support Climate Justice in education abroad
3. Draft a checklist or resource for members that proposes no cost, low cost, and investment actions to support Climate Justice (open access pdf/webpage)
4. Develop grassroots marketing and social media campaigns to bring awareness to Climate Justice initiatives and share the group’s output

Timeline: September 2022 – March 2023

Estimated Time Commitment: approximately 1-2 hours per month for meetings; asynchronous – 2+ hours depending on subgroup/project

Special skills or expertise needed? No special skills or expertise are needed.

Colleagues in areas of the world that are disproportionally affected by climate change are strongly encouraged to apply.

Description: This group has formed to answer the following questions: How do we get more faculty engaged with Education Abroad? What is inhibiting faculty engagement? How can The Forum support faculty engagement? The group will review existing communication approaches, creating a welcoming environment, and identify necessary resources and programming. The group will develop a report of its findings and propose recommendations.

Expected Deliverables:

The report and recommendations will address:

1. Communications & Networking
2. Campus and organizations communications with faculty and academic units
3. Communications with unaffiliated faculty
4. Connecting education abroad to disciplinary associations
5. Creating a welcoming environment:
6. At the annual conference, such as creating a Faculty Track
7. Review Forum Website Language, Content and Organization
8. Developing relevant resources and programming – what currently speaks to faculty and what is needed

Timeline: September 2022 – May 2023

Estimated Time Commitment: one working meeting per month; 4 – 6 hours per month. Work will include virtual meetings and asynchronous work.

Special skills or expertise needed? Appointed faculty with experience in global learning and/or education abroad and education abroad professionals tasked with faculty engagement

Description: This working group will assess and advocate for the changing skills, career trajectory, compensation, retention strategies needed to support the modern international educator within the evolving landscape of global education.

Expected Deliverables:

1. Survey of professionals in the field to examine:
   1. Job titles and job responsibilities (written and unwritten)
   2. Skills/education
   3. Compensation
   4. Retention strategies
   5. Career growth
2. In addition to a survey, committee members will review of primary source document materials such as job descriptions, study abroad office org charts
3. Focus group to triangulate survey findings.
4. White paper outlining the findings and recommendations for how institutions and organizations can advocate for updated job descriptions, compensation levels, and successful retention strategies and paths for growth in the field.

Timeline: September 2022 – June 2023

Estimated Time Commitment: Monthly 1-hour meetings throughout the academic year with additional asynchronous hours as needed for survey development, focus group organization/facilitation, and writing of white paper

Special skills or expertise needed?  This group welcomes all levels of professionals, including graduate students in the field. The following skills and experiences will be particularly useful to driving this work forward:

• Strong writing skills
• Experience in survey design and research is a plus
• Professionals from a variety of institutions and organization types: public, private, MSIs, 3^rd party, domestic-based, international-based institutional/organizations
• Professionals with experience hiring, supervising, and/or human resources

Description: This group will investigate what resources and tools the field needs to expand education abroad access and communicate its value to non-traditional learners (veterans, online, adult, continuing education, grad students) and identify the stakeholders to bring into this work (career services, veterans affairs offices, DEI offices, Community college advisors, transfer and advising offices, workforce development stakeholders).

Expected Deliverables:

Phase 1:

1. Identify gaps in resources and tools needed to support administrators (i.e. through survey and/or focus group/s).
2. Develop a set of recommendations for the resources and tools the field needs to expand education abroad access and communicate its value to non-traditional learners.

Phase 2:

3.White paper framing the problem, need, and opportunity for non-traditional learners in education abroad and outlining the recommendations

Proposed Timeline: Phase 1, September 2022 – January 2023; Phase 2, January 2023 –June 2023

Estimated Time Commitment: Monthly 1-hour meetings throughout the academic year with additional asynchronous hours as needed for survey development, focus group organization/facilitation, and writing of white paper

Special skills or expertise needed?

Colleagues with experience working in or collaborating with the following groups are encouraged to volunteer:

• Career services
• Veterans Affairs offices
• DEI/Access and Inclusion offices
• Transfer and Advising offices
• Community or Technical College Advisors
• Workforce Development Stakeholders
• Study Abroad Recruitment Professionals
• Professionals from institutions that serve non-traditional learners.

Description: This committee is responsible for vetting submissions, selecting winners, and preparing the winners for their participation in the annual conference for both the Curriculum Award and the Award for Academic Achievement Abroad (given to students).

Expected Deliverables: Selection of winners; coaching of students for conference plenary

Length of Term: 1 awards cycle

Time Commitment: approximately 5 hours per month from September through November + time spent at the annual conference (for selected members of the group)

Description: The annual Institute on Best Practices for Health, Safety, Security & Risk Management is education abroad’s signature annual event focusing on the education abroad risk management issues faced daily by organizations and institutions. The Standards Institute Planning Committee is formed in September for the event the following June, and will include one Council member. The committee provides feedback on potential plenary speakers in September & October. In February, the committee reviews session proposals.

Expected Deliverables: Develop Call for Proposals, assist with recruitment of proposals, review of proposals, attend the Institute

Length of Term: 9 months, beginning in September

Time Commitment: approximately 3 hours per month + attendance at the Institute

Description: This group will be asked to stay abreast of pending legislation or proposed revisions and renewals of existing legislation at the state and national level, provide feedback and updates on legislative issues, contribute to educating the field on the legislative process, and explain the impact of proposed legislation. The committee should include government relations professionals, education abroad professionals, and university communications professionals.

Expected Deliverables: This committee will work directly with Forum executive leadership in an advisory role.

Length of Term: 2 years

Time Commitment: approximately 2 hours per month, though this will vary depending on proposed legislation

Description: Serve as advisors to the Senior Director for Research and Publications in developing upcoming Forum research projects and data reports.

Expected Deliverables: Provide feedback on Forum data collection projects and collaborations as needed.

Length of Term: 2  years

Time Commitment: approximately 2 hours per month; 1 hour for monthly meeting, 1 hour for review of materials in preparation for the meeting

Description: The Standards Resources Committee performs an annual review of current member resources and finds new resources to fill existing gaps and timely needs in the field. One major focus for the current term will be on reorganizing current resources based on the new 6th edition of the Standards and continue to collect new resources for community colleges, minority-serving institutions (MSIs), historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), tribal colleges and universities (TCUs), and international organizations.

Expected Deliverables: Identifying and vetting new resources

Length of Term: 2 years

Time Commitment: approximately 1 hour per month

Description: The Peter A. Wollitzer Advocacy Award honors a colleague who has been remarkably effective in influencing institutions of higher learning to understand and support education abroad through the promotion of The Forum’s mission and vision. The Selection Committee includes a representative from the Board of Directors (appointed by the Executive Committee of the Board), a representative from the Forum Council, and three members-at-large. Selection will occur in January, and the award will be presented at the Annual Conference.

Expected Deliverables: Recruitment of nominations; selection of winner

Length of Term: 1 award cycle

Time Commitment: approximately 2 hours per month from October to January

Description: The Annual Conference Committee works closely with Forum staff in deciding on the conference theme, creating the Call for Proposals, and reviewing session proposals to create the content of the conference. Conference committee members contribute via e-mail and teleconference, primarily in May, June, August, and September.

Expected Deliverables: Selecting conference theme and creating Call for Proposals; reviewing session proposals; assistance with plenary speaker identification.

Length of Term: 1 year; chairs serve a second year as Past Chair

Time Commitment: Time commitment varies from month to month; committee members will be asked to devote 2-3 hours/month in May and June in preparation for the call for proposals; Several hours will be required for proposal review after the August deadline.