12 Educators Convene at IIE Summit on Generation Study Abroad

More than 600 attendees from the higher education sector, corporations, U.S. and foreign government agencies, K-12, social networks, and study abroad organizations joined IIE for the inaugural IIE Summit on Generation Study Abroad held in Washington, DC from October 1-2, 2015. Four teachers, alumni of the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational Cultural Affairs' sponsored Fulbright Distinguished Awards in Teaching Program, Craig Divis, Melanie Manuel, Maya Garcia, and Michael Williams, participated at the IIE Summit as 'Generation Study Abroad Voices.' These alumni 'Voices' infused the Summit with teacher perspectives and illustrated how study abroad can positively impact K-12 curricula, life trajectories, and employability.

On October 2, 2015, the DC Public Schools’ (DCPS) Global Education team, together with the Asia Society and IIE, presented a whisper session during the IIE Summit. The session, Building a Culture of Travel in K-12 Education, was an opportunity for district leaders and educators to come together to discuss hopes, challenges, and strategies for building a culture of international travel in K-12 education. The session was facilitated by IIE’s Holly Emert, Assistant Director in the Global Professional Exchanges Division. Heather Singmaster, Assistant Director of the Asia Society’s Education Department opened with on overview of global education and its relevance in the K-12 sector. Participants heard about K-12 global education trends, at both a national and local level, and case studies of what these trends looks like in action. Kate McNamee, DCPS Global Education Director, then shared a close-up on district level perspectives, sharing the challenges and considerations of 'going global' within the nation’s capital. Kate shared DCPS’ vision and goals for preparing all students as global citizens, and discussed the district strategy for preparing, engaging, and sending 8th and 11th grade students abroad, as DCPS works to make travel an expectation rather than exception for students.