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Andrew Heiskell Awards For Innovation in International Education |
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Best Practices in International Education
Category: Study Abroad
Providing innovative programs and services which make study abroad
more accessible to a broader student population
Honorable Mentions 2008
Grand Valley State University
Barbara H. Padnos International Center
Nomination submitted by:
Mark Schaub, Executive Director of Padnos International Center
Program Overview:
Though the number of Grand Valley State University (GVSU) students studying abroad has doubled in the past four years, the growth alone is not the reason for this recognition. What is unique about GVSU’s accomplishment is the kind of growth the Padnos International Center (PIC) has been promoting.
Contrary to the national trend, more GSVU students study abroad individually, and on longer programs, than on short-term, faculty-led programs. To accomplish this, PIC staff advises students to pursue individual programs and backs up these efforts with scholarships and grants for students participating in longer and individual study abroad programs. They also focus staffing requests on areas that support independent study abroad and no longer encourage faculty to propose new faculty-led programs.
Since 2004, GVSU has consistently had more students participate in independent programs than on faculty-led programs. “We simply have not taken the easier path to increasing study abroad participation through large gains in the group programs,” explains Thomas J. Haas, President of GVSU. The innovative strategies implemented by the Barbara H. Padnos International Center serve as model for all practitioners in guiding their students to select long term and individual study abroad programs.
Program Implementation:
Click here to read the winning nomination, including details on how the program achieves its objectives.
Contact Information:
Mark Schaub
Executive Director, Padnos International Centers
Grand Valley State University
130 Lake Ontario Hall, 1 Campus Drive, Allendale, MI 49401
Tel: 616-331-3898
Email: schaubm@gvsu.edu
Program Website: http://www.gvsu.edu/pic
State University of New York at Buffalo
International Comparative Urban Planning “Studio”
Nomination submitted by:
Naraj Verma
Professor and Chair of the Department of Urban and Regional Planning
Program Overview:
The Urban and Regional Planning Department at the State University of New York at Buffalo created the International Comparative Urban Planning Studio to provide students with the global skills imperative to their future careers and address the limited participation in study abroad by its Masters-level students.
Students who participated in the Studio visited the University of Stuttgart in Germany for two weeks during the summer, then returned and spent two weeks with their German counterparts who were studying in Buffalo. Part of the program’s success resulted from partnerships formed with the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), the University of Stuttgart, the Community Foundation of Greater Buffalo, and the Green and Growing Group, which gave the studio feedback on its efforts to plan for a greener and healthier Buffalo-Niagara region.
Especially exemplary is the way the International Comparative Urban Planning Studio was designed to cater directly to the needs of the Urban Planning Masters students. “This new studio identifies and removes institutional barriers that are present with regular study abroad programs,” says Satish K. Tripathi, Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs. The comparative nature of the project, for example, allows for students to obtain substantive international experience with a relatively short amount of time spent overseas. This enables students to work during the summer and reduces their anxiety over foregone wages.
Program Implementation:
Click here to read the winning nomination, including details on how the program achieves its objectives.
Contact Information:
Naraj Verma
Professor and Chair of the Department of Urban and Regional Planning
University at Buffalo, The State University of New York
116 Hayes Hall, 3435 Main Street, Buffalo, NY 14214
Tel: 716-829-2133 ext. 109
Email: nverma3@buffalo.edu
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