2007 Forum Conference a Success!

A total of 400 people attended the first stand alone Forum Conference in Austin, Texas, March 1-3. 

Highlights of the conference included:

• The Conference Bag, which included five important and useful publications:
  • The Conference Resource Book
  • Standards Pilot Project Final Report
  • A Guide to Outcomes Assessment in Education Abroad
  • A History of US Study Abroad: Beginnings to 1965
  • Special Issue of Frontiers: Undergraduate Research Volume
• The opening keynote address by Professor and former University of Texas Provost Sheldon Ekland-Olsen who spoke on “Connecting the Dots: Harnessing Institutional Resources for Education Abroad”;
• The luncheon plenary address by William Durden, President of Dickinson College, who spoke on the importance of forming a “pragmatic,” centrist framework for assessment and applauded the Forum’s Quality Improvement Program for its innovative and balanced approach;
• Sessions that reported out the results of the Standards Pilot Project;
• Workshops on education abroad legal issues, theoretical approaches, and introductions to the Quality Improvement Program (QUIP);
• The Undergraduate Research Awards presentations where three students detailed the impact of their research experiences abroad;
• A variety of sessions and discussions on a range of topics in education abroad;
• A Fiesta reception at the University of Texas Alumni Center.

Our gratitude goes out to all who made the conference possible: Patti Brown and the Conference Committee, Jerry Wilcox and his staff at UT Austin, the Local Arrangements Committee, our knowledgeable presenters, and our generous sponsors, exhibitors, and advertisers.