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Located on the campus of Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, The Forum on Education Abroad is the only organization whose exclusive purpose it is to serve the field of education abroad. Recognized by the US Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission as the Standards Development Organization (SDO) for education abroad, the Forum’s Standards of Good Practice are recognized as the definitive means by which the quality of education abroad programs may be judged. The Forum’s Quality Improvement Program for Education Abroad (QUIP) uses the Standards as part of a rigorous self-study and peer review quality assurance program that is available to all Forum institutional members.
Forum members include US colleges and universities, overseas institutions, consortia, agencies, and provider organizations. The Forum focuses on developing and implementing standards of good practice, encouraging and supporting research initiatives, and offering educational programs and resources to its members. Its mission is to help to improve education abroad programs to benefit the students that participate in them. It is achieving this goal by establishing standards of good practice, improving study abroad curricula, and promoting data collection and outcomes assessment, all to advocate for high quality education abroad programs.
The Forum was first conceived in San Diego in May 2000 by a group of education abroad professionals who felt the need for a stand-alone organization. By January 2001, an organizational statement and goals for the new organization were defined. A meeting one month later in Tucson resulted in the creation of a mission statement with five goal areas, the development of criteria for voting membership, and the establishment of subcommittees to produce a Communications Plan, Business Plan, Incorporation Plan, Member Services/Tasks Plan.
In July 2001, the decision was made to incorporate as the Forum, and over the course of the next year, a Board was created and a search for an Executive Director took place. The Forum co-sponsored the University of Minnesota's Curriculum Integration Conference and agreed to partner with Frontiers.
The first annual meeting of the Forum was held in May 2002 with over 150 members in attendance, who approved an Advisory Council (now called the Forum Council). Geoffrey Bannister, executive director, opened the Forum's office at Smith College on October 15, 2002.
In November 2004, the Forum held its first annual conference, a series of facilitated roundtable discussions, in Santa Fe, New Mexico. A dynamic 2005 conference, originally planned for New Orleans, was held in Miami, Florida. The organization's Bylaws were revised on May 25, 2006.
On July 1, 2006, the Forum moved its operations to Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Brian Whalen became president and CEO and hired a new staff. Under Whalen's leadership, the Forum has adopted a Strategic Plan to guide its future development.
The Forum Board of Directors formally adopted the Standards of Good Practice for Education Abroad (2007) on July 14, 2007.
The Forum membership has grown to include more than 300 institutions, with a growing presence of non-U.S. institutions, most notably from Australia. The membership represents approximately 75 percent of the U.S. study abroad market.
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