Natalie Mello, WPI, Chair

Bill Anthony, Northwestern U.

Amy Bartnick-Blume, IFSA Butler

Lili Folsom Batchelder, School for Field Studies

Sheila Bayne, Tufts U.

Kendall Brostuen, Brown U.

Harvey Charles, Wheaton College

Kate Darian-Smith, U. Melbourne

Ben DeWinter, Boston U.

Nancy Downey, Colby College

Liam O'Dochataigh, U. Limerick

Judith Ortiz, Center for Cross-Cultural Study

Julie Scott, DIS

Neal Sobania, Pacific Lutheran U.

Carolyn Sorkin, Wesleyan U.

Catherine Hutchison Winnie, Harvard U.

• 2008 Conference
  • Keynote Addresses
  • Wednesday, April 2
  • Thursday, April 3
  • Friday, April 4
• Fireside Dialogue
• Committees
• Registration and Refund Policy
• 2007 Conference

Mapping the Field
Fourth Annual Conference
Boston, Massachusetts

April 2-4, 2008

POST-CONFERENCE UPDATE: The Forum thanks all 700 participants for once again creating a unique and valuable conference experience! Conference presentations and plenary addresses will be uploaded as they become available. Links to these are found at the session description in the conference schedule.

Mapping the Field focuses on the evolution of education abroad, tracing the routes it has traveled to become the vital global academic and professional endeavor it is today. The conference will map the future of education abroad through in-depth exploration of critical issues and topics such as ethical practices and guidelines; standards of good practice and quality improvement; research, assessment and data collection; curriculum design; student learning; and advocacy.

Dynamic plenary speakers will challenge participants to think about the broader context for education abroad, and its relation to culture, language, and identity in a time of rapid global change. The annual Undergraduate Research Award presentations, a Forum conference favorite, will highlight excellence in student learning abroad. The Peter A. Wollitzer Advocacy Award will honor an outstanding colleague.

This year’s conference sessions will draw on the myriad ways in which education abroad has developed as a field, offer insight into its continued growth and explore its increasingly critical importance to higher education and society as a whole.

The Forum Conference has been consistently praised as one of the best gatherings of education abroad professionals. Unique among other professional meetings in education abroad, participants come together to focus on substantive topics in an atmosphere that promotes open discussion. Forum conferences energize attendees to work to improve and elevate education abroad practices and programs. More than a one-time experience, conference interaction carries on throughout the year in Forum projects and publications.