Join Us in Boston & Virtually for the 20th Annual Conference

We can't wait to welcome you to the 20th Annual Conference to upskill, network, and share knowledge with international educators from across the globe.
 
The Forum’s 20th Annual Conference will begin with our two-day virtual conference on March 6-7, 2024, followed by a three-day, in-person conference on March 20-22, 2024, at the Sheraton Boston Hotel. 

ABOUT THIS YEAR’S EVENT

For 20 years, The Forum’s Annual Conference has provided a space for dialogue exploring the pressing issues facing education abroad. At the 20th Annual Conference, we will reflect on the history of education abroad, the current state of the field, and trends on the horizon.
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Join us as we harness the collective knowledge and power of our growing community in developing a shared vision for the future.

ENJOY 90+ SESSIONS OVER 5 DAYS BOTH IN BOSTON & VIRTUALLY! 

At our 2024 Annual Conference, we’ll focus on programming in the following focus areas: 

• Rethinking the ’why’ of education abroad: Rearticulating the value proposition
• Meeting the needs of today’s and tomorrow’s learners
• Building, enhancing, and expanding mutually beneficial partnerships
• Foundations of education abroad for an evolving field
• ​Leveraging technology for accessibility, efficiency, and effectiveness
• A sustainable future through education abroad
• ​Career advancement, leadership development, and support for professionals, faculty, researchers, and graduate students at all stages

FEATURED PROGRAMMING: Documentary Film Screening and Q&A: Brief Tender Light

Thursday, March 21, 2024
7:00-9:00 p.m. EST

Join award-winning Ghanaian filmmaker Arthur Musah for a screening of his powerful documentary, . A Q&A session with Musah and Philip Abel Adama, one of the students featured in the film, will immediate follow the screening.

Brief Tender Light is about how four African teenagers mature into adulthood through the experience of studying abroad for college at MIT – how what they know and believe about themselves and the world are tested and refined by encounters with new ideas, people, and cultures. The documentary on Monday, January 15!

Statement of Conference Goals and Objectives

º«¹úÈý¼¶Æ¬seeks to offer an Annual Conference that supports its mission to “cultivate educators* who champion high-quality education abroad experiences that ignite curiosity, impact lives, and contribute to a better world.” 

*By educators, we mean people that facilitate, sponsor, and/or research global learning experiences and education abroad. We understand the term educator to include members of educational institutions, organizations, and those such as host families and community members. 

Through the Annual Conference, we hope to: 

1. engage globally minded educators as lifelong learners and thoughtful practitioners,  
2. facilitate integrative learning that improves practice and contributes to capacity building,  
3. convene institutions, organizations, educators, and thought leaders to identify and address critical issues impacting the field, 
4. advocate for continued investment in education abroad, 
5. leverage our collective expertise to advance full participation in educationally meaningful education abroad. ​

Objectives for the 20th Annual Conference: 

1. Expand participation, engagement, and dialogue among the full range of stakeholders in education abroad (EA) to enhance learning, improve practice, and contribute to the knowledge base. This includes: 

• Soliciting proposals relevant to a range of institution and organization types, particularly those who have been historically underrepresented in the field, including: 
  • Community Colleges, technical and vocational education and training (TVET) 
  • HBCUs 
  • TCUs 
  • MSIs 
  • International host institutions 
  • Graduate and professional schools 
• Soliciting proposals relevant to colleagues whose experiences, perspectives, professional goals, interests and assets have been historically underrepresented at the conference, including:
  • Faculty [U.S. and Internationally Based] 
  • Researchers/scholars both inside the field of EA and beyond [those with interest in EA but whose dissemination tends to focus on their professional/disciplinary communities] 
  • Graduate students 
  • On-site staff ​
• Supporting and encouraging individuals regardless of role/position/title to develop support networks and skills that enable them to move from practice to scholarship and vice/versa. 
• Ensuring that the balance of conference sessions builds on The Forum’s interest to create a welcoming and responsive climate for all. ​

2. Provide learning and development opportunities that contribute to career and leadership development for international educators at all career stages. 

3. Showcase and catalyze opportunities that advance integration of EA across curricular, career, and lifelong learning pathways. 
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4. Demonstrate Examples of Aligned Curriculum & Systems of Support-- encourage proposals that illustrate efforts at the course/program, office, organizational levels to 1) expand equitable access to academically-sound and culturally-relevant EA experiences that advance global learning outcomes at the course, departmental or institutional level, and 2) address student well-being and success and/or are otherwise effective in advocating for sustained/increased investment in EA.

TEMPLATE: ASK YOUR MANAGER TO ATTEND THE ANNUAL CONFERENCE

We get it—sometimes advocating for the opportunity to participate in professional development and conference experiences can be difficult…but you’re worth it! Download this Word doc template that includes an email to help you make the ask.

ENGAGE IN SPONSORSHIP & EXHIBIT OPPORTUNITIES 

The Forum offers a limited number of sponsorship and advertising opportunities as a service to our attendees. Learn more 

We thank our past sponsors and look forward to welcoming new ones. 

CONFERENCE SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVES 

THANK YOU, HOST INSTITUTIONS

​Click on the green image and discover how to reduce your carbon footprint while participating in this one of a kind Conference!

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Special thanks to this year’s Conference Host Organizations for their support of our 20th Annual Conference.  ​
​Dartmouth College: The Frank J. Guarini Institute for International Education

CONFERENCE SPEAKERS 

Take a sneak pick below at the speakers for this year!
​Scroll to the right to see them all and click on each name to read their bios!

Click to see the Plenary Speakers

MEET OUR CONFERENCE COMMITTEE 

Special thanks to this year’s Conference Committee for their guidance in preparing our 20th Annual Conference.  ​

• , ​Chair
• Francine  A'Ness, Dartmouth University
• ​
• Eny  Di Iorio, LdM - Lorenzo de' Medici Institute ​
• Kate Manni, Penn State
• Tafadzwa  Muchopa, EDUAfrica
• 
  
• Katie Saibara,  Wellesley College
• Girija Shinde, Volunteer State Community College
• Elizabeth Frohlich, The Forum on Education Abroad, [email protected]