The Georgetown University Consortium Project: A Report from the Halfway Mark

Authors

  • Michael J. Vande Berg
  • Al Balkcum
  • Mark Scheid
  • Brian J. Whalen

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.36366/frontiers.v10i1.135

Keywords:

Report, Assessment, Georgetown Consortium, Education Abroad

Abstract

For those of us collaborating on the project, the Georgetown University Consortium Project (GCP) represents both an end and a beginning. In its research design, this three-year assessment study is an end, the product of a series of conversations among education abroad professionals at Georgetown University, the University of Minnesota, Rice University and Dickinson College.2  The study is a beginning as well, the start of a process that will allow us to shed light on what types of experiences abroad promote meaningful knowledge and skills, and thereby to improve study abroad programming at our institutions. This report written at the half-way mark of the study—a year and a half into it— presents evaluative reflections on the progress and process of the GCP to date.

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Author Biographies

Michael J. Vande Berg

Michael J. Vande Berg is Director of International Programs at Georgetown University. He has worked as an international educator for more than twenty years, holding teaching and administrative positions in Spain, France and the U.S. In addition to publishing articles on international education and on literary figures and movements, he has published English-language translations of Spanish literature. He earned his Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from the University of Illinois and is a Founding Board member of the Forum on Education Abroad.

Al Balkcum

Al Balkcum is Director of The Learning Abroad Center at the University of Minnesota. After earning B.A.’s in Philosophy and Mathematics at North Carolina State University, he completed graduate work at the University of Minnesota in Philosophy and Philosophical Foundations of Education. He served as a faculty member in Philosophy at the University from 1971 to 1979, has been involved in study abroad there since 1978, and Director of the central study abroad office since 1980.

Mark Scheid

Mark Scheid has served at Rice University as a Professor of English and Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs. Currently, he is Executive Director of International Programs and Scholarships and Assistant to the President at Rice. He is a Founding Board Member of the Forum on Education Abroad and has a special interest in standards of good practice.

Brian J. Whalen

Brian J. Whalen is Associate Dean of the College, Executive Director of the Office of Global Education, and Associate Professor of International Studies at Dickinson College. He has worked in all areas of international education, including serving as a resident director in Italy for five years. He holds a Ph.D. in psychology and researches and writes on intercultural journeys. Whalen is the founding editor of Frontiers and serves on the Advisory Council of the Forum on Education Abroad.

References

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Vande Berg, M. (2003). A Research-based approach to Education Abroad Classification. Forum on Education Abroad:www.forumea.org/goalsactivities.html.
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Published

2004-08-15

How to Cite

Vande Berg, M. J. ., Balkcum, A., Scheid, M., & Whalen, B. J. (2004). The Georgetown University Consortium Project: A Report from the Halfway Mark. Frontiers: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Study Abroad, 10(1), 101–116. https://doi.org/10.36366/frontiers.v10i1.135

Issue

Vol. 10 No. 1 (2004): Special Issue: Assessment of Study Abroad Learning Fall, 2004

Section

II. Accounting for Learning Across Several Domains