Call for Session Proposals

February 19-22, 2012

Sessions Proposal Deadline August 15, 2011

 

AIEA invites the submission of proposals for its 2012 conference at JW Marriott in Washington DC on Feb 19-22, 2012.  Pre-conference workshops will be held February 19-20.  The conference will begin in the afternoon of February 20 and end in the afternoon of February 22.

This Call for Proposals contains the following information: 

• Conference theme and subthemes 
• Session format 
• Guidelines for submitting a proposal 
• Required information on the proposal 
• How to submit an electronic proposal 
• Selection criteria 
• Frequently asked questions 
• Contact Info 
• Key dates to remember

2012 AIEA Annual Conference:  Call for Proposals

“Building a Secure World through International Education”

Institutions of higher education have an important role to play in addressing the global forces that now threaten to destabilize and diminish our communities.  Many are actively engaged in programs that further environmental and energy sustainability, broader access to health care and education, resolution of conflicts,  pursuit of fundamental human rights, economic development, and greater cross-cultural understanding in the US and around the world. The 2012 AIEA Annual Conference provides a forum to reflect on the relationship between the internationalization of our institutions and institutional responses to these important global challenges.  How do our systems, approaches, resources, and collaborative work support the efforts of institutional players to address local and global challenges?  How do we promote, support, and sustain the modes of internationalization that address these far-reaching issues while remaining engaged with the cross-cultural development of students and faculty?  How can we maintain our efforts to teach about discrete cultures and geographies while also taking up these world-wide issues? How can student internships and service learning contribute to this work (or not), and how do these new modes fit with our traditional approaches to overseas study, faculty exchange, and the research agenda of our institutions?  Panels that create a thought-provoking conversation on these topics, particularly when they engage speakers from more than one nation, are especially invited.

Under this general umbrella, the following special subthemes are especially encouraged:

Administrative and logistical needs of colleges and universities as their international commitments grow: What new approaches to higher education administration are needed to provide appropriate engagement in public health, conflict resolution, human rights, and other issues that often unfold in logistically challenging settings or in settings that pose unusual security and health risks?   To what extent are our institutions only rhetorically supportive of international work, and how can we overcome continuing barriers in resources, procedures, and strategic unity?

Defining our values in internationalization: What do we mean by global citizenship?  Do some of our messages signal that experiences in established institutions located in thriving countries among relatively healthy populations are no longer truly “cross cultural”?  Do we assume that students who travel to more challenging sites to engage in “service” are learning more?  What are the underpinnings of these assumptions?  How do we communicate our values?

Recognizing and managing impact:  How do an institution’s actions reverberate beyond its own national boundaries? What are the responsibilities of those who oversee international education in shaping and assessing institutional impact on communities in another country?  How has the phrase “hands on learning” translated to overseas settings, and what have been the effects (both positive and negative) of such initiatives? 

Partnerships, consortia and networks: How can partnerships and multi-institutional alliances enable institutions to collectively tackle the challenges of our time and succeed in problem-solving?

In addition to these themes, proposals are invited to address internationalizing higher education in the US and globally across the full range of functions including the following key areas:

• Undergraduate teaching and learning (e.g., curriculum, study abroad, internships abroad, dual and joint degrees, service learning, international student recruitment and engagement);


• Graduate education (e.g., exchanges, international fellowships, field studies, collaborative graduate programs);


• Research and discovery (e.g., multi-institutional collaborative research and education, joint conferences, seminars and workshops);


• Building campus communities (e.g., conferences and workshops, student organizations and clubs, international living and learning communities, international education week, events, performances, lectures, integrating international students, admissions and financial assistance; student and faculty recruitment);


• Local, national and international outreach and engagement (e.g., international development projects with  governmental agencies, non-governmental organizations, World Bank, United Nations);


• International partnerships, collaborations, and coalitions (e.g., joint degrees, collaborative development projects);


• Campus leadership (e.g. strategic planning, management, partnerships and joint ventures, risk management, roles of President, Provost, Rector, Chancellor, and other key administrators; integrating support functions across the campus for international outreach);


• International alumni and development (e.g., international alumni events, chapters, fund raising);


• Public policy, including local, national and international laws and policies and governmental agencies; and


• Professional preparation for addressing issues of global health, economic development, environmental sustainability, conflict resolution, human rights, equity, and others.

FORMATS

Sessions will be either 60 or 75 minutes long, including a minimum of fifteen minutes of discussion.   Sessions may include a maximum of 3 presenters.  Allowance for more than 15 minutes of discussion is encouraged. 

Other formats:  Proposals are also invited for the 2012 AIEA Showcase of Ideas, in which a single institution presents one of its initiatives as a springboard for more general conversation regarding fresh ideas and creative approaches to internationalization issues and practices.  Roundtables will be available for conference participants to join the conversation, ask questions, and take handouts back to their home institution.. The Showcase will feature presenters at several roundtables in one large room, with one presenter per table and each with a table top display and handouts at their respective tables. This will be an informal session in which participants can either stay at one table to talk with the presenter there or go to several different tables to discuss informally with the presenter(s) on the specific topic at that particular table.   ("Informal" means not structured and more free flowing to maximize the networking that can occur with participants and presenters.) Selection for the Showcase is competitive.

GUIDELINES FOR SUBMITTING A PROPOSAL

• Selected sessions will be designed to include significant time for discussion and interaction.


• We will give preference to sessions that include multiple institutions and diverse perspectives. Student perspectives are most welcome.


• Regional diversity, including perspectives from institutions and presenters located outside of the United States will be favored.


• The purpose of the conference is to help leaders at institutions (and in the world of international education at large) carry out their responsibilities and develop new ideas.  Sponsorship opportunities exist for those with services, programs or products available on the market to assist in this effort, but these services and products are not acceptable topics for sessions.   We will not accept proposals that promote a product, program, or service.


• Sessions that focus on work done at one institution will not be accepted.  The “Showcase of Ideas” format is appropriate for such proposals.

REQUIRED INFORMATION FOR PROPOSAL

A.  Identification and biography

• Session Title, Abstract and Full Description (see note below)** 


• Name, Contact Details, and Biography of Chairperson 


• Names, Contact Details, and Biographies of all proposed speakers (see note below) 


• Conference subtheme category 


• Audio-visual needs 


• URL where handouts will be posted (all chairs are responsible for posting session handouts to their own website; AIEA will publicize the website URL) 

B. Full Session Description:  (500 word detailed description of your proposed session).

Include a content outline which describes the major theme(s), challenges, lessons learned, successes and failures, application possibilities for other institutions, etc. that will be addressed in this session. In addition, please include the goals of the session and the methodologies to be used. Remember to include a minimum of 15 minutes for discussion (more discussion time is encouraged). If there is more than one presenter, explain what each presenter will discuss. Please be as complete as possible and remember that the content needs to have wide applicability, comparative perspectives and an analysis of "lessons learned" useful to higher education leaders.

C. Additional Comments

The session chair will serve as the key contact on the session and is responsible for communicating all session information and details with presenters.

**IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR SESSION PROPOSERS 

• The abstract and bios submitted contain language that will be printed in the conference program, should the proposal be selected. 


• Please pay careful attention to format and word limitation of no more than 75 words for the abstract and 75 words for the bio.


• Biographies may have a maximum of 75 words. They may include presenters’ positions and major work accomplishments relevant to the presenter’s session topic.


• The biography should be written in the third person, and consist of full sentences.  Please observe the sample bio format provided in the online submission form. 


• Bios not in the sample format, will not be included. 


• Abstracts may be a maximum of 75 words.


• Proposals must be complete at time of submission – it is not sufficient to note “information to be added later”  as incomplete proposals will not be considered in the review process. 


• Proposals submitted without an abstract, full description, or complete bio information on all presenters listed will not be considered.

HOW TO SUBMIT AN ELECTRONIC PROPOSAL

BE SURE TO SAVE A COPY OF THE PROPOSAL BEFORE SUBMITTING IT TO AIEA! 

Click here to access the online proposal form.  If you are unable to access the form via the link, please cut and paste this link into your web browser: 

http://www.aieaworld.org/Call-for-Session-Proposals-Form.htm

Online proposal fields must be complete in order to continue with the proposal submission If you are unable to continue with the submission, it may be that you did not provide the information required. You will know your submission was successful when you receive an electronic acknowledgement.  If this acknowledgement is not received, please submit your proposal again.

                                         
If a hard copy of the proposal is necessary for completion or if technical difficulties are encountered, please email aiea@duke.edu for guidance.

SELECTION CRITERIA

Proposals will be reviewed by the Conference Advisory Committee and evaluated with the following criteria foremost: 

• Connection/Applicability to the Conference themes 


• Originality and quality of the proposed session 


• Relevance to both U.S. and international audiences 


• Presence of Multiple Perspectives


• Diversity of Presenters (i.e., regional, institutional)


• Realistic allocation of  time, including for discussion


• Substantive issues discussed during the session (note again that sessions should not promote marketed products, programs or services in any way)

Session proposals should NOT be a “show and tell” (unless submitted for the Showcase) but rather a focus on challenges, trends, and lessons learned, with ample time for discussion. 

The Conference Planning Committee will have to choose among many proposals, some of which may be similar, and will seek balance among topics and areas of importance to the membership.  Proposals of equal merit cannot in all instances be selected when the result would be an imbalance in the conference’s overall coverage of topics, audiences, and regions.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

When will I hear about whether my proposal is accepted or not? 
You will hear by early November, if not sooner, regarding the status of your proposal.

How are the proposals reviewed? 
Members of the conference advisory committee will review proposals.  There are at least 3 readers on each proposal.

Do presenters receive a discount in conference registration fees? 
No, there is no discount in conference registration fees for presenters.

What if one of my presenters is coming only for this session and will not be participating in any other part of the conference? 

It is possible for a presenter to just come to his/her session and then leave. However, there will be no nametag or conference materials provided and the presenter may not participate in any other part of the conference.

If I am using PowerPoint, am I required to bring my own computer? 
Yes, you will need to provide your own laptop. 

If I have handouts, am I required to bring copies to the conference?   
Yes, you should bring at least 50 copies of your handouts to the conference.  Handouts are strongly recommended.

QUESTIONS AND CONTACT INFORMATION

AIEA Secretariat: aiea@duke.edu 

Telephone: (1) 919-668-1928

KEY DATES: 
August 15, 2011 – deadline for submitting proposals 
December 15, 2011 – deadline for early bird conference registration 
January 15, 2012– deadline for regular conference registration