Global Learning and Internationalization Institute 2024
From May 13 to May 17, 2024, the Office of International Programs (OIP) hosted the third Global Learning and Internationalization Institute (GLII) for fourteen faculty members from four colleges. This initiative supports faculty in developing goals for internationalizing their teaching and curriculum and creating global learning experiences for all students. An important goal of GLII is for participants to engage in an ongoing community of practice to facilitate innovation and create best practices in international education on the UNC Charlotte campus.
With three successful consecutive years of offering GLII, approximately fifty faculty members have joined the community of practice. The community of practice embodies a growing group of internationalization practitioners on campus, who serve as resources to each other and the campus community and enhance the global nature of the University as a whole.
Intercultural competence and global learning are the core theoretical foundations of GLII. The organizational committee has devoted time to scaffold the learning throughout the GLII, from debriefing the faculty members on their Intercultural Development Inventory group profile to introducing global learning frameworks and rubrics, while providing many hands-on activities for faculty members to experience and internalize the learning.
GLII provided an opportunity for faculty participants to learn about key concepts such as internationalization, intercultural competency and the global learning ecosystem. Participants explored various tools of curriculum internationalization provided by OIP, including Globally Networked Learning (collaborative online research, teaching and learning), faculty-led study abroad programs, and related student learning outcomes projects. Additionally, participants heard from faculty speakers with rich experiences in conducting internationally oriented teaching and research from both UNC Charlotte and Purdue University.
GLII highlights included a presentation by the Associate Chancellor for Research Deb Thomas on “Internationalizing Your Research.” University, college and departmental level administrators, including Provost Jennifer Troyer; Interim Dean of College of Humanities, Earth and Social Sciences John Smail; and Department of Art and Art History Chair Angela Rajagopalan addressed “The Career Value of Internationalization” with the GLII cohort. The speakers underscored the importance of having faculty engage in international education activities, drawing parallels to their own careers, and confirmed the value of international initiatives on our campus. Moreover, GLII participants engaged in a variety of interactive sessions delivered by experts at UNC Charlotte as well as Charlotte international exchange partner institutions: University of Kent at Canterbury in England, Stellenbosch University in South Africa, and Universidad de Cantabria in Spain.
On the final day of GLII, participants presented their post-GLII implementation ideas in the form of “lightning presentations” to fellow participants, GLII organizers, and peer experts. GLII faculty attendees cut across disciplines, representing the College of Humanities, Earth and Social Sciences, the College of Health and Human Services, the College of Arts + Architecture, Cato College of Education, and the College of Science.
According to the post-GLII evaluation, 100 percent of the surveyed participants agreed that they feel more empowered to conduct global learning and internationalization work as a result of this institute and would recommend GLII to a colleague. One of the participants shared that, “This week was wonderful for both professional growth and fellowship/collaboration across campus departments! I look forward to attending the Community of Practice activities throughout the year! Thank you for everything.”
The GLII organizational committee consists of Adriana L. Medina, Ph.D., professor of reading education and 2023 University Teaching Excellence Award winner and Faculty International Education Award recipient, and three OIP members: Joseph Hoff, Ph.D., Yongling Gorke, Ph.D. and Associate Provost Joël Gallegos.