American Council on Education's Internationalization Lab

The University of North Georgia is one of 18 colleges and universities participating in the American Council on Education's (ACE) 17th Internationalization Laboratory cohort.

Starting in August, 2019 and spanning a period of 20 months, UNG will develop strategies and goals for campus internationalization with the goal of long-lasting institutional change. The Lab includes forming teams to work on strategic planning and student outcomes, meetings in Washington, and monthly communication with ACE staff and a team of advisors.

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Starting the Process

The first meeting of the cohort took place on August 9, in Washington, DC, and UNG was represented by the co-chairs of UNG’s ACE Internationalization Lab Steering Committee, Sheila Schulte and Dr. Steven Lloyd.

The purpose of the meeting was to get an overview of the process and timeline, meet the other cohort members, meet the ACE staff and the ACE Lab advisors, and clarify next steps. There was also a panel of recent Lab members discussing the process based on their institutional contexts and giving advice on how to make it a successful experience.

UNG’s ACE Lab advisor is Dr. Penelope (Nell) Pynes, and the ACE meeting allowed us time to get to know one another and think through the process at UNG. Dr. Pynes, is the Associate Provost for International Programs at the University of North Carolina, Greensboro. She earned her master’s degree from the University of Alabama and a doctorate in Germanic linguistics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She is has been a leader with NAFSA and the Association of International Education Administrators where she just completed her term as President. Her institution went through the ACE Internationalization Lab several years ago under her leadership and found it to be a transformative process.

Steering Committee

The committee will be responsible for the Lab's final deliverable which is an internationalization plan for UNG that is aligned with the new strategic plan for UNG. This committee has been formed based on the recommendations from each Dean.

Committee Members and Working Groups by Topic

The committee members will serve as chairs of several working groups divided by topic:

Topic	Co-chairs	Working Group Members
Articulated Institutional Commitment	Waros Ngamsiriudom, Mike Cottrell College of Business Sue Klappa, College of Health Sciences and Professions	Jeff Boggan Jill Johnson Eunse Park Mariangela Vecchiarini-Piazza
Education Abroad Practices	Juman Al-Bukhari, College of Arts and Letters Alex Wisnoski, College of Arts and Letters	Elizabeth Combier Erin Barding Shannon Gilstrap Victoria Hightower
International Students	Brett Morris, Enrollment Management Joe Matthews, Commandant of Cadets	James Badger Mohammad (Reza) Nourbakhsh Robert Robinson Treva Smith
Curricular and Co-curricular Learning Outcomes	John Delaney, Dean of Students Winnifred Namatovu, College of Education	Lindsay Bailey John Holliday Lauren Johnson Gene Van Sickle
Collaboration and Partnerships	Katie Simmons, Mike Cottrell College of Business Elizabeth Marekia-Cleaveland, Institute of Environmental and Spatial Analysis	Sharon Hamilton Bobbi Larson Andy Novobilski Andrzej (Dre) Przybyla
Faculty Policies and Procedures	Kelly McFaden, College of Education Vanessa Jones, College of Health Sciences and Professions	Olivier LeBlond Anastasia Lin Mohan Menon Jill Schulze
Administrative Leadership, Structure and Staffing	Nancy Dalman, College of Science and Mathematics Jeremy Cooper, College of Science and Mathematics	Marcus Brewer Jennifer (Jen) Graff Cristian Harris

Timeline

Date	Plan
October 12, 2020	ACE Internationalization Lab Peer Review
May 1, 2020	Steering Committee meeting
March 6, 2020	Steering Committee meeting
February 3, 2020	Steering Committee meeting
December 6, 2019	Steering Committee meeting
November 1, 2019	Steering Committee meeting
October 14, 2019	Dr. Pynes will visit and meet with the Steering Committee, the Provost, Provost's council, Center of Global Engagement staff, and other constituents
October 4, 2019	Steering Committee meeting
September 13, 2019	Steering Committee meeting
August 9, 2019	First meeting in Washington, DC to establish process and timeline