I. Scholarships and Fellowships

Postdoctoral Position in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Department in School of Medicine at Wayne State University

A postdoctoral position is immediately available in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Department in School of Medicine at Wayne State University, to investigate the role of histone modification in cardiovascular diseases, and to determine structures and functions of macromolecular complexes.

Candidates should have Ph.D. degree in Biophysics, Biochemistry, Molecular Biology or a related field. Experiences in molecular biology, protein expression and purification, and/or X-crystallography are desirable. The successful applicants will conduct independent and collaborative research projects in the field of structural biology/biochemistry.

Salary will be commensurate with experience.

Application: Please submit: Cover Letter, CV, names and contact information of 3 references to:

Zhe Yang, PhD
540 E. Canfield St
Detroit, MI 48201
Email: zyangmed@wayne.edu
Phone: 313-577-1294

Fellowships at Woodrow Wilson Center, Washington

The Woodrow Wilson International Center invites applications for (approximately 20-25) residential fellowships for the year 2009-10, from individuals with outstanding project proposals in a broad range of the social sciences and humanities on national and/or international issues. Topics and scholarship should relate to key public policy challenges or provide the historical and/or cultural framework to illuminate policy issues of contemporary importance.

Deadline: 01 Oct 2008

For more details about the program and how to apply please visit:

www.wilsoncenter.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=fellowships.welcome

Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellows Program

The Washington, D.C.-based National Endowment for Democracy (NED) invites journalists worldwide to apply to be part of the 2009-2010 Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellows Program. Selected fellows will take up residence at the Forum, a research division of NED, for five to ten months. Deadline: November 10.

According to its organizers, the fellowship seeks to provide experienced journalists with an opportunity to reflect on their work, learn from counterparts in the United States, and reevaluate techniques for building democracy in their country of origin. Projects must be in English.

Each participant will receive a monthly stipend for living expenses, health insurance and reimbursement for travel. Fellows also receive a fully equipped office and research support.

For further information, including eligibility information, visit www.ned.org/forum/reagan-fascell.html or contact fellowships@ned.org.

II. News you can use

Journal of Online Learning and Teaching

http://jolt.merlot.org/

More and more educators may wish to get involved with online teaching initiatives, but they may not be sure where to start. That's where the Journal of Online Learning and Teaching (JOLT) steps in to provide a bit of assistance. JOLT is published four times a year, and its objectives are to enable faculty to use technology effectively in teaching and learning and also to enable academic programs to design and deploy academic technology. The journal has been published since the summer of 2005, and first-time visitors should take a look at the current issue to get a sense of their work. Visitors will find pieces on course management systems, creativity in online courses, and how to monitor and examine online discussions. Those who are so inclined should feel welcome to submit their own work for potential inclusion in a forthcoming volume.

From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008.
http://scout.wisc.edu

Berkeley Center for Law & Technology

www.law.berkeley.edu/institutes/bclt/

Established at Berkeley's Boalt Hall in 1995, the mission of the Berkeley Center for Law & Technology is "to foster beneficial and ethical advancement of technology by promoting the understanding and guiding the development of intellectual property and related fields of law and policy as they intersect with business, science and technology." First-time visitors to their homepage can make their way through some of their new publications and papers, which can include everything from work on stem cell research ethics to international copyright law. By clicking on the "Research" section, visitors can learn more about faculty research and the scholarship of those persons working closely in affiliation with the Center through research appointments.

From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008.
http://scout.wisc.edu

Michigan State University Open CourseWare

www.msuglobal.com/opencourseware/

Michigan State University is one of the partner institutions working on the Open CourseWare Initiative and this website is their way of giving the general web-browsing public access to some of their educational expertise. Those persons who might be unfamiliar with the open educational resources movement may wish to read the paper on the homepage titled "Giving Knowledge for Free: The Emergence of Open Educational Resources" or the equally timely work "Access to Education with Online Learning and Open Educational Resources: Can They Close the Gap?" Currently, the subject areas available here include international business, planning and zoning, and horse management. Visitors can scan through the course documents at their leisure, and they are also welcome to download various materials here.

From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008.
http://scout.wisc.edu/

Green Design Institute

http://gdi.ce.cmu.edu/

The Green Design Institute is a "major interdisciplinary education and research effort to make an impact on environmental quality through green design." The primary goal of the Institute is to form partnerships with industry, government, and other foundations in order to develop processes that "can improve environmental quality and product quality while enhancing economic development." Located at Carnegie Mellon, the Institute involves faculty, students, and other partners in their efforts to develop practical pollution prevention technologies and lower costs by recycling scarce resources, using fewer raw materials, and creating better products. Visitors to the site may wish to begin by reading the "About Us" section to learn a bit more about the Institute. After getting acquainted with the goals of the Institute, visitors to should visit the "Research" section to learn a bit about on-going projects on sustainable infrastructure, energy and environment, life cycle assessment, and environment. Perhaps the most useful section of the site can be found by clicking on "Education". Here, a link to eiolca.net can be found, which is economic input-output life cycle assessment software. The model allows users to estimate the overall environmental impacts of producing commodities or services in the United States. In addition, courses and course materials on environmental issues are available here.

From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008

Two more pictures from USBT 2008 group visit to Washtenaw Community College and Eastern Michigan University have been added to our photo gallery.

Click here to visit our photo gallery.

NAFSA Conference Sessions with EducationUSA Advisers

Monday, May 26
8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. - Workshop
- Maximizing International Student Enrollment: Together We Can Do It. Mihaela Arsene, Romania, Frank Mok, China, Martin Bennett, Ball State Univ., Dorothy Mora, Dept. of State

9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.  - Workshop
- Advising International Student Athletes. Judy Freudenberger, Australia

Tuesday, May 27
2:30-3:45
- Education in the South Caucasus: Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia. Gayane Grigorian, Armenia, Hasan Huseynli, Azerbaijan, Nino Chinchaladze, Georgia and Marybeth Grunewald (ECE)

- Target the Globetrotters in Singapore and the Philippines. Karen Kaylor, Singapore

- Turkey:  New Trends, New Opportunities, Greater Diversity and Cooperation Lara Meltem Bilikmen, Mevlude Bakir and Gulesen Odabasioglu

- Local Sources of Aid: What are International Students' Options? Angela Muset, Moldova, Bahar Haji-Zada,  Azerbaijan, Anne Campbell (OSI)

3:00-5:00 p.m.
- Poster Session:  Embassy Dialogue Committee/EducationUSA Country Fair – All Advisers
- Poster group EduUSA Advisers: What Can We Do for You?  Wednesday, May 28 in the afternoon and ending on Friday, May 30 at 11 a.m.  Anara Jamasheva, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan

1:30 to 3:00 p.m.
- Poster group session ‘Reviewing Credentials from Secondary Schools for Recruitment and Admissions’.  Anara Jamasheva, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan

1.30 - 2.45 p.m.
- Poster Session - International Secondary Credentials for Recruitment and Admissions. Swetha Muthanna, Bangalore, India

- Reviewing Credentials from Secondary Schools for RAP Singapore:  New Academic Program and Credentials  Format. Karen Kaylor, Singapore

2:00-3:15pm
- Trends in the Middle East: New Secondary School Credentials and Detecting Diploma Mills. Hala Al Hawary, Egypt

- Accessing the Prospective Student Market in the Caribbean. Eva Barnes, Jamaica, Joy Sandza, Trinidad & Tobago, Nichole Johnson, Craig Hastings (LASPAU)

4:00-5:15
- Creative ways to Integrate Muslim Students on U.S. Campuses. Heidi Gregori Gahan, Univ. Southern Indiana, Jody Griffin, AMIDEAST, Lubna Anwar, Pakistan Dorothy Mora, Dept. of State

- Anglophone West Africa: Education, Credentials, Recruitment and Resources. Shade Adebayo, Nigeria, Nancy Keteku, Jim Meyers (ECE)

- Lunch or Not? Recruiting Strategies in Asia. Frank Mok, Beijing, China

8:00-9:15 a.m.
- Best Practices: EducationUSA and Department of Commerce Worldwide Resources. Nichole Johnson, Jim Paul

- Overcoming Challenge: Admitting and Enrolling Economically Disadvantaged International Students. Andreza Martins, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Ifeyani Olagbaju, Lagos, Nigeria, Isabel Gomez, Univ. of Chicago, Ann Kuhlman, Yale University

- Education in the Middle East : Refugees and Border Crossing. Kristen Cammarata

9:30-10:30am
- Saudi Arabia: Navigating Recruitment and the Scholarship Program.  Karen Bauer: 

- Educator Diplomacy: Global Partnerships Beyond the Ivory Tower. Zohre Allawzi: 

- Credentials Evaluation: RAP Admissions and Overseas Advisers Liaison Group. Judy Freudenberger

Poster Sessions – Date/Time ?
- Poster session- Study in the United States: Motivations, Expectations. Swetha Muthanna, Bangalore

Click here to download 2008 NAFSA Sessions for Advisers (MS Excel file, 29 KB)

Expanding Networks & Horizons:  Connecting to the World

Pre-NAFSA EducationUSA Day
Beacon Hotel, 1615 Rhode Island Ave NW

Friday, May 23

Themes for the Day:

1. Center website review—what’s needed, what US universities need to see
2. Linking US Study Abroad programs and students to EducationUSA centers
3. Best practices in involving university representatives in EducationUSA center activities.
4. Trip to Capitol Hill—tour and reception/college fair sponsored by Destination Indiana & Senator Richard Lugar

7:30 – 8:30 a.m.   Breakfast (advisers only)

8:30-9:00 a.m.   On-line Course review - Sandra Ospina, LeapPoint, LLC (advisers only). Beacon Room
 
9:00-9:15 a.m.   Icebreaker - Debbie Hefferon, Consultant, International Education & Cross-cultural Communication Training, Washington, DC (advisers and university reps). Ballroom (downstairs)
What do we have in common?  In your small groups you have 10 minutes to come up with 6 things you have in common.  BUT these things cannot be the obvious interests that bring you together, e.g., love to travel, or work with students or speak English.  The common interests or traits need to be more personal or specific, e.g., we all love to cook Italian food.

9:15-10:15 a.m.   Website review (5 min overview/40 min small groups/15 min next steps—   advisers and university reps). Ballroom
Internationally Friendly Website for US university websites information provided by US State Department with commentary from DI reps. What information do US institutions look for on EducationUSA advising centers websites?  In the small groups we’ll share examples of quality center & REAC sites, then have US reps spend some time reviewing the 8-9 adviser’s sites in each small group.  (Destination Indiana representatives are encouraged to bring laptops with them to assist in the review of these sites.)

10:15-11:15 a.m..   Connecting US study abroad students to EducationUSA centers (5 minute overview/ 30 minute small groups/25 min review/next steps - advisers and university reps). Ballroom
How can EducationUSA advisers help build relationships between US and local universities? How can centers utilize US study abroad students as resources?  What are some best practices/ programs where centers without US universities with local partners develop study abroad programs with local universities?

11:15 -12:15 p.m.   Best practices for involving/hosting university representatives at Centers (10 min overview/30 min breakout-theme, practical joint examples, wish list/20 min action plans—advisers and university reps)  Ballroom
We have all heard of DVCs, but how many centers are actively connecting with US universities for either recruitment events and/or topical workshops for their students?  How many centers have hosted university reps for sessions for students?  What are some ways you wish you could use university folks differently than you are now?

12:15-1:15 p.m.   Lunch (buffet style seating in both rooms) Ballroom & Beacon Room

1:15-1:45 p.m.   Wrap Up/Planning for the Future Ballroom
What are at least three things that you’ve learned today that you need to do when you get back to your office? Make your lists, check them twice.   

1:45 p.m.   Depart for Capitol Hill by bus (arranged by College Board) Lobby of Beacon Hotel

2:30 – 3:30 p.m.   Tour of Capitol Hill with staff from Senator Richard Lugar’s (R-IN) office. US Capitol Building

3:45 p.m.   Welcome by Senator Richard Lugar. Senate Dirksen Office Building, Room 562
One of the strongest supporters of international education in the US Congress, “this fifth generation Hoosier is the longest serving U.S. Senator in Indiana history. He is the Republican leader of the Foreign Relations Committee….  He was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 1976 and won a sixth term in 2006 with 87 percent of the vote, his fourth consecutive victory by a two-thirds majority.… He attended Pembroke College at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar, studying politics, philosophy and economics.”  (from Senator Lugar’s bio on his website)
 
4:00-5:00 p.m.   Destination Indiana College Fair/Reception. Senate Committee Hearing Room (SD-562)
Join us for an informal college fair for the opportunity to share information about the many quality institutions of higher learning in Indiana, the #10 destination state for international students in the United States.  Seventeen Destination Indiana member colleges & universities will have useful information to share about their institutions that is both lightweight & easy to carry home! Don’t forget to have a drink on us!

5:00 pm.   Departures on your own for dinner

7:00-8:00 a.m.   Breakfast
 
8:00- 8:45 a.m.  USAP/Opportunity Grant Briefing - Rebecca and Rita
 
9:00-10:30 a.m.   How to present a successful NAFSA proposal - Fanta/Rebecca
 
10:30 - 12:30 p.m.    Campus Debrief and Orientation
 
12:30 – 2:00 p.m.   Lunch/Adviser Award Ceremony
 
Afternoon    Cultural Event at Newseum – tickets provided by the College Board
 
Evening    VCO Board meeting and dinner - VCO members only

Sunday, May 25

7:00 – 8:00 a.m.   Breakfast for EducationUSA Advisers

8:00 – 8:15 a.m.   REAC Welcome and Opening
REAC’s go over the agenda of the day

8:15 – 9:45 a.m.   ECA Update
Representatives from ECA will brief advisers on updates

9:45 – 10:15 a.m.   Coffee Break

10:15 -  11:00 a.m.   Session 1A: Transactional and Transformational Advising
Kristen Cammarata, REAC, Middle East/North Africa/Southern Europe. Kristen will lead a discussion on a variety of advising service issues. Venue: Beacon Ballroom

Session 1B: NAFSA First Timer Overview and Briefing
Venue: Beacon Lecture Room
REAC, Regional Educational Advising Coordinator, Region
REAC’s will offer our first time NAFSA attendees an overview and briefing of the conference objectives and desired outcomes. Guidance will be given on issues such as planning a schedule, choosing workshops, attending events, networking for success, and more.

11:00 – 11:45 a.m.   Session 2A: Medical Field Education
Venue: Beacon Hotel Ballroom
Rohayma Rateb, Educational Adviser, AMIDEAST Alexandria, Egypt
Rohayma will brief advisers on how to obtain the ECFMG certification required from international medical graduates for any medical education or training program involving patient contact. How to apply to the residency matching program and steps to a residency programs in the U.S. will be analyzed.

Session 2B: Spotlight on Liberal Arts
Name, Title, Organization

11:45 – 12:30 p.m.   Session 3: University Admissions
Venue: Beacon Hotel Ballroom
Evelyn Levinson, Director, International Student Admissions, American University
Jennifer Russell, Director, Int’l Student Admissions, Bryn Mawr College
Isabel Gomez, Director, Int’l Student Admissions, University of Chicago
Eli Bromberg, Asst Dean of Admissions, Amherst College

This panel of senior university representatives (tentative) will offer advisers an inside look at the international student admissions process.

12:30 – 1:45 p.m.   Lunch - Beacon Hotel Ballroom

1:45 – 2:30 p.m.   Session 4: IT in Advising
Venue: Beacon Hotel Ballroom
Martin Bennett, Director, International Services, Rinker Center for International Programs, Ball State University

This session will include best practices using information technology between US Universities and EducationUSA advising centers. Topics will include Digital Video Conferencing (DVC), International Student Interview Services, Social Networking, and emerging trends in technology

2:30 – 3:15 p.m.   Session 5: Marketing EducationUSA Best Practices
Jakub Tesar, Educational Adviser, Fulbright Czech Republic
Preeyawan Sakornyen, Public Affairs, U.S. Embassy, Bangkok

The discussion will offer marketing best practices with a focus on what makes EducationUSA different, how it can be heard in an increasingly noisy market, and how the diverse host organizations housing EducationUSA advising centers can work more closely together.

3:15 - 3:45 p.m.   Coffee Break

3:45 -  4:30 p.m.   Session 6A: Sports Scholarships
Judy Freudenberger, Senior EducationUSA Adviser, US Embassy Canberra

Session 6B: Career Counseling and Internships
Venue: Beacon Hotel Ballroom
Thais Burmeister C. Pires, Senior Educational Adviser, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Anwar Lubna, Educational Adviser, Lahore, Pakistan
Heidi Gregori-Gahan, Director, International Programs and Services, University of Southern Indiana

A workshop for advisers to prepare their outbound students for the diversity of choice in relation to career goals when studying in the U.S.

4:30 – 5:15   Session 7A: Opportunity Grant Best Practices
Bram Caplan, Co REAC, Eurasia
Nicole Johnson, REAC, Mexico/Central America/Carribean
[Adviser(s)], center, country
Bram and Nicole will join Opporunity Grant (OG) Advisers for a showcase of best practices with OG budgeting, outreach, selection, and awards

Click here to download 2008 NAFSA Sessions for Advisers (MS Excel file, 29 KB)

2007 EducationUSA Adviser Awards

Advising that had the Highest Impact
Rekha Kalle, Fulbright Commission, Mumbai, India

Advising Under Stressful Conditions 
Gaurau Katwal, Fulbright Commission, Katmandu, Nepal    
Hala Karakalla, AMIDEAST, Beirut, Lebanon

Best Mentor
Natalya Aulchenko, American Councils, Novosibirsk, Russia

Best Newcomer
Juan Mazo, Binational Center, Medellin, Colombia

Best Presenter
Tove Knudsen, Fulbright Commission Oslo, Norway

Most Innovative Outreach Project/Program
Illa Quintanilla, Fulbright Commission, Lima, Peru

Outstanding Single Accomplishment
Anara Jamasheva, Soros Foundation, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan

Unsung Hero
Sohair Saad, AMIDEAST Cairo, Egypt

Honorable Mention for U.S. Campus Host
Fanta Aw, American University, USA

2006 EducationUSA Adviser Awards

Best Mentor
Mihaela Arsene, Fulbright Commission, Bucharest, Romania

Career Achievement
Rita Moriconi, Fulbright Commission, Brazil

Outstanding Accomplishment 
Viktar Khotsim, American Center for Education and Research, Inc., Minsk, Belarus

Promising New Adviser
Nicholas Tourides, Fulbright Commission, Athens, Greece

Success Under Duress
Erica Sjarif, Fulbright Commission, Jakarta, Indonesia

Unsung Hero
Tapfumaneyi Muchenje, U.S. Embassy, Harare, Zimbabwe