During the 2012 NAFSA Conference and Expo, the GoAbroad Team was pleased to announce the winners of the 2012 Innovation Awards. As part of a continued effort to recognize the hard work and dedication this year’s nominees, GoAbroad will be sharing individual features of the 2012 GoAbroad Innovation Awards finalists over the coming weeks. This week, we are thrilled to bring you the Innovation in Access & Equity finalists!
Please join us in congratulating the following Finalist (and Winner!) of the Innovation in Access & Equity Award:
Center for Global Education, Augsburg College
“Summer Academic Program in Mexico”
The Center for Global Education at Augsburg College’s Summer Academic Program in Mexico (2011) exemplifies innovation in access and equity in education abroad. This program was attended by a particularly diverse group of twenty-six students that included four East African students, four Latino/as, three African-Americans, and three Asian-Americans. The group also included four Muslims, two students who identified as LGBTQIA, and a student who identified as in recovery from substance abuse. An intentionally diverse community was sought via promotion of the program to traditionally underrepresented groups and specialized scholarships, such as the Students of Color Study Abroad scholarship.
CGE staff took seriously the need to prepare themselves for understanding and accommodating this unique group. CGE believes that internal preparation is a crucial step toward increasing equity and access because it aids in recruitment, promotes retention, and enhances program satisfaction which, in turn, encourages other students from underrepresented groups to participate in education abroad.