NAFSA Regional Conference

2012 NAFSA Region XII Conference in the San Jose

Learning Domains:

Leadership	Social Advocacy and Justice	Education	Assessment and Evaluation	Personal Development
		X		X

Description:

In October 2012, I attended a regional conference for the Association of International Educators (also known as the National Association of Foreign Student Advisors [NAFSA]) in San Jose, California. NAFSA specializes in study abroad programs, international enrollment management, international students and scholars, internationalization efforts, public policy, and other services that pertain to international student education (NAFSA: Association of International Educators, 2012). While currently working as an International Admissions and Records Specialist at Saddleback College, I attended NAFSA as an opportunity to expand my insight of international student affairs. This entry describes my practical knowledge gained from the conference and my experience networking with other professionals in the field.


Learning Outcomes:

SWiBAT: identify (knowledge) 3-4 practical strategies from NAFSA that can be applicable in enhancing international student education

SWiBAT: create (synthesis) an action plan on how to employ at least 2 strategies to support international students at Saddleback College

SWiBAT: Exchange 15 business cards with other international education professionals and engage in relevant conversation with at least 3 professionals to obtain information on international student services


Assessment Rubric:

	Advanced	Competent	Basic	Needs Improvement
SLO # 1	I identified 5 or more practical strategies from NAFSA that can be applicable in enhancing international student education	I identified 3-4 practical strategies from NAFSA that can be applicable in enhancing international student education	I identified 2 practical strategies from NAFSA that can be applicable in enhancing international student education	I identified 1 or fewer practical strategies from NAFSA that can be applicable in enhancing international student education
SLO # 2	I created an action plan on how to employ  3 or more strategies to support international students at Saddleback College and presented it my program supervisors	I created an action plan on how to employ  2 strategies to support international students at Saddleback College and presented it to my program supervisors	I created an action plan on how to employ 1 strategy to support international students at Saddleback College	I was unable to create an action plan on how to employ any strategies to support international students at Saddleback College
SLO #3	I Exchanged 15 or more business cards with other international education professionals and engage in relevant conversation with at least 3 professionals to obtain information on international student services	Exchanged 10-14 business cards with other international education professionals and engage in relevant conversation with at least 2 professionals to obtain information on international student services	Exchanged 2-3 business cards with other international education professionals and engage in relevant conversation with at least 1 professionals to obtain information on international student services	Exchanged 1 business card with another international education professional, but did not engage in relevant conversation with at least 1 professionals to obtain information on international student services

Evidence:

Reflection:

Attending the NAFSA regional conference was a great experience to learn more about the field of international student affairs.  As I attended various conference sessions, I was able to bring back new practical ideas that I identified as valuable. I achieved the first learning outcome at the competent level of the rubric by identify 3 practical strategies from NAFSA that can be applicable in enhancing international student education.  1) I have learned that another local community college utilized their application fee account to create a scholarship fund for incoming international freshmen students.  This institution was able to help new international students with funding their education, while also marketing themselves as a donor on a reputable international scholarship website.  2) Another theme that stood out to me was investing more efforts to develop partnerships with study abroad programs. For instance, San Francisco State University created the International Education Exchange Council (IEXC) student organization in an effort to internationalize the university by giving all incoming exchange students the opportunity to work together with their student study abroad returnees. 3) The third point was creating more opportunities for international students studying at 2-year public institutions to connect with domestic students on campus.  Dr. Anayah (2012) from Folsom Lake College presented her research finding on international students at community colleges by reveling that international students tend to engage in limited interaction with non-international students because of their networks with other international students.

When it comes to the second learning outcome, I was able to achieve learning the competent level by creating an action plan on how to  employ 2 strategies from NAFSA at Saddleback College, which included building partnerships with the Saddleback study abroad programs and connecting international students to other students on campus. Additionally, I presented my action plan to my supervisors to discuss how I could incorporate it into my fieldwork goals for the spring 2013 term.

This conference was also a great opportunity for me to learn how to network with other professionals in my field.  I was able to achieve my learning outcome at the competent level in light of the rubric. I exchanged over 10 business cards with other international education professionals and engaged in relevant conversation with 2 professionals to obtain helpful information on international student services. I reached out to an International Program Director from a local California State University about patterning up for an upcoming international CSU transfer fair that we have planned in the spring.  I suggested the idea of inviting some of their current international students to represent the university on a student panel, which would give our students an opportunity to connect with them.  She seemed very receptive to my idea.  I also had a conversation with an international student adviser from a local community college about pre-registering new students in classes prior their arrival. 

Overall, the NAFSA conference was very informative.I obtained valuable information on how I could facilitate practical changes at Saddleback College by attending relevant conference sessions and gained more insight of international student services through my interaction with other professionals.  

References

NAFSA: Association of International Educators (2012). Learn about NAFSA. Retrieved from http://www.nafsa.org/Learn_About_NAFSA/Programs_and_Services/

Anayah, B. (2012, October). International students at community colleges: How are their needs being met.     Paper presented at NAFSA regional conference, San Jose California.