Department of State and Department of Education Join in Worldwide Celebration of International Education Week

Secretary of Education Rod Paige said, "As Americans begin to reevaluate our assumptions about the impact of international relations on our daily lives, we realize that the task of diplomacy belongs not only to governments, but to individuals as well. Each of us is an ambassador when we interact with our global neighbors."

In Washington D.C., International Education Week events will include a State Department press conference for high school students; an international affairs version of "It’s Academic," a popular student quiz show broadcast in the metropolitan Washington area; and the release of the annual State Department-sponsored national survey on international exchange, Open Doors, that tracks trends in flows of international students in the U.S. and U.S. students abroad.

On Tuesday, November 19, the State Department will honor retiring Congressman Benjamin A. Gilman (R-NY) for his significant contributions in the field of foreign policy and international exchange, including the creation of a major program to allow financially needy U.S. undergraduates to engage in career-enhancing international study. Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs, Patricia Harrison, will meet with leaders of the Middle Eastern Studies Association and others in the exchange community to discuss ways of enhancing exchange program effectiveness.

At the Department of Education, Under Secretary Hickok will kick off the week with a seminar for DC-area educators on "Teaching about World Religions through the Arts," co-sponsored by the Smithsonian Institution. On Tuesday, Secretary Paige hosts a celebration of the successes and future plans of Friendship through Education, a White House initiative funded by the Department of Education, to establish linkages between classrooms in the United States and those in predominantly Muslim countries. Secretary Paige and other senior Education Department officials will meet with their counterparts from the United Kingdom in a policy dialogue on "A New Vision of Citizenship," highlighting effective ways to help young people in both countries become engaged in their communities. The week wraps up with the States Institute on International Education in the Schools, engaging leaders from education, the private sector and government in the task of expanding and improving what American students learn about other world regions, other languages, and international issues. The Asia Society, Council of Chief State School Officers, Education Commission of the States, and the National Governors Association are co-sponsors of this event.

Nationwide, participants are organizing a broad range of events. Numerous universities will hold study abroad presentations and activities, such as Texas A&M University’s celebration at the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library honoring Fulbright students and scholars. More than 1000 high school students from the former Soviet Union living with American host families this academic year will make presentations at their American schools; online linkages will connect youth in Azerbaijan with youth in New York; six U.S. high schools will engage in a "virtual dialogue" Internet exchange with six Brazilian student groups; high school students will compete for scholarship money at the first annual International Scholastic Bowl in central Illinois; and, among many other activities, exchange teachers from around the world will share their culture in their classrooms and communities.

Overseas, many U.S. embassies and educational advising centers will sponsor conferences and workshops where alumni of U.S. exchange programs will share their experiences with international audiences.  In Tokyo, the U.S. Embassy is planning a series of programs about the goals and benefits of internationalizing higher education.

For more information on International Education Week 2002 visit http://exchanges.state.gov/iew/.