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RSVP for Multicultural Perspectives Abroad Luncheon

List of COF Spring 2009 Travel Courses

GEO Center
International Calendar

Frequently Asked Questions about Study Abroad

A MassArt student studies for 6 months in Brazil!

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GEO CENTER QUICK FACTS:

• The GEO Center is located at Simmons College in
Suite E-110

• The GEO Center staff works directly with COF students, faculty and administrators/ staff
 

ABOUT GEO CENTER

Services
Initiatives
Programming
Meet the GEO Center Staff
Committees
Global Ambassadors

Services

The GEO Center provides a myriad of services to the COF schools and their students. GEO Center services include but are not limited to:

  • Provide guidance to students and faculty seeking international experience

  • Work with faculty/staff for travel course development

  • Event planning for internationally themed events

  • Outreach to underrepresented populations in study abroad

  • Development of forms, applications, etc. for study abroad and travel courses

  • Work with administrators and faculty to advise students about study abroad

  • Marketing and promotion of COF International events (including Culture Shock, art exhibitions, lectures, film screenings, etc.

Initiatives

  • Global Ambassadors – returned study abroad students share their knowledge and experience with COF peers

  • Faculty/Staff Workshops – preparation for leading a travel course or volunteer abroad program

  • Students of Color Lunch – information about study abroad for students of color

  • Re-entry Social – information for returned students on how to incorporate their experiences into daily life

Programming

  • COF study abroad fairs (one per semester)
  • Pre-departure orientations
  • Career Workshop


Meet the GEO Center Staff

Robin Melavalin
Robin Melavalin, Director of the Global Education Opportunities (GEO) Center, is an internal consultant to the six Colleges of the Fenway schools. She is involved in all aspects of internationalizing the campuses, which includes working with faculty and administrators as they prepare to take students abroad, streamlining procedures and policies, and working with the campuses to develop their strategic vision for internationalization. An anthropologist, photographer and teacher, she has been in the field of international education for over 20 years and has led student groups to Cuba, Cape Verde, and other countries. She has also traveled in Kenya, the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, Bali, Uzbekistan and China. In her spare time she leads outdoor adventure trips for the Appalachian Mountain Club.

Mary Boyington
Mary Boyington, Assistant Director of the GEO Center, works closely with staff and faculty at the Colleges of the Fenway to promote study abroad, welcome international students, and internationalization of the six campuses. Mary is a native of New Orleans and completed her studies in French Literature at the University of Louisiana-Lafayette. Mary's background includes directing a faculty-led program to Paris, teaching French and Humanities courses, as well as working with international students and scholars.

Claudeline Jean-Baptiste
Claudeline is the graduate intern for the GEO Center. She is a native of Boston.  She is currently researching and writing for her Capstone Paper. Her Masters degree will be completed in International Education from the School for International Training in Brattleboro, VT. Claudeline earned her BA in Sociology, Criminology and Law with a minor in Paralegal Studies from Suffolk University. She is from a bi-cultural home with both parents the Island of Hispaniola, where she traveled to numerous times during her childhood.  She has regressed in her fluency of Spanish, is fluent in Haitian-Creole, and at an intermediate level of French.  Stop by the GEO Center so she may practice her languages with you.

 

Committees

The GEO Center works with four committees, the Study Abroad Council, the Advisory Board, International Student Advisors and International Recruiters, in order to fulfill its mission of internationalizing the campuses and providing cross-cultural opportunities for students. The committees foster collaboration among individuals, departments and institutions with regard to all aspects of internationalization.

Study Abroad Council
Thirteen COF members who are directly involved with helping students travel on semester, year and short-term programs meet to share best practices and collaborate on marketing, orientations, fairs and other projects.

Mary Weber
Mary Weber is the International Student and Study Abroad Advisor at Emmanuel College. Prior to her arrival at Emmanuel, Mary completed her BS in Psychology at the University of Mary Washington and her MA in Intercultural Relations at Lesley University. She has traveled extensively throughout the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, France, and Ireland. She enjoys adventure sports and has been skydiving and bungee jumping.

Tony Laing
Tony Laing is Diversity and Programs Exchange advisor. In this role, he works with students interested in semester study abroad or domestic exchanges. Tony is also responsible for helping to promote diversity programs. Prior to MassArt, he worked at The New School in NY and has traveled throughout Africa as an exchange student, teacher and researcher. Tony was nominated twice for the Fulbright Teacher and Administrator Exchange Program and received a Rotary Ambassadorial scholarship. Tony holds a BA in political science and an MPA in management and international development.

Natalie Vinski
Natalie Vinski is the Director of International Education Programs at Massachusetts College of Art and Design. She provides a range of services and programming to students, faculty and staff including oversight of the college’s faculty-led international travel courses and advising/support to the college’s international student population. As an undergraduate student, Natalie spent a semester studying art and social change in Prague, Czech Republic through the School for International Training, followed by two months of solo travel through Europe. Her most recent travels have included Ireland, Ecuador, Mexico, Newfoundland, and Egypt (as part of MassArt’s spring 2007 travel course, Egypt of the Pharaohs, led by Professor John Russell).

Lauren Thorman
Lauren Thorman is Associate Director of the Center for International Education, Leadership, and Innovation at Wheelock College. She has been involved in international education and child and family policy issues for nine years. Her duties at Wheelock College include coordinating the Wheelock College International Visiting Scholar Program and the International Service Learning Program, which provides faculty-led overseas learning experiences for students; researching and developing new international markets; and assisting in the launch and administration of current overseas programs. Lauren’s areas of expertise include international program development, international student recruitment, and project management. Before coming to Wheelock College in 2007, Lauren worked with a range of programs and services for international students at Suffolk University’s Center for International Education. She has traveled extensively throughout Asia and is a graduate of the NAFSA Academy, an intensive two-year training program in international education offered by NAFSA: Association of International Educators. Lauren holds a B.S. in Human Service Studies from Cornell University and an M.P.A. from The George Washington University.

GEO Center Advisory Board
Eleven COF administrators and faculty guide the GEO Center strategic planning process, major projects and budgets.

International Student Admissions and Advisors Committee
Committee members provide support to international students through tax and career workshops; they also share best practices for international student support and retention.

International Student Recruitment Task Force
In three meetings, this committee of academic and student life deans, admissions administrators and international advisors analyzed and recommended collective strategies for recruiting international students to the COF.

Global Ambassadors

The global ambassadors program is an opportunity for students who have returned from study abroad to share their experience with students on the COF campuses. Global Ambassadors conduct info sessions in residence halls, hold weekly travel talk tables, volunteer at GEO Center events, and may be available for one on one peer consultations regarding study abroad.
If you would like to be a Global Ambassador, please contact Mary Boyington at mboyington@colleges-fenway.org