Professional Development Seminars

Seminars: Introduction & History

INTRODUCTION AND BRIEF HISTORY OF THE DIALOGUE SEMINARS ON CURRENT ISSUES IN CAMPUS ADMINISTRATION OF INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION (GHOST RANCH SEMINARS)

In 1993, during its fall meeting, the AIEA Executive Committee approved a proposal submitted by the standing committee on Campus Administration and Programs (CAPS)- now known as the Professional Development Committee- to conduct a "Seminar on Current Issues in Campus Administration of International Education." This was to be a seminar by invitation and plans were made to hold it in the spring of 1994. Two principal goals were outlined fro this seminar:

1. To assist the Professional Development Committee in identifying and describing important issues in international education administration at the campus level - issue that might not have been included in discussion strictly within the association; and
2. To bring serious and committed international education professionals (primarily non-members) into an AIEA dialog that could highlight the benefits of AIEA membership.

The first seminar was held, as planned, in April 29 through May 2, 1994 in the Ghost Ranch conference center located in Abiqui, New Mexico. Subsequent annual "Ghost Ranch" seminars took their name from the location of that first site.

This initial experience was considered so successful and valuable that the Executive Committee approved subsequent seminars - which were all labeled "Ghost Ranch" based on the first one. "Ghost Ranch" Dialogue seminars were organized in 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, and 1999 and in more recent years have been co-sponsored with sister organizations and held in conjunction with international conferences such as EAIE and AMPEI.

Ghost Ranch II was held in Valle Crucis, North Carolina, April 28 - May 1, 1995. Ghost Ranch III was held at the Oak n' Spruce Resort in Massachusetts, September 19 - 22, 1996. Ghost Ranch IV, was held at the Wakonda Retreat Center in Griswold, Iowa, September 18 - 21, 1997. Ghost Ranch V was held at the Pilgrim Pines Camp and Conference Center, Yucaipa, California, September 17 - 20, 1998. Ghost Ranch VI, was held at the Silver Falls State Park Conference Center in Silver Falls, Oregon, September 16 - 19, 1999.

In the spring of 1999 a "Super Ghost Ranch" was held at the original Ghost Ranch conference site in New Mexico, April 17 - 20. This seminar involved most of the coordinators of previous Ghost Ranch seminars. The group focused its attention to four key areas related to professional development of the Chief International Education Administrator.

In late 1999 and early 2000 the AIEA Executive Committee went through a strategic planning process. One of the outcomes of this process was to recommend that Ghost Ranch type seminars be one of the priority programs or activities sponsored by AIEA, that they be expanded in numbers, and possibly expanded to other audiences. In the spring of 2000, the AIEA Executive Committee decided that starting with the 2000-01 academic year there would be an effort to organize two "Ghost Ranch" dialogue seminars per year, in order to involve greater numbers of AIEA members and non-members in that valuable experience.

Since then, these Dialogue Seminars have continued to be of interest to AIEA and its members. In 2005, AIEA and EAIE co-sponsored a joint "Transatlantic Dialogue" seminar in Krakow in conjunction wih the EAIE conference. In 2006, AIEA and EAIE again co-sponsored a joint "Transatlantic Dialogue" seminar in Basel. In addition, AIEA and AMPEI co-sponsored its first "Dialogue of the Americas" in 2006 in Cuernavaca in conjunction with the AMPEI conference. In 2006-07, AIEA developed a new strategic plan and constitution. With the new constitution, the CAPS committee changed to the Professional Development Committee and the new strategic plan calls for a key focus on professional development of AIEA members. The dialogue seminars will continue to be one mechanism of professional development, along with other programs under development.