The Washington State Coalition for International Education was formed in spring, 2003, as an affiliation of individuals and organizations committed to preparing all students for today's interconnected world. The Coalition was initiated by the State Team that attended the States Institute on International Education in the Schools, organized by the National Coalition for International Education.

In summer, 2003, we formed a Steering Committee to help guide the work of the State Coalition. To learn more about the activities of the Coalition, review the Meetings and Projects pages. The Coalition has sponsored four state-wide summits on International Education:

• On September 19, 2003, the Coalition held its first P-20 International Education Summit: Teaching and Learning in a Global Community. (See 2003 Summit Report (PDF).)
• We held our second Summit: Building Global Relationships in Olympia on October 27, 2004. (See 2004 Summit Report (PDF).)
• On January 30, 2006, we held our third International Education Leadership Summit: Expanding Chinese Language Capacity in Washington State. (See 2006 Summit Report (PDF).)
• On November 6, 2008, the Coalition cosponsored the first World Languages Summit: PK-20 Pathways to Language Learning. For copies of presentations and handouts, see: http://depts.washington.edu/mellwa/Events.php.
• On August 11, 2010, the Coalition is cosponsoring the Global Competence Institute in Vancouver, WA. See Summit.

At its first Focus Group, the Coalition explored the question of What is International Education? This has led us to formulate the following Strategic Intent Statement:

Strategic Intent Statement

Education for a world of opportunity.

Vision: Washington State: A place where everyone recognizes and values the spectrum of life in our world, and encounters the richness of its cultural diversity, human experience, and physical resources.

Mission: We inspire students, educators, and community members to broaden their educational outlooks, experiences and practices in order to more fully appreciate the world and its peoples.

Goals:

1. The integration of international perspectives into the P-20 curricula.
2. The expansion of world language education, with an emphasis on early childhood education and improving second language proficiency outcomes.
3. The encouragement of all forms of international exchanges.

* Note: The development of cross-cultural skills and competence is an expectation that is subsumed within all three goals.