Washington State Coalition for International Education
May 15, 2003 3:00-5:00 pm
Seattle Central Community College Board Room
Summary
Coalition members discussed, at length, a draft document, Coalition Strategic Intent Statement, prepared by David Woodward. It was agreed that the Statement would serve the Coalition’s purposes well as it moved forward in its mission to advocate and seek policy changes with regard to prioritizing international education in Washington.
It was also agreed that the Statement would be a “living” document that would change as needed, and that “word-smithing” would be a natural process as the Coalition grew. But for the time being it was a good beginning, and could be put to use immediately as a tool to help define the mission and goals of the Coalition.
The only changes which Coalition members made were to streamline the goals. What follows is the Strategic Intent Statement as amended:
Strategic Intent Statement for the
Washington State Coalition for International Education
Definition: International Education means learning the knowledge and skills needed to understand and to function productively in today’s interconnected world.
Vision (Primary Long-Term Outcome): 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.
Tag Line: Education for a world of opportunity.
Goals:
- The integration of international perspectives into the P-20 curricula.
- The expansion of world language education, with an emphasis on early childhood education and improving second language proficiency outcomes.
- 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.
Initial plans were discussed to invite legislators to a series of Town Meetings to discuss their views of international education with parents, educators, and community members as a means of raising the issue, and focusing discussion and support for Coalition goals.
Considerable enthusiasm was voiced for the idea that during the January 22nd meeting, which falls on Chinese New Year, the Coalition would hold a special event, inviting members of the Washington State International Education Advisory Board to attend. The Advisory Board is composed of a broad spectrum of individuals representing political, business, community, trade and other influential interests throughout the state. It will provide advice and support on a wide range of future activities that the Coalition pursues.
Michele Anciaux Aoki provided an update on the P-20 International Ed Summit. The target audience for the event to be held at the University of Washington on September 18th is 300 participants. Updates on the Summit can be found on the International Education website (see Summit). She also reported that the International Education proposal for the OSPI Summer Institute had not been accepted.
Future Meetings
It was agreed that the Coalition would meet quarterly, from 3-5 p.m. The following meeting dates have been set:
- September 4, 2003
- January 22, 2004
- April 1, 2004
- June 10, 2004