A new program from the Global and International Engagement office gives faculty at the IU School of Education a chance to be study-abroad mentors.

The project is called COOL Mentors after the four stages faculty go through as part of it: course development (incorporating short-term study abroad components into their course curricula), overseas travel (traveling overseas as a means to refine the components), overseas leadership (leading students’ travel overseas through the courses they developed), and mentorship (serving as a cadre of mentors to minority students interested in overseas educational experiences through the Global Gateway for Teachers program, as well as to their faculty peers).

According to Faridah Pawan, faculty fellow and professor, though IU provides assistance to minority students to mitigate the cost of participation in studying abroad, their under-enrollment in these programs nevertheless persists.

“Our effort is based on the theory that if we develop a cadre of internationally-engaged staff and faculty who can mentor students and lead study abroad experiences, then we can expect to see a larger number of minority students participate in international travel activities,” Pawan said. “In particular, this mentorship program will lead to the enrichment of mentors’ international competencies and thus that of their students as well, increase in the number of courses with international content taught by minority instructors, and increase in the number of roles models that minority students can go to for mentorship and advice in international engagement.”