2023 J. Christopher Stevens Virtual Exchange Initiative

Austin, Texas, April 25, 2023 – Today, the Stevens Initiative announced that the Texas International Education Consortium (TIEC) is one of 15 schools, higher education institutions, and nonprofit organizations to receive funding to create virtual exchange programs that connect young people in the United States and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. TIEC’s Business & Entrepreneurship Virtual Exchange connects faculty from universities in Iraq and Texas, U.S., through virtual exchange, preparing them to implement project-based virtual exchanges on a variety of business and entrepreneurship topics in their courses that will develop key academic skills and cultural competencies.

Business & Entrepreneurship Virtual Exchange is implemented by TIEC and is supported by the J. Christopher Stevens Virtual Exchange Initiative (JCSVEI). JCSVEI is a U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs program administered by the Aspen Institute.

Virtual exchange connects young people from diverse places using everyday technology for collaborative learning and interaction through sustained and facilitated engagement. Through virtual exchange programs, young people have access to life-changing opportunities that can shape their trajectories, bring new friends into their lives, and expand their worldviews. Virtual exchange is a vital learning tool with the capacity to connect people around the world on an unprecedented scale without a need for travel.

“At a time when education remains in flux in a post-pandemic world, complex global issues are front of mind, and young people excitedly return to in-person gatherings, virtual exchange continues to be an important learning tool. By fostering unique online spaces for young people to come together over shared challenges and triumphs, virtual exchange moves us toward a more connected and inclusive world. These new grantees play a critical role in making this possible, and participants of this program will undoubtedly approach the future with the belief they can impact their communities and the world around them,” said Christine Shiau, Executive Director of the Stevens Initiative.

TIEC’s Business & Entrepreneurship Virtual Exchange prepares business and entrepreneurship faculty members from universities in Iraq and Texas, U.S., to design and implement virtual exchanges in their own courses. Faculty members explore resources and strategies to incorporate cross-cultural communication, cultural and global competencies, and language-learning goals into their own virtual exchange programs. After participating in a virtual exchange firsthand, faculty facilitate thoughtful project-based exchanges in their own courses on a variety of business and entrepreneurship topics. Their students will develop professional skills, global digital literacy, cultural appreciation and understanding, and intercultural collaboration and communication.

“At TIEC, we believe education plays a vital role in building bridges and fostering mutual understanding between cultures. The Business & Entrepreneurship Virtual Exchange Program is a significant step towards achieving this goal by connecting faculty members from universities in Iraq and Texas and empowering them to incorporate cross-cultural communication, global digital literacy, and language-learning goals into their courses. Through our program, we seek to create robust people-to-people connections that benefit both Texas and Iraq.” – Robin J. Lerner, TIEC President and CEO.

The 2023 grantees will reach 20,000 young people across the United States and MENA region. Other grants include:

• Amideast’s Qisasna facilitates cross-cultural exchange between young people in the United States and Yemen by providing them with the skills they need to produce podcasts on shared challenges and opportunities between youth.
• An-Najah National University’s Climate Futures Exchange is a classroom-based exchange that engages students from An-Najah National University and Arizona State University to discuss a range of climate change issues and strategies to address them when designing and implementing new buildings.
• Arizona State University’s Future Educators for Inclusion engages college students from Morocco and the United States through mutual discovery, shared learning, and local action to address the global challenge of disability inclusion as they prepare to become classroom teachers.
• Culturingua’s Alliance of Young World Actionists engages young American and Libyan leaders focused on local and global public health challenges and their causes.
• Global Ties KC’s FIRST Robotics Virtual Exchange connects participants from Libya, Morocco, and the U.S. through cultural exchange and technical sessions related to STEM and robotics.
• iEARN-USA’s Storytelling for Social Change builds global leaders by engaging Algerian, Tunisian, and American youth in global collaboration to tell stories about real world issues in their local communities.
• Institute of International Education’s Harnessing Innovation through Virtual Exchange for Enhanced Results develops intercultural communication, problem-solving, and leadership skills among a diverse group of students at participating universities in the United States and Middle East and North Africa.
• IREX’s Global Solutions places college students from the United States with peers in Iraq or Jordan in binational teams to collaborate on innovative solutions related to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals through virtual exchange.
• Missouri State University’s Global Teacher Education Exchange brings new and future K-12 educators from Libya, Morocco, and the United States into a vibrant professional learning community where they engage in cross-cultural collaboration and prepare to teach for global understanding.
• PATHWAYS Institute for Negotiation Education’s Game Changers: Creative Negotiation Skills builds confidence and skills for creative negotiation, problem-solving, and leadership among university students coming together from Israel and the United States.
• Plugged In Band Program’s Peace Tracks is a cross-cultural, music-focused online youth exchange that provides high school students with an unforgettable opportunity to connect with peers in other countries to get to know them, learn about their cultures, and collaborate over the course of a semester on an original song.
• Smithsonian Science Education Center’s Smithsonian Youth STEM Exchange brings together young people in Iraq and Michigan, United States, to discover, understand, and find solutions to sustainability issues in their local and global communities.
• Soliya’s Connect Program brings together college-aged youth in the United States and in the Middle East and North Africa for online, face-to-face dialogues in the presence of facilitators trained in dialogue and conflict resolution.
• Soliya’s Global Circles are short online dialogue opportunities, bringing together young people from the United States and from the Middle East and North Africa for a face-to-face exchange around compelling global issues that matter to youth today.
• World Learning’s The Experiment Digital Leadership in STEM equips high school-aged youth to leverage their interests and skills in STEM to achieve personal and professional goals while giving back to their community.

The Stevens Initiative is an international leader in virtual exchange, which brings young people from diverse places together to collaborate and connect through everyday technology. Created in 2015 as a lasting tribute to Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens, the Initiative invests in virtual exchange programs; shares research, resources, and promising practices to improve impact; and advocates for broader adoption.

TIEC is a Texas-based consortium of 40 public and private universities from Texas, Africa, and the Middle East with an ethos to advance international partnerships, collaboration, and exchanges. TIEC facilitates and fosters international education programs and partnerships by, with, and for its university members. Since its founding in 1985, TIEC has provided educational assistance and consulting services for governments and institutions in more than 40 countries and across five continents. TIEC is a recognized expert with extensive experience working with governments and institutions of education to improve course and degree program quality and responsiveness, and to foster equity and inclusion.

More Information

The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) builds relations between the people of the United States and the people of other countries through academic, cultural, sports, professional and private exchanges, as well as public-private partnerships and mentoring programs. These exchange programs improve foreign relations and strengthen the national security of the United States, support U.S. international leadership, and provide a broad range of domestic benefits by helping break down barriers that often divide us. Visit eca.state.gov.

The Aspen Institute is a global nonprofit organization committed to realizing a free, just, and equitable society. Founded in 1949, the Institute drives change through dialogue, leadership, and action to help solve the most important challenges facing the United States and the world. Headquartered in Washington, DC, the Institute has a campus in Aspen, Colorado, and an international network of partners. For more information, visit www.aspeninstitute.org.

Primary TIEC Contact: Steven Kroman