Call for Participation from International Students in U.S. and Canadian Planning Schools
Dear International Students in U.S. and Canadian Planning Schools,
International students who will attend the 2022 ACSP Conference are invited to participate in a half-day, in-person workshop “International Students Flourishing in Planning Education in the U.S. and Canada” on Wednesday, November 2, 2022, 2-5:30 pm at the ACSP Conference in Toronto, Ontario.
This workshop will be co-hosted by the ACSP Global Planning Education Committee (GPEC) and the Global Planning Educators Interest Group (GPEIG). Through a survey and focus group discussion conducted in fall 2021, GPEC found powerful evidence that international students in U.S. and Canadian planning programs often feel vulnerable and marginalized. The findings by GPEC led to a recent JPER article and the development of this workshop to improve global planning education by centering the experience of international students in U.S. and Canadian schools.
This workshop will help participants build self-advocacy and leadership skills, establish a peer network, and advocate for transformative change by expanding efforts to better serve international students, a strategic priority set out by the current ACSP President Laxmi Ramasubramanian.
Both PhD- and Masters-level students in urban planning and closely related disciplines are encouraged to apply for this free workshop by filling out a short application form by Friday, August 19, 2022. The workshop will be limited to 40 students and priority will be given to students who register early. Students will be informed of acceptance no later than August 31, 2022. Please note that, while this workshop is free to registrants to participate, you will need to pay for your own travel to and accommodations in Toronto.
Key workshop themes will include:
Understanding and advocating for the academic and career needs of international students,
Adjusting to the US/Canada classroom,
Seeking mentors and becoming mentors,
Engaging with Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives,
Participating in student and professional organizations, and
Thriving outside the academy.
This highly interactive workshop will feature a combination of keynote presentations, panel discussions, and interactive breakout sessions. Speakers and discussants will include faculty members and school administrators who were themselves international students once and who currently work with international students.
The workshop will be further complemented by the “Food & Faculty Happy Hour Social”, co-hosted by GPEIG and GPEC for international PhD students and faculty conducting international research, which will occur right after the workshop.
GPEC envisions this inaugural leadership development workshop for international students to acknowledge, integrate, and nurture the creativity and agency of international students in US and Canadian urban planning programs. It is expected that this workshop will become a recurring event in future annual ACSP conferences, delivered by GPEC members with support from GPEIG as well as international student volunteers. If you’re interested in becoming a volunteer for the planning and implementation of this inaugural workshop, please freely contact any of the GPEC members below.
Sincerely,
GPEC Committee Members
[Co-Chair] Yingling Fan, University of Minnesota, yingling@umn.edu
[Co-Chair] Lesli Hoey, University of Michigan, lhoey@umich.edu
Ashok Das, University of Hawaii, ashokdas@hawaii.edu
Clara Irazábal, University of Maryland, College Park, irazabal@umd.edu
Gavin Shatkin, Northeastern University, g.shatkin@neu.edu
Bruce Stiftel, Georgia Institute of Technology, bruce.stiftel@coa.gatech.edu
Yiping Fang, Portland State University, yfang@pdx.edu
Andrew Rumbach, Texas A & M University, rumbach@tamu.edu
[GPEAN rep] Deden Rukmana, Alabama A&M University, deden.rukmana@aamu.edu
Local host workshop planning faculty members
Nidhi Subramanyam, University of Toronto, nidhi.subramanyam@utoronto.ca
Zhixi Zhuang, Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University), zczhuang@ryerson.ca