KALAMAZOO, Mich.— Higher education and student affairs faculty members Drs. Eric Archer and Ramona Lewis were recently selected to participate in The Forum on Education Abroad’s inaugural Global Learning Launchpad (GLL) cohort. A total of nine faculty members from across the U.S. were selected to participate in the GLL program through a competitive application process. Western Michigan University is the only institution to have more than one faculty member participating in the program.
The GLL is a new program developed by The Forum on Education Abroad, which targets enhancing the quality of teaching and learning in faculty-led, short-term study abroad programs and to nurture faculty in their growth as educators, professionals, and scholarly practitioners.
GLL participants will meet over the Spring 2023 semester, providing a space for educators to bring their full selves, to inquire into their educational practices in a community setting, and to stretch themselves to improve aspects of the current and future study abroad programs they lead.
About Dr. archer
Drs. Ramona Lewis and Eric Archer
Dr. Eric Archer is an associate professor of higher education leadership in the Department of Educational Leadership, Research, and Technology in the College of Education and Human Development (CEHD) at WMU. He earned his Ph.D. in education leadership and policy studies from Oklahoma State University. Prior to joining WMU, Dr. Archer was a faculty member at Northern Illinois University and Valdosta State University.
His research interests include issues of diversity and inclusion in postsecondary education with an emphasis on international education and the internationalization of higher education both in the U.S. and abroad.
About dr. Lewis
Dr. Ramona Lewis is a master faculty specialist in the Department of Educational Leadership, Research and Technology in the CEHD at WMU. She earned her Ed.D. in educational leadership from Eastern Michigan University. Prior to joining WMU, Dr. Lewis served at Bowling Green State University, Georgia Tech, University of Michigan, and Eastern Michigan University in a variety of administrative student and academic affairs positions.
Dr. Lewis’ research interests focus on college environments, graduate student services, intercultural development of graduate students, pedagogy in graduate education, and adult learning with a special emphasis on the 50-plus learner, and university-linked retirement communities.
For more information about the Global Learning Launchpad, please visit The Forum on Education Abroad.