1. IAPCHE’S 2nd Biennial Conference on
INTERNATIONALIZING
CHRISTIAN HIGHER EDUCATION
June 4-6, 2015
Calvin College
Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA
International Association for the Promotion of Christian Higher Education
IAPCHE is an organization of individuals and institutions dedicated to serving Jesus Christ as Lord through the promotion
of integral Christian higher education worldwide.
Map shows home countries of those in attendance
2. 2
LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR
Friends and Colleagues,
As we gather for a second time to pursue questions of what it means to carry out the work of internationalizing
Christian Higher Education it is so pleasant to see community emerging around the topic. In 2013 when we held
our first meeting we drew quite a diverse and engaged group of participants that helped us realize the relevance of
this topic. We explored important questions and learned about different programs taking place at our various cam-
puses. This year we continue with the same process, deepening our understanding of some of the issues we barely
touched on in 2013 while exploring new topics that emerged as important for the work of internationalizing Chris-
tian higher education. We even have more participation from students who, as you know, are important pillars for
all the work that we do.
As we welcome ninety-seven participants representing fourteen different countries from six continents I hope you
get the sense that while this was planned as a North American regional conference, our experiences, opportunities,
and challenges in this work are very similar. Our world is increasingly interconnected and we will be better served I
our work by learning from each other and collaborating with each than trying to go it alone. As Christians we know
all too well that our identity carries across geographic and sociocultural borders and it is my hope that our time
together will be a testament to that reality.
As I look back at the impetus that led to this conference I am grateful that many colleagues have seen the value of
coming together to share questions, insights, and even experiences (both positive and negative) that help deepen
our calling to serve our students and colleagues in an internationalized higher education. But to do all this we have
had a lot help. I want to particularly call attention to the great work carried out by Laura Van Engen in planning and
executing the bulk of this conference. If you have a chance to do so please take a moment to thank her for the
great work she has done to make this conference a success.
May you find the sessions stimulating, the conversations affirming, the networking reassuring, and the hospitality
refreshing.
In Christ
Mwenda Ntarangwi
Executive Director of IAPCHE
_______
IAPCHE holds similar conferences around the world and supports and organizes faculty development programs through its
regional offices and members around the world. Please consider joining us in this worldwide movement of networking and
supporting Christian higher education by becoming an IAPCHE member. Learn more and sign up easily on www.iapche.org.
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CONFERENCE SCHEDULE
THURSDAY, JUNE 4
12:00—5:00pm Registration Check-In Lobby
3:00—4:30pm Breakout Session 1: Workshops Willow East & West
4:35—5:30PM Optional Calvin College Campus Tour Meet near PCC entrance
6:00—9:00pm Dinner Great Hall East
Keynote Address: Getting Ahead of the Curve: Internationalizing
Christian Higher Education in an Era of Disruption by
Dr. L. Gregory Jones
Question and Answer
FRIDAY, JUNE 5
8:00am—5:00pm Book Table Friday only Fireside Room
8:05—8:25am Worship Great Hall East
8:30—10:00am Breakout Session 2 Various Locations
10:00—10:20am Break Fireside Room
10:30—12:00pm Breakout Session 3 Various Locations
12:15—1:15pm Lunch Great Hall East
1:30—3:00pm Breakout Session 4 Various Locations
1:30—5:00pm Poster Sessions White Pine
3:00—3:20pm Break Fireside Room
3:30—5:00pm Breakout Session 5 Various Locations
6:00—8:30pm Dinner Great Hall East
SATURDAY, JUNE 6
8:05—8:25am Worship Great Hall East
8:30—10:00am Breakout Session 6 Various Locations
10:00—10:20am Break Fireside Room
10:30—12:00pm Breakout Session 7 Various Locations
12:15—2:00pm Lunch Great Hall East
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INTERNATIONALIZING CHRISTIAN HIGHER EDUCATION
THURSDAY, JUNE 4
REGISTRATION CHECK-IN
12:00—5:00pm Prince Conference Center Lobby
BREAKOUT SESSION 1: WORKSHOPS
3:00-4:30pm
Workshop 1A: Willow East
Aligning Global and Christian Outcomes with Institutional Missions and Strategic Plans
Brett Everhart, Lock Haven University, Lock Haven, Pennsylvania, USA
This hands-on session is intended to provide specific strategies for showcasing annual strategic planning performances of institu-
tions aligned with student learning outcomes related mission goals such as global engagement and Christian service. With the
high number of like-minded institutions with Christian emphases, it is important today that colleges and universities be able to
show external constituents (accrediting bodies, boards, parents, potential future students, etc) how graduates stand out as com-
petent and prepared to enter the workforce and society with knowledge, skills, tools, dispositions and experiences employers and
spiritual leaders in communities want to see. By organizing the strategic planning and annual documentation of ongoing annual
assessment/reporting of student learning aligned with different institutional goals, participants will take back a plan of action for
their institutions to display institutional effectiveness and student learning. This workshop session will walk participants through
this process so that participants will work together to design a plan on paper and show its alignment of global and spiritual en-
gagement, along with annual student learning and other institutional outcomes.
Workshop 1B: Willow West
Using the CQ Assessment™ to Measure the Development of Cultural Intelligence (CQ) among Students Studying
Abroad
Sandra Upton, Cultural Intelligence Center, Holt, Michigan, USA
With research showing that studying abroad, when done well, can significantly develop a student’s cultural intelligence (CQ), what
are some of the ways of assessing and improving its effectiveness for culturally diverse situations? This session will introduce par-
ticipants to the CQ Assessment™, the only academically validated assessment that measures cultural intelligence and allows insti-
tutions to measure the impact of study abroad and international programs upon enhancing student’s CQ. Participants will look at
some best practices and case studies of schools whose student’s have shown improved CQ measures as a result of their study
abroad experience.
OPTIONAL CALVIN COLLEGE CAMPUS TOUR
4:35-5:30pm Meet at PCC Entrance
DINNER AND KEYNOTE ADDRESS
6:00—9:00pm Great Hall East
Keynote Address: Getting Ahead of the Curve: Internationalizing Christian Higher Education in an Era of Disruption by Dr. L.
Gregory Jones, Vice President and Vice Provost for Global Strategy and Programs, Duke University; Professor of Theology,
Duke Divinity School
FRIDAY, JUNE 5
BOOK TABLE
8:00am—5:00pm Friday only Fireside Room
WORSHIP: Led by Greg Scheer,Calvin College
8:05—8:25am Great Hall East
5. 5
BREAKOUT SESSION 2
8:30—10:00am
Session 2A Willow East
Bringing the Second Great Commandment to Life in Off-Campus Programs: How Service-Learning Experiences Teach
Students to Love
Jeffrey Bouman, Roland Hoksbergen, Ellie Hutchison, Meghan Bogema, and Becky Van Zanen - Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Michi-
gan, USA; via Skype: Dana Bates - New Horizons Foundation, Lupeni, Romania
Chaired by Roland Hoksbergen
The second great commandment, loving our neighbors as we love ourselves, is central to an authentic life of faith. But how do we
love our neighbors, especially our neighbors around the globe, and how do Christian universities help students grow in both their
commitment to this great commandment and in their ability to live it out in practice? Many Christian universities answer this
question in part by sending students to developing countries where they engage in many types of learning activities, one of which
is learning through service. This panel session is made up of three faculty members who have led off-campus semester programs
that include Service-Learning as a main part of the semester curriculum. The professors will explain the vital role such experiences
play in the formation of global Christian citizens who are in the process of learning how to love others around the world. The panel
will also include three students who participated on these programs, one in Hungary, one in Romania, and one in Ghana. They will
share what their experiences were like, what they learned from them, and what role their experiences played in their overall learn-
ing.
Session 2B Willow West
Equipping Trainers in a Challenging Context
Richard Edlin, Edserv International, NSW, Australia—The Enduring Impact of Secularism on Global Christian Higher Education
Maria Lai-Ling Lam, Point Loma Nazarene University, San Diego, California, USA—Better Moral Ecology in a Digitized Global Market
Economy through Empathetic Practices
Chaired by Richard Edlin
Scholars agree that we are living in a dynamic and constantly changing world of higher education. Internationalizing Christian high-
er education is not immune to these changes and one of the major challenges to its work has been a specific secular and material-
ist worldview that competes with a Christian worldview. How do we prepare teachers and students to teach for global compe-
tence in a world that is increasingly becoming secularized? What are these competing worldviews and how do we detect and re-
spond to them in ways that allow Christian sensibilities to inform our work? How is the market economy that has guided much of
political and economic culture around the world shaping Christian higher education globally? These are some of the issues raised
and addressed in this panel.
Session 2C Maple
Agency and Virtues in Study Abroad
Matt Bonzo, Cornerstone University, Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA—The Risk of Giving and Receiving: When Virtues become Vices
Robert Osburn, Wilberforce Academy, St. Paul, Minnesota, USA—Training International Students to be Agents of Change in their
Nations
David de Muijnck, Leiden University, Leiden, Netherlands—International Learning Environments: a Student’s Perspective
Chaired by Matt Bonzo
There are numerous accounts of the value of studying abroad as a way of not only increasing one’s view of the world but also of
instilling some valuable skills necessary for success in the world after graduation. But what do those qualities look like and how do
we successfully prepare students and other participants for these kinds of outcomes? Are there dangers of overstepping these
goals and actually harming our host cultures in the process of training our students? Are there specific ways of instilling specific
practices in our teachers who work with these students? What do students bring into the study? This panel will provide possible
responses to these and other related questions.
BREAK Fireside Room
10:00-10:20am
BREAKOUT SESSION 3
10:30am-12:00pm
Session 3A Willow East
Skill Development
Sandra Upton, Cultural Intelligence Center, Holt, Michigan, USA—Best Practices in Measuring the Impact of Study Abroad on Devel-
oping the Cultural Intelligence (CQ) of Students
6. 6
Brett Everhart, Lock Haven University, Lock Haven, Pennsylvania, USA—Meeting Regional Accreditation Requirements by Showing
Evidence of Annual Strategic Plan Performance Aligned with Student Curricular and Co-Curricular Learning Outcomes
Eloise Hockett, George Fox University, Newberg, Oregon, USA—Using the Lens of Cultural Humility to Examine the Teaching and
Learning Experiences in Kenya of Graduate Students
Chaired by Sandra Upton
This panel will be an opportunity for participants to get a practical view of some of the specific tools which are available in the
realm of higher education that enhance the effectiveness of training and assessing specific outcomes being cultivated by interna-
tionalization. These tools include: measuring Cultural Intelligence (CQ), aligning strategic plans with learning outcomes, and exam-
ining teaching and learning through the lens of Cultural Humility.
Session 3B Willow West
Faculty Abroad: The Lifetime Impact.” A Case Study from Russia
John Bernbaum, Russian-American Institute, Moscow, Russia
James Coe, Spring Arbor University & Teach the Word, Jackson, Michigan, USA
Kurt Schaefer, Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA
Ron Webb, Pennsylvania State University, Middletown, Pennsylvania, USA
Chaired by John Bernbaum
Using experiences from 1991-1993 in Russia, when Christian business professors agreed to work with Russian faculty on develop-
ing a values-based MBA curriculum, the panel will discuss how this experience influenced their careers and gave them a passion
for partnering with educators around the world.
Session 3C Maple
Conceptualizing the Internationalization of Christian Higher Education
Ivan Chung, Biola University, Long Beach, California, USA —International Education, Internationalisation, and the Christian: Defini-
tions, Concepts, and Framework for Understanding
Victoria Knierim, Samford University, Birmingham, Alabama, USA—Turning Big Ideas into Best Practices through Communication
and Collaboration
Ben S. Malayang III, Silliman University, Dumaguete City, Philippines—Christian Education: A Global Imperative
Chaired by Ivan Chung
What does internationalization of Christian higher education mean in different contexts for different people? Need we have a sin-
gle definition in order for us to operate successfully in this terrain? How can we successfully combine the concepts of education,
globalization, and Christianity in order to better serve our desired ends in internationalizing Christian higher education? This panel
draws on the expertise of three different presenters who are in turn bringing in experiences from different geographic and even
theological backgrounds in response to these fundamental questions.
LUNCH sponsored by the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities Great Hall East
12:15-1:15pm
BREAKOUT SESSION 4
1:30-3:00pm
Session 4A Willow East
Importance of Thick Liturgies in Developing Intercultural Competence
Mark Bartels, Uganda Christian University, Uganda Christian University Partners, Sewickley, Pennsylvania, USA
Rachel Robinson, Council for Christian Colleges & Universities (CCCU), Washington, D.C., USA
Deb Kim, Wheaton College, Wheaton, Illinois, USA
Chaired by Mark Bartels
While appreciating the potential value of intercultural competence, this panel does not assume that such value is self-evident. We
hope to talk together about a Christian appropriation of intercultural competence that takes into account not just its obvious as-
pects—such as language— but explores the deeper aspects that take into account the entire context in which intercultural compe-
tence is practiced. Drawing on James K. A. Smith’s language, we want to discuss intercultural competence through the lens of thick
and thin liturgies. We hope the distinction between thick and thin liturgies will help us to better understand and differentiate be-
tween a deep intercultural competence that embodies and orients us toward a Christian living out of the Gospel and a shallow
intercultural competence that reinforces orientations that are incompatible with a Christian living out of the Gospel.
Session 4B Willow West
Embracing our Neighbors: Learning from Others in International Contexts
Bram de Muynck, Driestar Christian University, Gouda, Netherlands—Mapping Christian Education worldwide
7. 7
Melanie Humphreys, The King’s University, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada—Building capacity for mission together
Debra Paxton-Buursma, Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA—Truth & Reconciliation: Exploratory Arts-based Inquiry for
Global-Local Learning
Chaired by Bram de Muynck
Spending time in a different academic culture or institution or interacting with students from other countries or different educa-
tional backgrounds provides one an important lens through which to view one’s own academic experiences and assumptions. In
this panel we have a number of presenters who are going to share their own experiences of working in and with different educa-
tional contexts and partners.
Session 4C Maple
Higher Education and Making Disciples
Bob Osburn, Wilberforce Academy, Roseville, Minnesota, USA
Jooyoung Voeller, CaCHE Global, San Antonio, Texas, USA
Amanda Sanchez, CaCHE Global, Marietta, Georgia, USA
Chaired by Bob Osburn
CaCHE is a wholistic and accessible model for not only providing tertiary education to the next generation, but making disciples of
the nations through a discipleship-driven higher education experience facilitated by the local church. This session will cover the
why behind the CaCHE model (theoretical and theological rationales guiding CaCHE’s vision), the what (examples of how the CaCHE
model looks in practice and lessons learned from the initial CaCHE experience in Kenya), and the how (curriculum and professional
development strategies that CaCHE utilizes to help our local partners be successful). The panel will conclude with ample time for
audience feedback and questions, as well as an invitation to collaborate with CaCHE on various areas of opportunity.
POSTER SESSIONS White Pine
1:30-5:00pm (You are welcome to participate at any time within this period)
Competency-Based Education: Curriculum and Assessment for Equipping Kingdom Workers Locally and
Internationally
Kai Ton Chau, Kuyper College, Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA
Developing Educational Materials by Professors of Health Related Majors
Jiwon Kim, Baekseok University, Cheonansi, Chungnam, South Korea
Enhancing Study Abroad Experiences
Diana Gonzalez, Northwestern College, Orange City, Iowa, USA
Faith and Learning and Administration Seminar in Baekseok University
John B. Kim, Baekseok University, Cheonansi, Chungnam, South Korea
BREAK Fireside Room
3:00-3:20pm
BREAKOUT SESSION 5
3:30-5:00pm
Session 5A Willow East
Models of Delivery and Partnerships in Higher Education
Doug Blomberg, Institute for Christian Studies, Toronto, Ontario, Canada—Globally Accessible Christian Graduate Education
Ron Hannaford, Biola University, La Mirada, California, USA—“Spiritual Formation for a Diversified Global Student Body is Possible
in Online Programs.”
Lydia Bor & Rens Rottier, Driestar Christian University, Gouda, Netherlands—Higher Education and NGO Collaboration
Chaired by Doug Blomberg
What are the different possible partners that higher education could pursue to have successful partnerships? Are MOOCs (Massive
Online Open Courses) a threat or a partner to traditional education offerings? Are non-profit organizations interested in services to
the underserved a good partner for a Christian university? What is the balance between two otherwise different entities and how
would their collaboration enhance higher education generally and internationalization in particular? Presentations in this panel will
address many of these questions .
Session 5B Willow West
Christian Higher Education Management, International Services, and Conceptual Challenges
8. 8
Neil Carlson, Center for Social Research, Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA—Should Christian Universities be Run Like
Corporations? The Answer May Surprise You
Shirley J. Roels, Network for Vocation in Undergraduate Education (NetVUE), Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA—Gender equity in faith-
based higher education: advancing the cause while forgiving the failures
Cynthia Toms-Smedley, Westmont College, Santa Barbara, California, USA—Global Service-Learning, Community Development,
and Christian Higher Education: Contributions and Questions
Chaired by Shirley Roels
There are a number of concepts and practices in higher education that are often overlooked as we seek better ways of serving stu-
dents and communities that we work with. In some areas of higher education issues of equal access to programs are still a chal-
lenge for some members of our communities based on gender and socioeconomic factors. In other areas Christians see a danger in
the corporate nature of higher education management that they see emulating the secular world. In yet other areas faculty and
staff members alike often enthusiastically favor service-learning that students undertake abroad while others are a bit more cau-
tious. All these issues are important as we try to prepare students and colleagues for opportunities to not only live out their faith
through their work but to also engage with some tough issues related to such faith in the arena of an increasingly internationaliz-
ing Christian higher education.
Session 5C Maple
The Challenges of Christian Higher Education in Africa
John Bonnell, Michigan State University, Lansing, Michigan, USA—Adapting to a Changing Landscapes in Kenyan Higher Education:
A Qualitative Analysis of Three Christian Universities
Paul M. Mpindi, Mission French Africa Ministries, Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA—Worldview Conflicts for Returning African Biblical
and Theological Scholars
Chaired by Claudia Beverlsuis, Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA
As demand for higher education grows in many parts of the world and in Africa specifically, many Christians are ceasing the oppor-
tunity to start universities to serve many of their constituents. How well are these Christian institutions able to remain true to their
mission? What kind of role are teachers and administrators playing in shaping the worldviews of their students? What role do the
external bodies that regulate higher education in their respective countries play in shaping how these institutions function?
DINNER Great Hall East
6:00-8:30pm
SATURDAY, JUNE 6
BREAKOUT SESSION 6
8:30-10:00am
Session 6A Willow East
Discipline Specific International Education: How John Brown University Promotes Deep Learning
Randall Waldron, Ted Song, & David Vila, John Brown University, Siloam Springs, Arkansas, USA
Chaired by David Vila
In this panel, our three presenters will focus on the successes and failures of deep learning opportunities in an international con-
text that are provided through their respective disciplines. They will each explore how students in each of their respective disci-
plines are impacted through opportunities provided for international education at John Brown University.
Session 6B Willow West
Holistic Christian Education: Transforming Teaching, Learning, and Living in Indonesia
Frency Frans, Livy Fusta, Isabella Napitupulu, and Debra Paxton-Buursma, Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA
Chaired by Debra Paxton-Buursma
What is the role of Christian Education in developing Indonesian society within a predominantly Muslim context? How is this con-
text shaped by the complexity of diverse indigenous and expatriate communities within K-12 schools and higher education? This
panel will discuss and explore the opportunities and challenges related to initial and continued professional development of Chris-
tian teachers. In particular, we will focus on what we are discovering and asking with respect to the deep work of integrating Chris-
tian faith authentically within holistic school structures and pedagogical practices.
Session 6C Maple
Caring for Non-Christian International Students at a Christian University
Kelly Liebengood, Alan Clipperton, Rebecca Haesecke, & Jegatheeswar Muthu Pandi, LeTourneau University, Longview, Texas, USA
Chaired by Kelly Liebengood
9. 9
In 2011, LeTourneau University began executing a strategic initiative to recruit international students to its residential campus in
Longview, Texas, rising to 9% of our student population. This panel session will discuss the rationale for recruiting non-Christian
international students to an intentionally Christian campus, and share the variety of institutional challenges that we have en-
countered in caring for this particular segment of our student body. Additionally, we will highlight recent research done by the
LeTourneau University Office of Global Initiatives regarding the acculturation strategies and underlying attitudes of non-
Christians who have studied at LeTourneau University in the past three years.
BREAK Fireside Room
10:00-10:20am
BREAKOUT SESSION 7
10:30am-12:00pm
Session 7A Willow East
Integrating Faith, Learning, and Praxis in an International Experiential Field Program
Human Needs and Global Resources (HNGR) Program, Wheaton College, Wheaton, Illinois, USA
James Huff, Assistant Professor, HNGR Program—Practicing lament in a survey course: On the limits and potentials of
thick liturgies
Ryan Juskus, Assistant Director, HNGR Program—Learning Experience: How Praxis Grounds Faith & Learning
Laura Meitzner Yoder, Director, HNGR Program—Just Research: How Field Research on Topics of Local Importance Promotes
Justice
Chaired by Charles Hale, Saint Leo University, St. Leo, Florida, USA
This panel discusses the interaction among three components of the Wheaton College Program in Human Needs and Global Re-
sources. Founded in 1976, this program equips students to accompany the global church toward shalom through engaging issues
of poverty, suffering, justice, peace, and hope in Latin America, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. It works with a cohort of stu-
dents in a series of preparatory classes, culminating in an individual six-month internship and research placement with a local
Christian organization committed to holistic transformation. Presenters will address the theoretical and practical aspects of the
following three distinct components of the Program: the formative role of pre-departure coursework, helping students learn to
learn from field experience through action and reflection, and how students' participation in a discrete field research project pro-
motes justice
Session 7B Willow West
Values and Virtues in Internationalizing Christian Higher Education
Christopher T. Jones, Shorter University, Rome, Georgia, USA—Great Commission Thinking in the Chemistry Classroom Begins
with Small Steps toward Global Awareness
Fernando Bullón, UNELA, PRODOLA, SENDAS, San José, Costa Rica—Internationalization: Towards a Clear Commitment for Pro-
moting Peace in Christian Higher Education
Miguel Salazar Steiger, Universidad Católica San Pablo, Arequipa, Peru—The Search for Truth as a foundation for the internation-
alization of Christian Higher Education
Chaired by Martin Hughes, Cornerstone University, Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA
It is one thing to emphasize the value of internationalizing Christian higher education. But what are the specific virtues and even
values that shape this work and how do we as educators and supporters of international forms of education articulate or even
evade them in our work? Presenters in this panel will address these issues by using different approaches informed by their own
practices in the classroom as well as from interactions with the subject matter in their own disciplines and locations.
Session 7C Maple
International Case Studies of Internationalizing Christian Higher Education
Thomas M. Smith, Hope College, Holland, Michigan, USA—Christian Higher Education: A Romanian Experience
Nancy Ngunan Agbe and Joseph Antyo, University of Mkar, Benu State, Nigeria—Christian Higher Education (Che) in Nigeria:
Challenges and Implications for National Development [read by Reverend Tarpase Mkena, University of Mkar, Benue State, Nige-
ria]
Derek Schuurman, Redeemer University College, Ancaster, Ontario, Canada—Computing for Schools in Developing Nations: Serv-
ing Raspberry Pi in Nicaragua
Chaired by Derek Schuurman
This panel will have presenters sharing specific case studies of the internationalization work in which they have been involved in
their respective countries. They will share also the challenges and opportunities this work has for the years to come.
LUNCH Great Hall East
12:15-2:00pm
10. 10
IAPCHE would like to thank our conference co-sponsors,
Acton Institute and the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities.
Did you know IAPCHE has been serving Christian colleges and
universities around the world since 1975? Our work has been
decentralized to allow for different regions to think strategically
about the opportunities and challenges facing Christian higher
education today but in specific contexts. Within the North
American region this conference constitutes one of the pro-
grams that will continue to provide a forum for advancing not
only the work of internationalization but also an opportunity for
mutual learning. To this end IAPCHE would like to invite mem-
ber institutions in North America to consider hosting the 2017
conference on their campuses. If your institution is interested
in being host to IAPCHE’s 3rd
biennial conference on internation-
alizing Christian higher education please send an email to iap-
che@calvin.edu and we will take it from there.
