Behind the Scenes
of the ACE Lab
The ACE Lab
Higher education institutions are given the tools and knowledge needed
to implement institutional strategies that emphasize comprehensive education.
HOW IT BEGAN
In September 2019, UC San Diego joined the American Council on Education (ACE) Internationalization Laboratory (ACE Lab) as part of the 16th Cohort. The ACE Lab Steering Committee — including over 30 faculty, senior administrators and staff representing all schools, divisions, and Vice Chancellor areas — has actively met since October 2019.
ACE LAB TIMELINE
UC San Diego’s ACE Lab process began with a site visit from our ACE Lab advisor, David Fleshler, Vice Provost for International Affairs at Case Western Reserve University and President of the Association of International Education Administrators (AIEA).
The visit included meetings with the Chancellor and Executive Vice Chancellor, academic deans, Academic Senate chairs, and the steering committee, helping set ACE Lab timeline and deliverables.
The ACE Tri-Chairs assumed responsibility for leading the internationalization process. The Tri-Chairs were:
- Alysson M. Satterlund, Vice Chancellor — Student Affairs and Campus Life
- Robert T. Schooley, M.D. — Senior Director, International Initiatives of the Office of International Affairs and Interim Faculty Director of Global Education
- Paul Yu — Provost, Revelle College
Beginning in January 2020, the steering committee tasked six broadly represented subcommittees to examine specific pillars of internationalization at UC San Diego through the lens of access, equity and diversity. The subcommittees gathered and analyzed data and aggregated their findings into subcommittee recommendation reports that would build the final recommendations in the ACE Lab report. Each subcommittee was strategically formed to include faculty, staff and representatives from Associated Students and the Graduate and Professional Student Association.
Global Education organized a series of virtual meetings with the following peer institutions:
- UC Davis
- The Ohio State University
- Indiana University
- New York University
The steering committee continued to meet regularly to discuss progress on UC San Diego's internationalization strategy. Subcommittees continued to meet to discuss their individual subjects and begin to draft their findings into final recommendations for consideration by the steering committee.
During International Education Week 2021, The ACE Peer Review Site Team visited UC San Diego. The team consisted of:
- David Fleshler, Vice Provost of International Affair, Case Western Reserve and UC San Diego ACE Lab Advisor
- Gil Latz, Vice Provost for Global Strategies and International Affairs, The Ohio State University
- Joanna Regulska, Vice Provost, Dean of Global Affairs, UC Davis
The team met with campus stakeholders and senior leadership to review UC San Diego's proposed initiatives for comprehensive internationalization. The team also participated in a panel discussion with Global Education staff to discuss the critical role that staff will play in the implementation of the Ace Internationalization Laboratory Report.
The ACE Internationalization Laboratory Report was finalized and made publicly available to the UC San Diego community of learning.
WHAT IS ACE?
The American Council on Education (ACE) is a membership organization that mobilizes the higher education community to shape effective public policy and foster innovative, high-quality practice. As the major coordinating body for the nation’s colleges and universities, ACE's strength lies in their diverse membership of more than 1,700 colleges and universities, related associations, and other organizations in America and abroad. ACE is the only major higher education association to represent all types of U.S. accredited, degree-granting institutions: two-year and four-year, public and private. ACE's members educate two out of every three students in all accredited, degree-granting U.S. institutions.
ACE LAB AT UC SAN DIEGO
Leadership and Committees
The ACE Lab was led by three senior Tri-Chairs and an ACE Advisor with support from multiple cadres of faculty, staff members, and students who collaborated and applied their knowledge and expertise to different ACE lab subjects and strategies.
Reports
Each Subcommittee drafted a report with findings and recommendations based on their foci. From these reports, a final ACE Internationalization Lab Report was published with recommendations for amplifying internationalization efforts.
WHAT IS COMPREHENSIVE INTERNATIONALIZATION?
As defined by ACE, comprehensive internationalization is a strategic, coordinated process that seeks to align and integrate policies, programs and initiatives to position colleges and universities to be more globally oriented and internationally connected institutions. UC San Diego envisions the following model for how comprehensive education could be implemented on campus:
WHO ELSE WAS IN THE COHORT WITH UC SAN DIEGO?
The 2019-2021 cohort was the largest since the inception of the Lab. UC San Diego and 16 other colleges and universities in the Americas shared their experiences to identify best practices on the road to comprehensive internationalization.
INSTITUTIONS
- Bethany College (WV)
- California State University, San Bernardino (CA)
- Loyola Marymount University (CA)
- Mercer University (GA)
- Purdue University Northwest (IN)
- Rhodes College (TN)
- Sinclair College (OH)
- Southern Illinois University (IL)
- UC San Diego (CA)
- University of Delaware (DE)
- University of Missouri - Kansas City (MO)
- University of Nebraska - Lincoln (NE)
- University of North Georgia (GA)
- York College of Pennsylvania (PA)
- Universidade Federal de Goiás (Brazil)
- Universidade Estadual de Maringá (Brazil)
- Universidade Federal do Pará (Brazil)
