College of Education and Human Development
Cheryl Welch Wins a Mason "Staff Swap" Week in Korea
August 13, 2014
We are so proud of Cheryl Welch! The support manager in the Division of Advanced Professional Teacher Development and International Education will be making her own first international journey. She was selected to spend a week at George Mason University's Korea campus.
See the article below, excerpted from the original, from Mason News.
Cheryl Welch holds the Mason Songdo brochure as she learns from the Office of Global Strategy, Staff Senate, and her co-workers that she’s heading to Korea next spring. Photo by Sudha Kamath.
What starts as another day at work ends with quite a surprise, as two George Mason University employees learn they are the latest winners of George Mason’s Global Professional Staff Exchange Program.
Jennifer Smith Hamilton and Cheryl Welch were given the good news Aug. 8 at Fenwick Library and Aug. 10 at Thompson Hall, respectively, by Rita Rowand of Mason’s Office of Global Strategy and Stephanie Zeher of the Staff Senate. Hamilton and Welch will expand their world view, professional development and global higher education knowledge by working abroad for a week.
Welch has been a support manager in the College of Education and Human Development for more than a year. Previously, she worked in Mason’s School of Business for six years. Welch will visit Mason’s new Songdo, Korea Campus next spring in what will be her first trip abroad.
“I’m in total shock,” says the Dumfries, Va., resident. “The Mason Korea relationship looks very interesting. I’m eager to learn about education in other parts of the world.”
From left, Jennifer Smith Hamilton of University Libraries is shocked when she hears from Rita Rowand of the Office of Global Strategy that she is a winner in the international staff exchange. Photo by Alexis Glenn.
The Staff Exchange Program is open to classified employees who have worked at Mason for at least two years. Applications are accepted from March through June. This year, the Staff Senate’s global committee narrowed the list of applicants to five finalists. Then the global strategy office chose Hamilton and Welch. “We had a hard time selecting just two winners, but we believe we have found just the right ones for these experiences,” says Rowand.
Rowand created the Staff Exchange Program in 2013. “It aligns so well with our strategic plan’s goal to be a global learning platform,” she says. “I hope that through these experiences, our award recipients can be more effective at their work and approach it with a global mindset to expand their respective departments’ global reach.”
“It’s an amazing opportunity for the Mason staffers to see a part of the world they may not have otherwise,” says Zeher.
About CEHD
George Mason University's College of Education and Human Development (CEHD) includes two schools: the Graduate School of Education, one of the most comprehensive education schools in Virginia, and the School of Recreation, Health, and Tourism. CEHD offers a full range of courses, certificates, and degree programs on campus, online, and on site to more than 4,000 students each year. CEHD is fully accredited by NCATE and all licensure programs are approved by the Virginia Department of Education.
For additional information:
- CEHD Communications: cehdnews@gmu.edu
- Graduate School of Education: gse.gmu.edu
- Division of Advanced Professional Teacher Development and International Education: gse.gmu.edu/div-apt
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