Grant Opportunity: U.S.-NIS Partners in Education

[Catharine Cashner]

Grant opportunity

United States*NIS
Partners in Education Program 

The American Councils for International Education is soliciting proposals to host a group of NIS educators in fall 2000. Please write wmorse at actr.org for details about the program.

Short Program Description

The Partners in Education Program (PiE) is administered by the American Councils for International Education: ACTR/ACCELS with funding from United States Information Agency (USIA).

PiE supports democracy-building efforts in the NIS by providing secondary school teachers and school administrators with the opportunity to collaborate with U.S. colleagues in the field of civic education.

Eight to twelve educators from selected regions of the NIS  will travel to the United States, where they will work closely with U.S. counterparts to research and develop curriculum materials.  NIS  educators will focus on U.S. teaching methods in Civics, which may be used at home.

Experts in education and the NIS  will select U.S. host sites in an open competition.  Two U.S. educators from each of the host districts later will visit the communities of NIS partners to solidify long-term partnership ties, and further modify the materials developed during the internship at the host site.

The NIS Participants

Internship participants are selected through an open, merit-based competition in their region.  Each participant must demonstrate high ability in the following areas:  ability to teach civics, innovation in teaching, professionalism, and leadership.  Upon their return home, participants share the knowledge, techniques, materials, and insights gained while on the internship with their colleagues.

Pre-Academic Orientation in Washington, D.C.

Upon arrival in the United States, the educators take part in a five-day orientation and civics education program in Washington, D.C., organized by the American Councils.  In Washington, the American Councils provides a general orientation to the U.S. education system and life in the United States, and arranges a variety of activities, both professional and cultural, related to American studies and civic education, including an overview of U.S. libraries and research tools, meetings with professional organizations, and visits to government and historical sites.  One representative of each host site attends the orientation to interact formally with all participants and make a short presentation on the history of their state.

Internship at Host Site

Following the orientation, each group of participants travel to their host site to take part in a five-week internships, where they observe classes, especially those related to civic education.  Participants also deliver presentations; give lessons or team-teach at the host school or other local schools, parent-teacher organizations, and community groups.  They will engage in program and curriculum development; participate in professional development workshops and in-service training; review and collect teaching materials for use in their home schools; make site visits to other local schools; attend school board meetings; and participate in field trips to municipal and state government institutions and historical sites.

Professional Development Workshops

During the internship period, participants take part in professional development workshops organized by their U.S. host site. The workshops are school district in-service training programs, local university or other institutional professional development programs, or original training programs developed exclusively for PiE educators.

Post-Program Debriefing

participants attend a debriefing workshop, Developing Civic Education in the NIS, in Washington, D.C., at the conclusion of the internship period.  Each NIS group selects an individual to present a synopsis of the materials and lesson plan they developed during the internship.  PiE participants, government officials, and other educators attend the workshop.

Reciprocal Program in the NIS

In the semester following the internship, two U.S. teachers or administrators from each U.S. host school district visit schools in the participants' regions for two weeks.


Funding for the Partners in Education Program comes from the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the United States Information Agency under the authority of the Fulbright-Hays Act of 1961, as amended.

William Morse
Program Officer
American Councils
1776 Massachuestts Ave. NW 700
Washington, D.C., 20036
tel. (202) 833-7522
fax. (202) 872-9178

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