AACRAO has selected Jasmin Saidi-Kuehnert the new Chair of AACRAO’s International Education Standards Council (IESC) - Electronic Database for Global Education (EDGE), a web-based resource for the evaluation of foreign educational credentials. AACRAO EDGE offers high-level analysis and background information on global education systems and provides placement recommendations based on a student's educational history. All content is reviewed, approved, and maintained by the IESC.
“It is my honor to serve as Chair of the International Education Standards Council," said Saidi-Kuehnert, President and CEO of Academic Credentials Evaluation Institute, Inc. (ACEI), a credential evaluation member organization. "This role is especially important as we move forward the importance of the understanding of international education systems. I am delighted to serve in this important position.”
Saidi-Kuehnert is recognized as an authority on world education systems and is actively engaged in international educational and exchange. She has authored and co-authored several publications on various world education systems; served on AACRAO’s Publication and Reviews Committee and as Chair of the International Credential Evaluation Committee on AACRAO’s Special Task Force; and provided training and made frequent presentations on foreign educational systems and the recognition of international credentials at conferences and symposiums in the United States and abroad.
“Our commitment to best practices on research and methodology on foreign educational systems is critical to our profession,” Saidi-Kuehnert said. “Through EDGE, we are providing information that is crucial to our profession and shows our dedication to understanding global educational systems.”
Honoring Gloria Nathanson
Saidi-Kuehnert takes over the role as long-standing chair Gloria Nathanson retires. Nathanson was Associate Director for Undergraduate Admission and Relations with Schools at UCLA, and an active member of AACRAO and NAFSA, serving as AACRAO Vice President for International Education from 2000 to 2003. From 2012 to 2014, she served as Chair of the AACRAO Task Force on International Admission and Credential Evaluation culminating in a report to the AACRAO Board of Directors in 2014.
"I have appreciated Gloria’s mentorship and friendship for over 30 years since I first started in this field," Saidi-Kuehnert said. "Following in her footsteps is both a privilege and an opportunity that I cherish.”
In recognition of Nathanson's significant contributions to the field of international education, AACRAO has established the Gloria R. Nathanson Fund for Research in International Education. The grant will support country or education system research conducted by AACRAO members in order to further the body of knowledge in the field of comparative international education and credential evaluation. For details and to apply, visit the research grant page.