Christopher J. Johnstone Director of International Initiatives and Relations Research associate, National Center on Educational Outcomes (including director of Institute on Community Integration’s Global Resource Center on Inclusive Education) Lecturer, Department of Educational Policy and Administration 350 Elliott Hall 75 East River Parkway Minneapolis, MN 55455 Phone: 612-626-1936 E-mail: john4810@umn.edu

My role working with international initiatives in the College of Education and Human Development is an exciting one. There are myriad international projects for which faculty, staff, and students are currently engaged that are leading our international efforts. I view my role as one of a support for this process by linking people and ideas across departmental lines in order to produce high-quality and sustainable work.

I came to this role from my experiences in special education. I have always been interested in how disability issues are viewed across cultures and societies. My work in this field has brought me to Ghana, Mexico, India, Kenya, Lesotho, Singapore, and Trinidad and Tobago. In addition to my administrative work at the College, I currently am involved in domestic and international research on assessment and instruction of students with disabilities with the Institute on Community Integration’s National Center on Educational Outcomes and Global Resource Center on Inclusive Education. I also occasionally teach classes on international development education in the Educational Policy and Administration department.

This year my international research will take place in the United States (investigating issues in large-scale testing for students with disabilities), Trinidad and Tobago (investigating inclusive education efforts) and Lesotho (investigating needs of people with developmental disabilities in HIV/AIDS education efforts as part of the Rosemary Dybwad International Fellows Program). As the College moves forward with its international efforts, I envision six main priorities for our work:

1. international development assistance
2. international research
3. relationships with institutions of higher learning in international settings
4. support of international students
5. promotion of international experiences for domestic students
6. distance learning

Each of these will be multi-disciplinary in focus, and focus on both multi-national and multi-cultural approaches to improving education and human development efforts both in Minnesota and around the world.

February 2008