THE EUROPEAN NEWSLETTER

SPRING, 2000

Dear Colleagues,

The annual NAFSA Conference in San Diego is just around the corner. We are less than two months away from this annual meeting which represents the most important appointment for US and internationl educators. On behalf of the OSEAS-Europe board I would like to congratulate all advisers selected to participate in USBT Program and those awarded Peterson's and Sylvan grants. Thanks to these two generous sponsors many advisers of the greater European region will be able to attend the conference.

The conference is also the time for OSEAS-Europe Chairs to rotate. I would like to express my warmest thanks to Louise Cook O-E Immediate Past Chair 1999-2000 who shadowed my chairship with her wisdom and my sincere wishes to Mihaela Arsene O-E Chair Elect 1999-2000 who will chair the OSEAS-Europe Board in 2000-2001. Also my deep appreciation to the rest of the O-E Board: Terhi Topi, Agnes Vajda, Hasmik Sargsyan respectively WEU, ECE and NIS members-at-large and Joan Yamada Dawson O-E treasurer.

Before many of you leave for San Diego, I would like to update you about this year activities and to anticipate you a new project which will be carried out over the next year.

7TH OSEAS-EUROPE REGIONAL CONFERENCE
In the summer of 1999 we announced the 7th O-E Regional Conference which will take place in Cyprus from July 18th to July 23rd 2001. All our efforts have been and will be focused on this project which represents the most important professional development opportunity for advisers in the greater European region. The Conference proposed theme is "Technology as the virtual adviser: challenging the nature of advising". The conference is organized by a planning committee composed of: the OSEAS-Europe Board, the two REAC's for Europe and NIS and the two State Department Program Officers for Europe and the NIS plus the Cyprus Fulbright Commission advisors. As in the past OSEAS-Europe conferences all committee members will serve as volunteers. The planning committee will have its first local meeting in Cyprus from the 7th to the 9th of July 2000. A second local meeting will be arranged in the spring of 2001. Before these appointments, the committee will start the planning agenda at the San Diego NAFSA conference where a "kick off" meeting has been scheduled on May 28th. Major areas of responsibilities of the committee are: local arrangements (conference hotel, technology arrangements etc.), fund raising, publicity, grantee selection procedures, registrations, conference programming, and sessions and speakers coordination. In view of the many commitments involved in the project, in the next months the O-E Board plans to post a call for additional volunteers to serve on the planning committee. The call will contain an accurate description of volunteers' responsibilities. The conference in fact will be a success only if will be the result of serious and coordinated efforts of experienced and dedicated advisers.

OSEAS-EUROPE AWARDS FOR NAFSA CONFERENCE
This year, for the second time, OSEAS-Europe was able to repeat the project initiated in 1999 to assist European region advisers to attend the NAFSA conference. Eight grants of $ 500 will be given in order to offset travel cost, accommodation, meals and conference registration fee. The grants will be funded through money raised during the 1998 OSEAS Europe conference in Budapest. Priority will be given to applications from advisers who meet one or more of the following criteria: presented at the OSEAS-Europe conference in Budapest are presenting at the 52nd NAFSA conference have recently been or will be involved in OSEAS-Europe activities. 15 advisers submitted their applications to the O-E Board by the deadline of March 26, 2000. Board members will review all applications and the award winners will be notified by April 20, 2000. As in the past OSEAS-Europe Board members were not eligible for OSEAS-Europe grants but thanks to the generous support provided by ECA/A/S/A grants, all of them will be able to attend the San Diego NAFSA conference.

OSEAS-EUROPE VERA MORAVOVA AWARD
The OSEAS-Europe Board is proud to announce this new project which will fund a development opportunity for advisers in the ECE region. An award of $ 1,000 will be offered to honor our dearest colleague Vera Moravova, adviser for several years at the Czech Fulbright Commission, who sadly died in June 1999 at the age of 36 due to a brain tumor. The award will support a professional development activity for an adviser in the Eastern and Central Europe region during the September 2000-August 2001 period. The award announcement will be posted on O-E listserv and web site before the summer of 2000.

With fond regards to all of you,
Isabella

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