CIHE Newsletter: May 2026
CIHE Executive Committee Update
Greetings CIHE Community,
As summer approaches and another academic year comes to a close, I find myself reflecting on the many accomplishments, transitions, and connections that make our CIHE community so special. I hope this message finds you well and that you are finding moments to celebrate, rest, and recharge after what has undoubtedly been a busy year.
First, I would like to extend my heartfelt congratulations to all of our graduates. Whether you are completing a degree, beginning a new professional chapter, or embarking on the next stage of your academic journey, this milestone represents years of hard work, perseverance, and dedication. We celebrate your achievements and look forward to the many ways you will continue to shape the field of international higher education in the years ahead.
I also want to express my sincere gratitude to each of you who contribute to CIHE and our broader community. Through your scholarship, teaching, mentoring, leadership, and service, you help advance important conversations about higher education across borders and create spaces where meaningful collaboration can flourish. One of the greatest strengths of CIHE is the generosity with which members support one another, and I am continually inspired by the passion and commitment that define our community.
As we move into the summer months, I encourage you to stay connected with CIHE through two exciting opportunities. Our annual nomination cycle will be open soon, and I hope you will consider getting involved by nominating yourself or a colleague for a leadership position. Our council's success depends on the diverse experiences, perspectives, and talents of members who are willing to serve and help shape our future.
Summer also marks an important season for recognizing excellence within our community through our CIHE Excellence Research Awards process. I encourage you to take a moment to recognize the outstanding work of colleagues, mentors, students, and emerging scholars whose contributions deserve to be celebrated.
I wish you a wonderful summer filled with rest, renewal, meaningful work, and time with those who matter most. I look forward to connecting with many of you in the months ahead and seeing our community come together again at ASHE this fall.
Warm regards,
Katie Koo, PhD
2026 CIHE Award for Significant Research on International Higher Education
2026 Award Nominations will open in early May and closes approximately late June
Applications for the 2026 awards will be accepted from scholarships published between June 1, 2025 – May 31, 2026. Nominations must be a) Books and Edited Books; and b) Journal Articles, Chapters, Research Initiatives, or Other Research. Dissertations are not eligible for nomination for this award.
Community Feedback for the November Conference
As we look ahead to the conference in Puerto Rico this November, we recognize that some members of our community may have questions, concerns, or uncertainties related to travel, participation, accessibility, safety, or the broader context surrounding the event.
To help us better understand and support our community, we invite you to share any thoughts, questions, concerns, or suggestions through the form below. Your feedback will help us think collectively about how we can foster a supportive, respectful, and inclusive environment where all members feel able to participate fully in our scholarly community. Please leave any questions or comments you have about the upcoming pre-conference in the anonymous survey.
CIHE Executive Committee Nominations Coming Soon
Are you interested in contributing to the CIHE community? The CIHE Nominations Committee will be opening nominations soon! More details will be shared shortly, so please keep an eye out for further information!
Have questions? Please contact Satomi Mitani (mitan005@umn.edu)
2026 Research and Discussion Webinar
We will be offering a series of webinars in 2026 that will focus on relevant and critical issues within international higher education. This will be led by our ASHE CIHE members who will share their research and facilitate discussion among the participants.
September: Narratives of Persistence: A Postcolonial Exploration of Black African Refugee Postsecondary Students’ Cultural Heritage Use
By Dr. Meseret F. Hailu & Dr. Ane Turner Johnson
Wednesday, September 2, 2026 9:00 am - 10:00 am Pacific time
Join our roundtable sessions and plenary panel featuring outstanding scholars in our field! The sessions will explore career and research interests, needs, and goals. This is a wonderful opportunity to network, develop relationships, and strengthen your engagement within the ASHE–CIHE community.
If you are interested in sharing your research or have a topic that you are interested in learning more about for a future webinar, please e-mail Seyoung Hong at hongseyo@msu.edu.
Other Professional Development and Academic Opportunities
WES-CIHE Summer Institute
June 2-3, 2026 - Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, United States
Call for Submissions: Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education
Open Call: Special Issues for 2026 & 2027 & 2028
Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education (JCIHE)
https://digitalcommons.lib.uconn.edu/jcihe/
The Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education is the official journal of the Comparative and International Education Society’s (CIES) Higher Education Special Interest Group (HESIG). JCIHE promotes scholarship opportunities and critical dialogue to engage scholars worldwide. Direct questions to Rosalind Raby, Editor-in-Chief (rabyrl@aol.com) and submit to the journal link. https://digitalcommons.lib.uconn.edu/jcihe/
Open Call for Submissions:
EMERGING SCHOLARS Research Summaries 2027 Issue 19(3). This issue shares thesis or dissertation work-in-progress or original research in 1,200 - 1,600 words. Submissions are DUE: SEPTEMBER 30, 2026
The Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education is the official journal of the Comparative and International Education Society’s (CIES) Higher Education Special Interest Group (HESIG). JCIHE promotes scholarship opportunities and critical dialogue to engage scholars worldwide. Direct questions to Rosalind Raby, Editor-in-Chief (rabyrl@aol.com) and submit to the journal link. https://digitalcommons.lib.uconn.edu/jcihe/
The Journal of Global Higher Education
The Journal of Global Higher Education is an open-access, independent, community-run, peer-reviewed scholarly journal focused on global higher education and the opportunities, issues, and challenges that international and global engagement presents. This journal is a key publication outlet for Research with International Students (RIS), and the Critical Internationalization Studies Network (CISN).
Recent CIHE Member Publications
Baker, I. D., & Hong, S. (2026). A College Choice Model for Chinese International Undergraduate Students Studying in the US. Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education, 18(2), 8-32.
Bodine Al-Sharif, M. A. (2026). Building a global consortium: How IASAS is working to promote a space for culturally responsive practitioner research in student affairs and services globally. In B. Perozzi, H. October, & J. Ward-Roof (Eds.), Global Division Publication, Vol. 1: Creating Global Community, (pp. 133-135). NASPA - Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education Digital Journal Publication.
Bodine Al-Sharif, M. A. (2025). Navigating uncertainty: A Fulbright scholar's journey. Journal of Comparative and International Higher Education 17(6), Article 2, 14-32. https://doi.org/10.64899/2151-0407.1942
Bodine Al-Sharif, M., Koo, K., & Bista, K. (2025). International graduate students: Unique stories and missing voices in higher education. New Directions for Teaching and Learning, 181, 13–21. https://doi.org/10.1002/tl.20616
Bowling, R. L. (2025). “They don’t even know how ethnocentric they’re being”: Comparative approaches to worldview diversity education. Journal of Studies in International Education, First published online February 6, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1177/10283153251316925
Castiello-Gutierrez, S., & Abu Salih, H. (2025). The Statement Trap: A Critical Discourse Analysis of AAU University Presidents’ Statements on International Conflicts. The Journal of Higher Education, 1-27.
Fei, M. (2025). Practice implications for supporting international students’ racial learning in the US. Critical Internationalization Studies Review, 4(1).
George Mwangi, C. A., Yao, C. W., Harshe, G., & Corso, A. R. (2025). It’s Just Too Much:
Kim, S. (2025). Transnational resilience: exploring international students’ agency in response to systemic racism in US higher education. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 38(6), 810-825.
Hou, M. (2025). ‘Where are you from?’: examining identity and racism among Asian American and Asian international students. Studies in Higher Education, 1-14.
Hou, M., Le, T. T. K., & Mushfiq, M. (2025). Intersecting identities of three Asian transnational women doctoral students: A critical collaborative autoethnography. Higher Education, 1-16.
Islam, MD B., Asakura, T., Islam, Md T., Amina, D. Bodine Al-Sharif, M. A. (2026). National AI strategies and higher education in the Global South: Policy, practice, and power. In A. W. Wiseman (Ed.) . Emerald Publishing.
Kim, S. (2025). “What I Had Experienced Was, in Fact, a Microaggression”: A Phenomenological Inquiry into International Students of Color Developing Critical Racial Consciousness. The Journal of Higher Education, 1-26.
Kim, S., Kim, H., Hong, S., & Paik, E. J. (2026). Experiences of Culturally Engaging Advising Among South Korean Doctoral Students: A Collaborative Autoethnography. Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education, 18(2), 205-233.
Koo, K., Bista, K., & Al-Sharif, M. A. B. (2025). “From surviving to thriving” next steps for international graduate students: A call to action. New Directions for Teaching and Learning, 181, 91–99. https://doi.org/10.1002/tl.20623
Koo, K. (2025). Culturally sensitive support beyond borders: Internationalization of student affairs practice. In Tolman, S. & Calhoun, D. (eds). Student Affairs - Voices from the Profession. Information Age Publishing.
Mejri, S. B., Al-Sharif, M. A. B., Hassan, A., Ahmed, N., & Mohasses, M. (2025). Internationalization as Transformation: Teaching, Research, and Innovation in Gulf STEM Education. Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education, 17(6), 9.
Olson, T. H., Hong, S., & Renn, K. A. (2026). Training, Trust, and Terabytes: Absorptive Capacity for Data Analytics at Research Universities. Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice, 63(1), 73–88. https://doi.org/10.1080/19496591.2025.2505852
Otto, J. M., Whatley, M., & Salto, D. J. (2026). The internationalization of for-profit higher education institutions in the United States: Seeking legitimacy and responding to market forces via international student mobility. Higher Education, 1-21.
Whatley, M., Labs, K., & Wood, D. R. (2025). International Education for Low-Income Students: Virtual Exchange and the Academic Success Among Pell-Recipient Community College Students. Community College Review, 53(2), 262–280.
Whatley, M., & Kumbal, J. S. (2026). Exploring the Relationship Between International Student Enrollment at US Higher Education Institutions and Mass Shootings. Journal of Studies in International Education, 30(2), 247-271.