Reaching Beyond the United States: Adventures in International Adult Education and Human Resource Development

Abstract

Travel adventures originated way back in my life when I was a young grade school boy in Southwestern Michigan. My father and mother talked about our family making an automobile trip to California; this was immediately after World War II. The closest we came to California was traveling to Kansas City for the purpose of bringing my oldest sister home for the summer from college. However, on the way home, the boxes of her belongings fell off the top of the car in the middle of the night. We stopped to pick them up and went on home--quite an adventure it was! Developing an International Interest In high school, my two sisters and I traveled as a musical evangelistic team to various churches in six Southeastern United States. I also traveled to Chicago many limes to visit my sisters during their time in college. During my college days in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, I went on a wonderful month-long choir tour in 14 Western states and Mexico--my first international venture. Through my theological seminary male chorus and quartet, I toured in six Midwestern states. I also heard about my seminary professors' international study visits to the Holy land. My honeymoon travels took my wife and me to 13 Eastern states in the United States and to Canada. Our pastoral ministry also found us in other new places. My preparation for becoming an adult educator moved us from central Illinois to Boston University, and my curiosity was piqued as I heard adult educators and human resource developers describe their international work. All these adventures stirred my penchant for travel and interest in international adult education, but my inclination incubated for a number of years. Highlights of My International Work After many years in the field, I was afforded my first and second international opportunities in adult education (AE) and human resource development (HRD). The year was 1985, and the countries were Brazil, through the Partners of the Americas; and Germany, through the American Association for Adult and Continuing Education (AAACE) and The German Adult Education Association. In the ensuing 22 years, exponential growth of my international AE and HRD work has taken me on 30 different journeys to 14 countries, where I primarily focused on andragogy--the art and science of helping adults learn (Knowles, 1980). I have also had numerous foreign students in my adult education courses at the University of Missouri. Thus, I have worked with adult learners from 76 countries. My international AE and HRD work in multiple formats includes presenting papers at international AE and HRD conferences and presenting papers about my participation in international AE and HRD at conferences in the United States. I have facilitated numerous AE and HRD courses, workshops, seminars, conferences, concurrent sessions, and keynote addresses in various international countries, as well as conducted adult learning courses, workshops, seminars, and conferences for various foreign delegations coming to the United States. Furthermore, in 2004 and 2005, I chaired the Commission on International Adult Education (CIAE) Pre-Conference of AAACE. I am a member of the International Adult and Continuing Education Hall of Fame (IACEHOF) and serve on its Strategic Planning Committee. Countries and Learner Organizations With Whom I Have Worked I have been fortunate to work in numerous countries, including Brazil, Germany, Peoples' Republic of China, South Africa, Canada, Slovenia, Egypt, Jordan, Cyprus, United Kingdom, Thailand, Hong Kong, Australia, and Italy. Groups I have worked with in various countries include university and college faculty, corporate AE, HRD, and health care professionals, correctional educators, municipal judges, community, church, and other religious leaders, public and private school teachers, and business and industry executives, just to name a few. …