Office of Study Abroad
Michigan State University
109 International Center
East Lansing, MI 48824-1035
Phone: (517) 432-4345
Email: chalouc@msu.edu
Cindy Felbeck Chalou currently serves as the associate director in the Office of Study Abroad and is responsible for the oversight of program development, coordination of programs in Africa and the Middle East, and services for underrepresented students.
Cindy has been active in international education organizations for over 20 years, including serving on the SECUSSA (Section on US Students Abroad) National Team, SECUSSA Region VII (Southeastern US) Team, SECUSSA Financial Aid Task Force, International Student Exchange Program (ISEP) Advisory Board, and Cultural Experiences Abroad (CEA) Board. She has published and presented at state, regional, national and international conferences on topics including study abroad in Africa; non-traditional student populations, particularly students with disabilities; transfer credit; consortia arrangements; safety, security, and international crises and critical incidents; financial aid; orientation; ethics; international internships; re-entry; program development; and collaboration with Title VI National Research Centers. She has also received five financial awards to assist with sending low income students and students with disabilities abroad.
Cindy earned a BS in Horticulture at Michigan State University and an MS in Horticulture at North Carolina State University. She studied abroad for the first time in 1976 as a sophomore at MSU and after completing her semester in London, joined her sisters for several months in Kenya and Lesotho. She fell in love with the continent of Africa and has been fortunate to work with African programs for the past 24 years. She has volunteered as an agricultural lecturer in the Peace Corps in Swaziland, 1980-82, and was later hired by Peace Corps to train agricultural development workers. She then served as the Director of Study Abroad at North Carolina State University for nearly 10 years and returned to MSU in 1995.
Program and research opportunities for students studying on the continent of Africa; study abroad and non-traditional student populations
Associate Director
Office of Study Abroad
Michigan State University (East Lansing, MI)
2007 to present
Acting Director
Office of Study Abroad
Michigan State University (East Lansing, MI)
2008-09
Assistant Director
Office of Study Abroad
Michigan State University (East Lansing, MI)
1997 - 2007
Educational Programs Coordinator
Office of Study Abroad
Michigan State University (East Lansing, MI)
1995-1997
Coordinator of Study Abroad
North Carolina State University (Raleigh, NC)
1985-1995
Technical Crops Trainer
Agricultural Development Workers Training Center
US Peace Corps, Frogmore, South Carolina
1985
Agricultural lecturer
US Peace Corps – Swaziland, Southern Africa
1980-82
Professional: Western and East Central Europe, Africa, Latin America, Israel, Egypt, Turkey (1987- present)
Volunteer: Swaziland, 1980-1982, Lesotho, 1976
Student: England, spring semester 1976
Personal: East and Southern Africa, 1980-1982, 1976; Western Europe, 1982, 1972
Invited reviewer of The Academy for Education Development Guide to Welcoming U.S. Students to Your Campus 2006
"High Quality Study Abroad Programming: the Role of the Central Study Abroad Office", by Cindy Felbeck Chalou and Inge Ellen Steglitz (invited contributors and presenters) in Study Abroad Perspectives and Experiences form Business Schools, edited by G. Thomas M. Hult and Elvin C. Lashbrooke, published by Elsevier Science Ltd., 2003
"Study Abroad in the Rainbow Nation" (a report on post-apartheid South African higher education and exchange in the twenty-first century), by Cindy Felbeck Chalou, Carol J. Lebold, Laila Ganie, and Christopher Powers. International Educator, Volume X, Number 1, Winter 2001
"Professional Practice Workshop: Administration of Education Abroad Programs" Trainer Manual edited by Cynthia Felbeck Chalou, published by NAFSA: Association of International Educators, 1999
"Advising Principles and Strategies", by Cynthia Felbeck Chalou, Barbara Lantz, and Kathy Lutfi (invited contributors) in NAFSA's Guide to Education Abroad for Advisers and Administrators (2nd Edition), edited by William Hoffa and John Pearson, published by NAFSA: Association of International Educators, 1997
Staying Healthy While Studying Abroad: Issues for Advisers and Students, by E. Blankenship, Judith A. Green and Cynthia Felbeck Chalou: Feb/Mar '92 NAFSA Newsletter
Staying Healthy While Studying Abroad, by Cynthia Felbeck Chalou, Judith A. Green, and James C. Turner, AIFS Adviser's Guide No. 11, 1992
Over 49 oral and video presentations, workshops and posters given at state, regional, national and international conferences, 1986-present
Topics include:
Recipient Project Director, U.S. Department of State grant: Assisting Historically Black Colleges and Universities in Developing Study Abroad Programs in Sub-Saharan Africa: Fiscal year 2008
Recipient Project Director, U.S. Department of Education Group Projects Abroad Award to send underrepresented students to study for a semester in South Africa and Senegal: Fiscal year 2002, 2004, 2006
Recipient of Michigan State University Fund for Enhancement of Academic Quality: Recurring funding of $32,500 to support operation of a summer study abroad program dealing with disability services. Spring 2006
Recipient of IFSA Foundation Grant: Funding of $25,000 for scholarship and accommodation costs for five students with disabilities to study abroad through Michigan State University during 2006-07. Fall 2005
Co-recipient of National Clearinghouse on Disability and Exchange's "Strengthening Ties on Campus and Abroad" award to support cooperative ventures between campus-based disability service providers and education abroad staff in the United States and overseas, spring 2003
Michigan State University Resource Center for Persons with Disabilities award "in recognition of an MSU employee whose dedication toward the advancement of people with disabilities exemplifies the spirit of Dorothy Millbrook", April 2002
Lily von Klemperer Award This award is granted by the Section on United States Students Abroad of NAFSA: Association of International Educators in recognition of individuals who "consistently maintain the highest standards of professional ethics and performance, demonstrate a concern for helping and guiding newcomers to the field of study abroad, and display in professional activities an eagerness to meet new challenges and an openness to new ideas.", May 1999, Denver, CO
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