AIRC and ICEF Announce Renewed Strategic Partnership (April 13, 2023)
The American International Recruitment Council (AIRC) and ICEF announce a renewed strategic partnership that will bring the two organizations closer through cooperation in programming, events, and credentialing.
As part of the partnership, AIRC plans to provisionally accept all ICEF screened agencies into its rigorous Certification Program. “This will make it possible to introduce many more educational agencies to the benefits of AIRC Certification,” said Brian Whalen, AIRC Executive Director. AIRC’s agency certification is based on objective standards and helps AIRC fulfill its Standards Development Organization (SDO) role, as recognized by the U.S. Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission.
The partnership will include AIRC migrating its popular Counselor Training on U.S. Higher Education onto the ICEF Academy learning management platform to enhance ICEF’s training offerings. “With cohorts enrolling throughout the year, AIRC’s Counselor Training is one of our most popular programs,” explained Jennifer Wright, AIRC Associate Director and Director of Certification. She added, “We are excited that this training will become part of a diverse menu of offerings that provide the knowledge and skills that counselors need to serve international students seeking educational opportunities.” Another area of cooperation is expected to involve coordination of badging for the training offered by each organization.
In addition, ICEF and AIRC hope to coordinate the location and dates of their major North American events. In 2023 the AIRC Annual Conference will be in Phoenix, Arizona, December 6 – 9, while ICEF’s event will be in Miami, Florida, December 10 - 12. In the future, the events are expected to be in the same location whenever possible.
Commenting on the renewed partnership, AIRC President Derrick Alex said, “AIRC’s leadership is excited about this renewed partnership with our Founding Strategic Partner. Together, AIRC and ICEF will have an enormous positive influence on international enrollment management and the study abroad experiences of thousands of international students.”
ICEF CEO Markus Badde commented, “ICEF and AIRC share a determination to improve professional standards in international student recruitment; we firmly believe that self-regulation is preferable to misaligned or ill-informed government initiatives, and as such, we have doubled down on investments in training and accreditation for the overall benefit of our sector.”
In celebration of the renewed partnership, AIRC and ICEF will be hosting a reception in conjunction with NAFSA ‘s 75th Annual Conference in Washington, D.C., on the evening of Thursday, June 1, 2023.
Contacts:
Brian Whalen, Executive Director, AIRC, brian.whalen@airc-education.org
Tony Lee, Chief Visionary Officer, ICEF, tlee@icef.com