Roundtable session
It is imperative that higher education institutions find effective means to equip academics for curriculum internationalisation. However, some have exhibited greater success than others in delivering professional learning initiatives that engage academics and influence teaching practices. Drawing on research and practice, this session will explore key insights into effective professional development, inviting participants to plot for powerful professionalisation within their own context.
Dr Don O’Neill is Head of Department of Culinary Arts, Hospitality and Tourism at South East Technological University (SETU) Waterford, Ireland where he manages education, research and internationalisation activities. He also lectures in French language, culture and society and supervises doctoral research in the area of Internationalisation in Higher Education.
Don has worked at SETU since 1989 in a variety of academic and management positions in the Faculty of Humanities and also in management roles in the Office for International Relations. He has extensive experience of collaborative research and project management with university partners in Europe, North Africa, and North and South America. He has also managed a variety of Erasmus+ and Erasmus Mundus projects and has established university partnerships for SETU globally.
He works as an external examiner nationally and internationally and has served on programme review and programme validation boards at several higher education institutions. He also frequently acts as a reviewer for EU and Irish Government higher education agencies.
Don’s ongoing research focuses primarily on the theme of internationalisation in higher education. He has a particular interest in the challenges and opportunities of international student mobility, internationalisation of the curriculum, and 'internationalisation at home'.
I’m Lucie Weissova, currently serving as the Internationalisation at Home Coordinator at Halmstad University, Sweden. In this role, I’m dedicated to fostering inclusive internationalisation practices, such as internationalisation at home, curriculum internationalisation, and virtual exchange. Previously, I spent over a decade building international partnerships and student mobility programs at Jönköping University. Additionally, I work as a consultant for higher education institutions both nationally and globally.
With a background in International Education Management, I’m also pursuing a PhD at the Center for Higher Education Internationalisation at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Italy. My research focuses on the institutional support and professional development provided to academics to help them implement internationalisation of the curriculum.
I’m affiliated with the Mestenhauser Institute of International Collaboration, and I actively engage in both domestic networks (e.g., FINT) and international networks (e.g., World Council on Intercultural and Global Competence).
What I enjoy most are the global connections that continuously challenge and shape me, both personally and professionally.
