International Outreach

Cambodia

Advancing Mentorship & Research Capacity

Since 2019, the ELRC and CRDLLA have partnered with Cambodia’s Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sport (MOEYS) and the New Generation Pedagogical Research Center (NGPRC) to strengthen educator capacity through professional development, mentoring, and research training.

Key Milestones

2019-2020: Launched collaboration through MOOPILs and on-demand professional development for educators; hosted virtual trainings and leadership webinars; established a research hub at the NGPRC. 

2020-2021: Developed a strategic plan and translated research into Khmer for accessibility.

2021-2022: Supported three mentor-teacher cohorts in NGPRC’s M.Ed. program. Rolled out robust professional development on professional learning communities (PLCs) and action research, supported by monthly coaching sessions. Hosted the TAMU Action Research for Mentor Teachers Workshop for the fifth NGPRC cohort in 2022 with Dr. Irby as the visiting professor.

2022-2023: Attended the third Cambodian International Conference on Mentoring in Education (CICME) hosted by our partners; celebrated 21 action research workshop graduates. Dr. Irby was appointed by the minister as the co-director of the CICME.

Present: Established the Mentoring & Coaching Academy (MCA) for accelerated, high-quality professional development for future mentor cohorts. Ongoing development of a co-authored action research for mentor teachers handbook with Cambodian mentors (2025 release).

Expanded Special Interest Group (SIG) for mentoring and coaching—laying the foundation for the 2026 CICME.

Nigeria

Leadership Summit for Higher Education (2025)

In July 2025, the ELRC will host a four-day Leadership Summit for 11 Nigerian university leaders, fully sponsored by the Tertiary Education Trust Fund. The summit is part of a new biannual series aimed at strengthening:

  • Strategic leadership, planning, and global partnerships in higher education
  • Institutional knowledge exchange and collaboration
  • Pathways for international research and academic exchange

Georgia

Professional Development and TESOL Certification

The ELRC and CRDLLA deepened their partnership with Grigol Robakidze University (GRUNI) to expand professional learning in education leadership and TESOL.

  • 72 educators completed the Paths to Publication program to date.
  • Three TESOL cohorts have successfully graduated, including 10 certified participants from the Fall 2024 cohort, whose graduation ceremony was held in January 2025. This cohort alone accounted for 1,200 professional development hours.

Looking Ahead

  • Leadership programs launching Fall 2025 to support GRUNI staff, students, and community members in bridging academic and labor market demands
  • Virtual Leadership Summit with school principals in Tbilisi delivered through the ELRC’s Top-Class professional development series.
  • Featured course: Thinking Outside the Box Leadership led by Dr. James Lynch.
  • This growing collaboration supports multilingual education, leadership capacity, and scholarly engagement across the region.