Heike Fahrenberg

Heike Fahrenberg, (PhD in American Studies (2006) at Johannes Gutenberg University (JGu) Mainz; Director of the School in Germany since August 2000; Lecturer at JGu’s American Studies Department till end of July 2000. Awarded lectureship in English at U.C. Davis 1997-1998; Teacher State Exam I in German and English, M.A. in German, English and American Studies (JGu) 1997; German Assistant (Middlebury College) 1994-1995; Biological Lab Tech. (Hoechst AG, 1991)).  Heike pioneered documentation and assessment of students’ language acquisition and intercultural competence through the development of a culture portfolio course before she became a Qualified Administrator of the IDI in 2012. Taking Intercultural Communicative Practice to be at the heart of Conflict Resolution, Heike and her colleague, Prof. Roman Graf, German Department gave a presentation called Initiating Democratic Behavior through Intercultural Communicative Practice  at ACTFL in 2021, while Heike completed her Intercultural Conflict Style (ICS) Certification in November that same year. At ACTFL in 2019, Roman and Heike presented on Making Intercultural Communication Happen: Moving from Intercultural Competence to Intercultural Communicative Practice. In 2018, they presented on Institutional Change through Intercultural Communication, and in 2016 on Multi-Level Advanced Intercultural Writing. In 2014, Heike and Prof. Sanae Eda, Director of the Middlebury School in Japan, gave ACTFL presentations on Teaching Language and Culture: Integrated Portfolios in Japan and Germany.  At ACTFL in 2013, Roman Graf and Heike gave a presentation on Study Abroad as Integral and Integrated Part of a Language Teaching Curriculum. In 2013 and 2014, she gave half-day and full-day Workshops on the Teaching and Assessing of Intercultural Competence With and Without the IDI at the yearly conferences of the Association of American Study Abroad Programs in Germany, followed by a full-day workshop on Student Safety in Study Abroad in 2015.