The Comparative and International Education Society (CIES) announced the 2023 winner of the society’s Outstanding Dissertation Award. Pempho Chinkondenji received the award for her dissertation entitled “The Im/possibilities of (Un)making In-school Pregnancy and Student Motherhood [as Praxis]: Schooling Post-Pregnancy Amidst Health and Social Crises in Malawi.”
In May 2023 Shamo Thar was awarded the Scholarly Excellence Award, one of the Leadership of Tomorrow awards of the Student Affairs and Campus Life program at UMass Amherst. The award recognizes a graduate assistant who demonstrates mastery in blending their assistantship responsibilities with their chosen academic discipline.
This year there was a larger than usual group of CIE/IE doctoral graduates representing five different countries: Afghanistan, Indonesia, Kenya, Malawi and the USA.
In April, 2023, Dr. Krezmien, the Director of the Center for Youth Engagement (CYE), hosted the Mr. Sonam Sichoe, the new president of the Tibetan Children's Village (TCV) to discuss possible collaboration with the College of Education.
Gerald Fonville, a UMass scholar in African American and environmental child trauma, discussed racial socialization as a technique to rebuild “lost” connections and as a mechanism to increase resilience to environmental trauma. His research explores the unique mechanisms of African American traumatization as well as individuals’ methods of healing.
CIE in partnership with Catholic Charities, and Focusing Initiatives International, has established a support group for recent Afghan women refugees in Western Massachusetts.
After 13 years Majid Khan (M.Ed. 2003; Doctorate 2009) has returned to CIE as a Visiting Scholar for the 2022/23 academic year. He will be working with the CIE Director, Ian Barron, on issues related to abuse prevention and trauma recovery in Pakistan.
The Comparative and International Education Society (
In May 2023 
In June 2023 CIE welcomed Cliff Meyers ('96) as its Interim Director.
the Comparative Education Review (CER) led by Bjorn Nordtveit for the past 10 years.
CIE hosts monthly meetings of an international "Café Without Borders" to bring together a community of graduate students from around the world.
This year there was a larger than usual group of CIE/IE doctoral graduates representing five different countries: Afghanistan, Indonesia, Kenya, Malawi and the USA.
In April, 2023, Dr. Krezmien, the Director of the Center for Youth Engagement (CYE), hosted the Mr. Sonam Sichoe, the new president of the Tibetan Children's Village (TCV) to discuss possible collaboration with the College of Education.
Gerald Fonville, a UMass scholar in African American and environmental child trauma, discussed racial socialization as a technique to rebuild “lost” connections and as a mechanism to increase resilience to environmental trauma. His research explores the unique mechanisms of African American traumatization as well as individuals’ methods of healing. 
CIE in partnership with Catholic Charities, and Focusing Initiatives International, has established a support group for recent Afghan women refugees in Western Massachusetts.
After 13 years Majid Khan (M.Ed. 2003; Doctorate 2009) has returned to CIE as a Visiting Scholar for the 2022/23 academic year. He will be working with the CIE Director, Ian Barron, on issues related to abuse prevention and trauma recovery in Pakistan.