2024 International Awards: Gail A. Vander Stoep

MSU Award for Outstanding Service to Education Abroad

Published: Tuesday, 26 Mar 2024 Author: Jonathan Gibson

Gail A. Vander Stoep

Gail A. Vander Stoep is a 2024 recipient of the MSU Award for Outstanding Service to Education Abroad, which recognizes faculty and staff who give their time, energy and creativity to the development and implementation of education abroad programs that support MSU's commitment to providing students with high-quality international education opportunities.

Vander Stoep is an associate professor emeritus in the Department of Community Sustainability. Her work has involved holistic and integrated approaches to sustainable community-based tourism development and protected area management, interpretation and education, and communications as a visitor and resource management tool. Underwater parks, coastal areas, island nations and maritime heritage have been special areas of interest in her work.

Throughout her 31-year career at MSU, education abroad has been integral to sharing her love for exploration and understanding how people interact with their environments. This began in 1999 with a diving-based program in Anguilla, co-leading "Tourism and Integrated Marine Resource Management" for three years. Then, from 2006 to 2007, she co-led "Media, Tourism, Environment and Cultural Issues" in Australia. Her longest running program was a trekking program in India's Himalayas, "Ecology of the Mountains," which went from 2007 to 2023. Demonstrating a commitment to multidisciplinary collaboration, these programs have included co-leaders from the Departments of Journalism; Fisheries and Wildlife; Geology; and Linguistics.

Vander Stoep was also actively involved with the Study Abroad Faculty Learning Community for multiple years, helped plan and host the Learning Abroad Conference, and was a panelist for the Learning Abroad Risk Management seminar.

“Immersion matters - in other geophysical environments and with the communities who call them home - for better understanding diverse perspectives, making personal connections, and hopefully influencing how all of us, including engaged students, make decisions and take actions that are sensitive to diverse variables and values.” - Gail A. Vander Stoep

Vander Stoep was nominated by Rebecca Jordan, a professor and chairperson in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources. "Dr. Vander Stoep has regularly connected with her Education Abroad students as a thoughtful mentor who as a critical thinker is not only serving as a role model but also as a constructive educator," said Jordan.

2026 Award Recipients