SEAMEO REGIONAL TRAINING CENTER

The Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) has been in existence for about four decades with the fundamental goal of promoting cultural, and scientific and educational cooperation in the region. The organization has experienced its share of failures as well as successes during some difficult times since its founding. It has, however, in the end, seen the development of a network of nineteen regional centers throughout South East Asia. These centers successfully implement the policies set by the SEAMEO Council as well as creatively initiate plans and activities for themselves serving the needs of their immediate communities and the region at large. Their collective activities serve to enhance international cooperation and assistance throughout the region.

SEAMEO Regional Training Center (RETRAC) is one of the 19 centers belonging to the SEAMEO family. SEAMEO RETRAC was established in 1996; developed specifically for Vietnam and its neighbors without the benefit of a prior organizational structure. With the mandate approved by the SEAMEO Council to focus on educational management, the center has developed a variety of different programs, projects, activities and services for training, research, consultancy, information dissemination, networking and partnerships in the area of education.

Joining the events sponsored and provided by the SEAMEO RETRAC are local and international educators, administrators and practitioners who represent various levels and fields within the system of education, particularly secondary and post-secondary education. Focusing on the needs for educational management, SEAMEO RETRAC has designed and implemented training programs such as School and Program Evaluation, Faculty and Student Assessment, Strategic Planning in the School/University Context, Classroom Management, Institutional Autonomy and Accountability, and Quality Assurance and Accreditation, to name but a few.

Expertise and experiences which are shared by international resource persons from all over the world have enriched the contents of the training sessions and research activities; helping the task of global integration for the region. Looking to the future, SEAMEO RETRAC is proud to join with the other SEAMEO centers in Southeast Asia in the pursuit of excellence and quality in its work; helping to make its own local environment a stronger place for study, the region a better place for living, and the world a safer and more favorable place for international cooperation.

Sincerely,

Do Huy Thinh, Ph.D.
Associate Professor (Education)