International Congress on the Education of the Deaf International Committee (ICED)
Background Information and Process for Selecting the Host Organisation and Location for ICED Meetings
James E. Tucker
207 Cone Branch Drive – Middletown, Maryland 21769 – United States of America
jamesetucker76@gmail.com
BACKGROUND
The ICED is a conference that brings together educators of the deaf, and those with an interest in the field of education of the deaf, from all parts of the world. In its modern format, the ICED serves the purpose of providing an international forum for sharing research, ideas, and information on best practice in the education of deaf and hard-of-hearing students.
The ICED may well be the oldest continuously held conference in any branch of education in the world, having been held first in dates of previous conferences were as follows:
- Paris, France,1878
- Milan, Italy, 1880
- Brussels, Belgium, 1883
- Chicago, USA, 1893
- Paris, France, 1900
- Liege, Belgium, 1905
- Edinburgh, Scotland, 1907
- London, England, 1925
- West Trenton, USA, 1933
- Groningen, The Netherlands, 1950
- Manchester, England, 1958
- Washington, DC, USA, 1963
- Stockholm, Sweden, 1970
- Tokyo, Japan, 1975
- Hamburg, Germany, 1980
- Manchester, England, 1985
- Rochester, NY, USA, 1990
- Tel Aviv, Israel, 1995
- Sydney, Australia, 2000
- Maastricht, The Netherlands, 2005
- Vancouver, Canada, 2010
- Athens, Greece, 2015
- Brisbane, Australia, 2020 (2021)
- Rome, Italy, 2025
Each Congress is an independent event hosted by an independent organization acting in its own right. Following a tradition begun in 1970, organizations with an interest in the field of education of the deaf and the capacity for staging such an event are invited every five years to submit a bid to be the host of the next ICED. Potential host organisations typically seek the role in order to make a contribution to the professional advancement of the field internationally, as well as in their own country. A major benefit of staging the conference has been the opportunity for host countries to focus attention on the development of local services and academic research in education of the deaf (and associated fields) and to provide an opportunity for local professionals across a broad range of disciplines to experience the benefits of attending an international conference in this field.
Having noted these benefits, it is important that it be recognised that the ICED is not the official arm of any larger organisation. In this regard, the ICED is quite unlike many other Congresses. Each ICED is an independent event hosted by an independent organization acting in its own right.
In recent years, over 60 nations have had delegates at the Congresses. Historically, the numbers of delegates attending have ranged from just 28 (Paris, 1878) to over 2,000 (Tokyo, 1975) and numbers of participating countries have ranged from 6 (Paris, 1878) to 64 (Hamburg, 1985). More recently, the norm has been of the order of 700 delegates from 50+ countries.
The ICED has no formal secretariat. An ad hoc “International Committee” was formed in 1970 after the Stockholm Congress. The only function of the International Committee is to decide on the site of the next Congress and the organisation that will manage the staging of the Congress. The committee meets virtually via e-mail and web conferencing and “in person” at each International Congress.
Since the time of the Stockholm Congress, the Committee has traditionally comprised the Chairpersons of the organising committees of past, current, and future International Congresses, as core members, as well as members strategically invited to be broadly representative of the international regions taking part in the Congresses. More recently the membership of the International Committee was extended to include the editors (or their representatives) of the major international academic and professional journals in the field of education of the deaf including, but not limited to: American Annals of the Deaf, Deafness and Education International, Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education, and The Volta Review.
Up until the time of the Vancouver Congress in 2010, the International Committee for the selection of the next Congress was chaired by a person elected by the Committee for that purpose. At the meeting of the International Committee in Vancouver, it was determined that, rather than continuing with a single Chairperson, the responsibility of eliciting proposals, conducting the necessary discernment, and overseeing the Committee’s selection of the next Congress host, should be assumed by a small four-person executive (co-chairs) capable of representing the broad range of international regions.
For the 2030 selection process, that executive is as follows:
James E. Tucker (USA) (Coordinating Chair)
Dr. Denise Powell (New Zealand)
Dr. Loes Wauters (The Netherlands)
Dr. Michael Nduromo (Kenya)
FORMATION OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE
For the selection process for the Congress in 2030, and beyond, the following structure and function of the International Committee will apply.
At the time of an International Congress on Education of the Deaf, the Committee shall meet as currently constituted and will elect (i.e., from the current continuing membership) four joint Chairpersons (i.e., a four-person executive group) that will assume the responsibility of assembling and convening the Committee for the next selection process, according to the following membership categories and appointment rules. No more than one of the Co-chairs may be elected from any of the 6 international regions. One of the four Co-Chairs will be elected as the Coordinating Chair of the executive group. In total the International Committee numbers no more than 21 members.
Membership categories:
Ex officio members:
The Chairpersons of the Conference Organising Committees of each of the four most recent Congresses, or their nominated representatives (4 members)
The Chair of the forthcoming Congress (or their representative) (1 member)
The Editors of the 4 major international journals in Education of the Deaf (i.e., American Annals of the Deaf, Deafness and Education International, Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education, and the Volta Review) (4 members)
Members appointed by discernment and invitation:
Two members from each of 6 international regions—appointed by discernment and invitation (12 members)
Membership appointment rules:
The Co-Chairs, under the leadership of the Co-Coordinating Chair, will be responsible for assembling Members in ex officio roles by contacting all duly qualified members and seeking their engagement.
The Co-Chairs, under the leadership of the Co-Coordinating Chair, will be responsible for filling any vacancies among the discerned membership by seeking the advice and perspective of the rest of the Committee and undertaking a process of discernment, invitation and appointment.
Ex officio members will serve for the term determined by their role. Members appointed by discernment and invitation will serve for a maximum of two terms (i.e. two selection processes) and must then stand down.
At the meeting of the International Committee at each Congress, the positions of Co-Chairs shall be vacated, and fresh elections held. Co-chairs are eligible to be re-nominated and re-elected consistent with their term of membership of the Committee.
Co-Chairs will serve as Chairpersons of the Committee through the selection process and until the time of the next Congress.
SELECTION PROCESS
Host organizations for previous Congresses have typically included associations of educators of deaf and hard-of-hearing students, universities, and other academic institutions.
The Congress is conducted in the best of scientific traditions, with all abstracts including those of prospective key-note presenters being submitted for review by expert panels of referees and papers being selected for presentation exclusively based on merit. The management of those processes is the responsibility of the host organisation. Similarly, the financial arrangements for staging the Congress are the responsibility of the local host organisation. Because neither the Congress (the ICED) nor the ICED International Committee is an incorporated body, there is no basis for funds to come from or go to the ICED International Committee. Having noted this arrangement, however, it is fair to say that the combined effects of local organizational efforts and sponsorship (from a range of companies, foundations, and/or governments) have typically resulted in successful conferences and positive financial outcomes for the local host organization.
Developing and Submitting Proposals (Bids) for hosting an ICED Congress
Proposals to stage the Congress (hereafter bids) should be prepared in electronic format and sent by e-mail to the Executive of the International Committee at the address above.
If the bid, or any part of the bid, is to be presented in printed form only then the bidding group/organisation should forward 4 copies of the proposal (bid book) to the Executive of the International Committee at the address above.
Prospective bidders are asked to submit an “expression of interest” (i.e., a letter or e-mail message to the International Committee indicating the intention to develop a bid) by no later than four months prior to the next scheduled Congress.
Firm and complete proposals should be received by the International Committee by no later than three months prior to the next scheduled Congress (May 1, 2025).
Bidders will be notified about the receipt of their proposal immediately and will be advised about the decision procedure by the International Committee no later than six weeks prior to the next scheduled Congress.
Proposals should provide clear and convincing information on the following criteria that will be considered in selecting the host country and organisation for an ICED:
- Evidence of firm commitment to host the Congress from a national association of educators of the deaf and hard-of-hearing or another cognate association or organisation (e.g., an educational institution or other association of organisation of national standing including national or international organizations representing deaf and hard of hearing people).
- Clear awareness of the management role required of the host organisation and acceptance of the responsibility to manage the conference.
- The presence in the hosting country of a variety of experts in practical and scientific disciplines relevant to the education of deaf and hard-of-hearing learners.
- Evidence of adequate financial support within the host organization to ensure that early preparations for the Congress are able to be sustained in the lead-up to the conference.
- The political stability of the country and the safety of Congress delegates.
- The geographic location of the hosting country, given the location of recent Congresses.
- Members of a potential ICED organizing committee should adhere to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and be prepared to design the ICED conference in an inclusive way and to secure the necessary financial resources to accomplish this. All sessions need to be accessible for people who are deaf and hard on hearing. Universal language access for all participants, including deaf and hard of hearing ones, implies at least the provision of International Sign interpretation and the country’s Sign Language (both through qualified interpreters) and English (captioned and spoken).
In responding to each of these seven criteria, potential host organisations should note that there is no available seed funding for the hosting of the conference. The responsibility for the promotion of the conference and expenditure on such issues leading up to the conference will be the responsibility of the host organization. Having noted these issues, it should also be recognised that all profits from the hosting of the conference are retained by the host organisation. The organising committees/host organisations of previous conferences have been successful in seeking sponsorship for the staging of the conference and have been successful in securing a positive financial outcome through the hosting of the conference.
PROCEDURE FOR EVALUATING PROPOSALS
Each member of the International Committee will rank all bids on the criteria listed above on a scale from 0-10 (with 10 being the highest positive assessment of the bid on any single criterion). This will provide a ranked list of potential host organisations. The International Committee will reserve the right to decide on any other factors which may influence the choice of a successful bidder.
The Executive of the International Committee will negotiate with bidders to clarify any issues which arise from the bidding documents. This information will be communicated to all other members of the International Committee.
ICED International Committee: Background Information and Process for Selecting Host Organisation and Location for ICED Meetings (Revised 05/2020)
