Made up of The Asia Institute, Campus b, CEPA, EDU Africa and Athena, will remain as separate organisations, but the Collective will be aligned together as a group to share their collective wisdom at seminars, sessions and exhibitions.

“The Collective is the first truly global consortium of educational organisations that share similar values”

The Collective is also committed to contributing to scholarships every year so that the current generation of study abroad students can help support the next generation of global citizens for years to come.

According to a statement, Athena’s involvement in the consortium enables it to expand its strong network of partnerships to better serve customised program requests, and to enhance its ability to offer high-quality immersion opportunities in nearly every area of the world including Africa, Asia, South America and Europe.

“The Collective is the first truly global consortium of educational organisations that share similar values, offer a personal connection to the in-country host partner, while providing on-the-ground expertise and local access in each region of the globe,” explained Athena founder and president Stacy McKay Benander.

McKay Benander said that each of the Collective’s organisations is “personalized, smaller, and mission-driven” in how it designs study abroad programming.

“We believe fully in who we are independently, as well as who we are as a Collective,” she added.