The Institute for Cross-Cultural Teaching and Learning is committed to promoting more effective cross-cultural teaching and learning. It is estimated that more than four million students will study outside of their home countries this year, and the need is high to assist them in learning about and developing intercultural competence.

The Institute's President is Steven T. Duke. Steve "studied" abroad as a two-year old, when his father led a program in France. He lived in Finland for two years in the 1980's, where he became fascinated by Finnish history as well as the history of Russia and the Soviet Union. He completed his Ph.D. in Russian history at Indiana University, where he studied the history of primary schooling among ethnic and religious minorities in three provinces of the Russian Empire between 1885 and 1914. He spent a year in Russia and two months in Estonia doing archival research for his dissertation.

Steve's publications include Preparing to Study Abroad: Learning to Cross Cultures (Stylus, 2014). This volume is geared for students who study abroad and who are interested in enhancing their cross-cultural understanding and awareness.

Steve has been active in international education for the last two decades. He has taught Russian, European and world history courses at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Wake Forest University, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Brigham Young University. He has worked with study abroad students and international students at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest University and Augustana College. At Wake Forest University, Steve oversaw and taught in the Cross-Cultural Engagement Program, a unique set of three courses available before, during and after study abroad. He also created and led the annual WISE Workshop and Conference from 2008 to 2015.