History of ISA

The International Studies Association (ISA) was founded in 1959 to promote research and education in international affairs and to give American scholars and practitioners interested in international studies a regional base for developing and sharing research (see Past Annual Conventions). For more than half a century, ISA has been fulfilling and expanding this mandate. Under the aegis of the ISA Constitution and the leadership of Past ISA Presidents and Executive Directors, ISA has grown exponentially to bridge national and geographic boundaries and build a truly global community of scholars and practitioners. An early history of ISA, compiled by former ISA President Henry Teune, details the organizational history and development of ISA.

The Association’s Executive Offices have previously followed the Executive Directors and have been headquartered at the University of Denver, the University of Minnesota, the University of South Carolina, and Brigham Young University. Currently, the Executive Offices are headquartered at the University of Arizona under the Executive Directorship of Thomas Volgy. They have been in residence in Arizona since Professor Volgy's appointment in 1995.

Purpose of ISA

The International Studies Association, in order to promote international understanding, supports the following goals:

• Provide opportunities for communications among educators, researchers, and practitioners in order to continually share intellectual interests and meet the challenges of a changing global environment
• Develop contacts among specialists from all parts of the world in order to facilitate scientific and cultural change
• Provide channels of communication between academics and policy makers to promote a successful link between the production of knowledge and its utilization
• Improve the teaching and dissemination of ideas, concepts, methods, and information in the field of International Studies
• Publication of knowledge through its six journals, compendium, and other publications
• Maintain a World Wide Web Page on the Internet at: www.isanet.org

Scope of ISA

The International Studies Association currently has more than 5,000 members from over 80 countries and every state of the United States. There is no substitute for the knowledge and insight brought to ISA by its international members, who ensure that the conventions and deliberations are truly global in scope.