I Once Admired the Facilitators — Now I Am One

I Once Admired the Facilitators — Now I Am One

By Uswatun Hasanah

Some people inspire you without knowing it. I still remember sitting in a room in 2017 as a participant in Camp SOAR 1, a program by RELO (Regional English Language Office of the U.S. Embassy) for 20 selected English teachers across Indonesia — watching the facilitators, and thinking “ how did they get there?” And from that moment, I knew I wanted to be one of them. In May 2026, I was no longer the one watching. I was the one standing in front of the room, hoping to be someone’s reason to dream.

That room was the ACCESS English Camp 2026 — a part of the ACCESS Program, a two-year English learning program organized by RELO (Regional English Language Office of the U.S. Embassy) and IIEF in collaboration with selected host institutions across several cities in Indonesia, including Jakarta, Ambon, Balikpapan, Malang, Padang, and Surabaya. Students are selected from different schools and study English twice a week at their respective host institutions. In Jakarta, that host institution is UKRIDA (Universitas Kristen Krida Wacana), guided by ACCESS teachers selected by RELO and IIEF.

The camp was held from 22–24 May 2026 at Highland Park Bogor, as one of the final programs before students graduate from ACCESS. Over three days, students joined activities designed not only to strengthen their English skills, but also to develop critical thinking, leadership, teamwork, problem-solving, and global awareness. The camp also introduced students to American values and culture as preparation for future opportunities, including studying in the United States.

When I saw the ACCESS Camp facilitator opening, it felt personal immediately. The program was organized by RELO and IIEF — two institutions that had already been part of my story long before this moment. In 2011, I received a U.S. government scholarship under the Indonesian English Language Study Program (IELSP), managed by IIEF, which brought me to Virginia Tech in the United States. Later, I was also a Fulbright FLTA awardee at Ohio University. These experiences made me familiar with the values that U.S. government programs consistently carry — leadership, collaboration, critical thinking, and cultural exchange. So when I saw the facilitator opening, it did not feel like a new opportunity. It felt like coming back to something I already knew and loved.

That was also why I felt confident applying even though I did not fully meet the residency requirement. I am from Serang, Banten , not Jakarta. But I believed I understood the spirit of this program deeply enough to contribute. So I applied anyway.

I still clearly remember the interview. At the end, the interviewers did not ask for a closing statement. But I asked if I could give one anyway. Looking back, it was probably the best decision I made that day.

I told them about Camp SOAR 1, about Virginia Tech, about my Fulbright at Ohio University. I told them I was a public speaker who had stood on local, national, and international stages. And then I said something I genuinely believed: that based on everything I had experienced, I was the best fit for this role.

I was not trying to show off. I just wanted them to understand how much this meant to me, and how ready I was. Sometimes the interview questions alone cannot carry all of that. So, you ask for one more minute, and you say it yourself.

As the facilitator, I was responsible for designing the overall activities. Such as the key sessions, ice breakers, and outdoor games. But honestly, the role taught me something I did not fully expect. Facilitation is not just about having a plan. It is about reading the room, noticing when the energy drops, knowing when to push and when to just let the students talk. There were moments during the camp where the best thing I could do was step back and watch them figure things out themselves. Those were actually my favourite moments.

One of the most memorable parts of the camp was a moment I did not see coming. During the root cause analysis and project pitching activities, students were asked to identify social problems around them. I expected the usual topics — bullying, environmental issues, and sure enough, those came up, including a very passionate discussion about the trash situation in Bantar Gebang. But then several students raised something that made me stop and think. They identified the irresponsible use of artificial intelligence as one of the biggest social problems among young people today.

I was not expecting that. These are teenagers. And they were already thinking critically about AI, not just as a cool technology but as something that could cause real harm if used without responsibility. It was a small moment in the middle of a busy camp, but it stayed with me. It reminded me that sometimes, as educators, we walk into a room thinking we are there to teach. And then the students quietly teach us something instead.

Looking back, becoming an ACCESS English Camp facilitator felt like completing a long circle in my educational journey. Years ago, I sat in a room admiring facilitators who created meaningful experiences for others. In May 2026, I had the chance to be that person for someone else. This experience reminded me that dreams sometimes take years to come true — but they are never meaningless. They quietly shape the choices we make, the skills we build, and the person we become. Until one day, we find ourselves standing in the place we once only imagined from afar.

by Muhammad Sufyan

Many rejections are better than no submission: lessons learned from publishing in International Journal

Many rejections are better than no submission: lessons learned from publishing in International Journal

By Hasnan Yasin

Many academics find it not easy to publish their papers in a reputable journal, including in internationally indexed journals. Some even consider publishing mostly in local-indexed journals since they think that it is easier to get accepted to some extent. This may be because of the dynamic behind publishing articles in a reputable journal. I had tried submitting my manuscripts to reputable journals many times before it was accepted by one. What I learned is that publishing is not just about writing quality papers, but also about finding a suitable journal to disseminate it. This brief writing is my reflection I noted from publishing in a reputable journal.

To begin with, I start with the writing quality. The writing must be of international standard. Even though specific guidelines are usually provided by each journal, common acceptable academic writing standards must be upheld. For example, the common structure used is IMRaD (short for Introduction, Method, Result, and Discussion), some journals also preferred it with literature review subject to the journal’s guideline; the stylistic convention and formatting needs to follow certain style such as APA (most common style I found), MLA, or other styles; ethical standards should be strictly considered and explicitly stated, especially for research involving human participations; the significance of the study must be presented; and the limitation of the study needs to be stated. This is just the starting point. The next one is related to selecting suitable journals to publish.

Beyond the writing itself, browsing and filtering journals can be very substantial and useful. I learned that choosing a journal is not just about looking at the name of the journal. It is beyond that. Paying attention to some points of a journal such as the scope, metrics, index, and even editors can be enlightening. The scope of the manuscript prepared must be in line with the journal scope. This can be seen from the stated aims and scopes and also from the published articles from previous volumes. Metrics is also important, especially if you are concerned much about the average time of the editorial process and the citation metrics. Indexing is another important point to notice in order to make sure that the journal is discoverable and credible. Lastly, getting to know the journal editors can be useful since they are in charge of overseeing the publication process. After carefully considering and finding a match to these points, submission is good to go.

Do not worry about the speed. Expect different length of editorial processes from different journals. Some journal editors have longer time to process your articles; others have shorter time. My first publication took me only three months from submission to its online publication. My second and the rest took a lot longer than that and are still in editorial process until this reflection is published. The average time of waiting is usually presented in the journal metrics. The metric usually portrays the fact based on previous year data. If the process takes a lot longer than what it says in the metrics, try emailing the editors or the editor assistance for clarification.

However, sometimes one try is not enough. That is why being tenacious is good in publishing an article. You have to expect that your first submission will not be great and rejection can be something you can find along the way. This does not necessarily mean that your article is not good enough, but it has not just found its place yet. I do not encourage you to submit one manuscript to many journals, instead, I encourage you to submit it again after one rejection. You also have to be reflective about what could possibly be improved after the rejection. Some editors sometimes include notes you can consider before submitting it again.

Be aware that the comments from reviewers and editors are not always nice but open spaces for learning and improvement. You can always take the comments from the reviewer and the editors as a learning opportunity for you. In my case, for example, since I wrote about financial literacy from large-scale educational assessment data, and my background is not economic, I learned some frameworks I used as lenses of my study. I learn about financial socialization and behavioral economics. Theories I have not heard before. This was initiated by the comments I received from the reviewers and editors. These comments are mostly constructive. The more comments you get the more opportunities you get for learning.

Finally, from publishing in international journals, I have learned that writing quality, journal selection, speed and timelines, tenacity and rejection, reviewer comments and growth are important points to consider in publishing and article. My final two cents is many rejections are better than no submissions. It may take time, but it is worth waiting.

by Bambang Sumintono