The Educational Travel Consortium (ETC) is the leading professional community for the educational and affinity group travel sector. Founded in 1987, ETC brings together the professionals who design, manage, and support travel programs for universities, museums, alumni associations, zoos, conservation organizations, and nonprofit institutions around the world.
ETC serves as a year-round platform for professional development, industry collaboration, partnership building, and knowledge exchange across the educational travel ecosystem — connecting institutional travel planners with destinations, tour operators, cruise companies, and industry partners who share a commitment to experiential, educationally-grounded group travel experiences.
ETC’s Executive Advisory Council brings together experienced leaders from across the educational and affinity travel community, including representatives from universities, museums, alumni associations, conservation organizations, destinations, tour operators, and the broader travel industry. The Council helps guide ETC’s strategic direction and contributes to the development of conference programming, professional standards, and educational initiatives across the organization. Our council members guide the development of ETC Certification and the strategic direction of the Annual Conference.
Global Travel Operations & Strategy Leader
Director of Affinity Sales
PONANT Explorations
Director of Alumni Travel
Indiana University Alumni Association
Founder and CEO
Immersion Journeys
Manager of Travel & Special Programs
Santa Barbara Museum of Art
Vice President/General Manager
Criterion Travel
Associate Director of Alumni Relations
Tulane University
Vice President
Travel Program Leader USI Affinity Travel Insurance Services
Director
WWF – Travel World Wildlife Fund
COO
AHI Travel
Director, Donor Experience & Travel
California Academy of Sciences
Travel Program Director
Johns Hopkins University
Assistant Director
Penn Alumni Travel & Education University of Pennsylvania
Manager of Alumni
Travel Carolina Alumni
EAC Emeritus Council Advisors
President
Classic Escapes
EAC Emeritus Council Advisors
Lifelong Learning
Office of Alumni Engagement Tufts University
EAC Emeritus Council Advisors
Vice President of Affinity/Charter Sales
National Geographic-Lindblad Expeditions
EAC Emeritus Council Advisors
Director of Affinity & Charter Sales National Geographic-Lindblad Expeditions
EAC Emeritus Council Advisors
Owner
Distant Horizons
EAC Emeritus Council Advisors
Senior Director
Duke Travels Duke University
ETC’s staff team supports the day-to-day operations of the consortium, member engagement, professional programming, and the Annual Conference. Working in collaboration with the Executive Advisory Council, the team helps sustain ETC as a year-round professional community serving the educational and affinity travel sector.
ETC Founder
ETC Managing Partner
Director of Operations & Partnerships
Director of Programming & Certification
Program Administration and Speaker Support
Conference Registrar
AV Manager
Registration Desk Support
Communications Manager
International Bazaar Manager
Videographer
Since 1987, ETC has connected the professionals shaping the educational and affinity travel field. The community you have read about — including institutional travel planners, destinations, operators, suppliers, Executive Advisory Council members, and ETC staff — is the professional network you join as a member.
Membership is open to nonprofit and institutional organizations, as well as industry partners, involved in the development, management, and support of educational and affinity travel programs worldwide.
