Below are highlights of my experience working in higher eduction over the past two decades.

EDUCATION

Master of Science, International Studies
North Carolina State University - Raleigh, NC

Bachelor of Science, Business Administration (Double Major: Marketing & Organizational Management)
Colorado State University - Fort Collins, CO

SKILLS

Over 20 years experience working with students, faculty and staff in all aspects of higher education from creating and assess programs to building community and supporting student success.

Group facilitation specialist, having facilitated over 200 group experiences ranging from 5 to 200 people (cross-cultural trainings, immigration training, etc.)

Extensive experience in international program leadership, including co-creating and implementing a vision and providing strategic direction and managing immigration compliance.

Cross-cultural training and diversity, equity, and inclusion training expertise, including supporting student success across cultures.

WORK EXPERIENCE

Director, Office of International Students and Scholars 
Tulane University

  • Supervised seven professional staff members who worked with nearly 1400 non-immigrant students, 200 scholars, and 150 international faculty and staff from over 80 countries to ensure that they remained in compliance with immigration regulations and also received essential support and services to aid in their success at Tulane and in New Orleans.

  • Ensured that the office provided pre-arrival, arrival, and ongoing support services for all international students, scholars, faculty and staff so that they were given the best chance to succeed, both academically and personally.

  • Lead campus-wide efforts to ensure that the university was offering the best support possible to the international student and scholar community.

Assistant Director for International Student & Scholar Services 
Center for International Education
Loyola University New Orleans

  • Responsible for all aspects of policies, procedures and programs for international students, scholars, and faculty. Developed and implemented immigration policies and procedures through research and analysis of immigration regulations, professional standards and peer institution resources.

  • Planned, organized, marketed and implemented international programming on-campus and continually assessed and improved programs and services being offered by the Center for International Education using quantitative and qualitative methods.

NAFSA (NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF INTERNATIONAL EDUCATORS) LEADERSHIP AND AWARDS

2019 Louisiana State Award “in recognition for your contribution to the field of International Education, the state of Louisiana, and NAFSA Region III”

Session Proposal Reviewer for the Annual Conference

Leadership Development Committee

National NAFSA Leadership Cultivation Subcommittee Member

NAFSA Region III Louisiana State Representative

Local Arrangements Team - Regional Conference in New Orleans

NAFSA Region III Planning Team

Mentor at the Annual Conference

PRESENTATIONS

“Leading Racial Justice Through Our Work as International Educators” – Workshop Presenter at the National Association of International Educators Conference (NAFSA), May 2021

“Strategies for International Educators to Explore Power and Privilege through Intercultural Learning” – Workshop Presenter at the Intercultural Skills Enhancement (WISE) Conference, February 2021

“International Student Emergency Fund: A Journey from Idea to Implementation” – selected to present at 2020 National Conference of NAFSA, but session was cancelled due to COVID-19

“Advocacy for International Education” – LA-NAFSA State Meeting, April 2019

“International Student Landscape in the U.S.” – National Conference of State Legislators, January 2019 Meeting

“Global Citizenship at Tulane” – New Student Orientation, August 2018

“Making it Count: Strategies for Successful Community Engagement in Study Abroad” – 2016 NAFSA Bi-Regional Conference

“Swimming in a Sea of Letters: Visa Determinations for Short-Term Programs” – 2016 NAFSA Bi-Regional Conference

“Success Strategies for International Graduate Education” – Association of American Universities, 2016 Association of Graduate Schools Meeting

“Serve NAFSA through Leadership” – 2011, 2012, 2014 NAFSA Regional Conferences

“Student Leadership Development” – 2010 NAFSA Regional Conference

Over 100 cross-cultural training sessions presented at international student orientations, pre-departure orientations for outbound study abroad students, Residence Life Assistants, Orientation Leaders, Academic Advisors, and Student Affairs staff members.

Over 30 presentations to Tulane faculty and staff on topics related to international education including “Immigration Rights and Responsibilities”, “Serving Undocumented Students”, “F/J International Student Visas”, “J Scholar Visas/H-1B Work Visas”, “Cross-cultural Communication and Adjustment”, “How to Hire an International Student”, “Risk Management for International Students”, “Immigration Updates”

STUDENT SUCCESS & DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION TRAININGS

VISIONS Training - a change-oriented approach to diversity and inclusion work

  • September 2019 – 1.5 day workshop

  • April 2021 – 4 day workshop: PACE I

  • Ongoing training through VISIONS from August 2021 through December 2022

NAFSA Academy for International Education – competitive and intensive year-long training program in the field of international education, 2010.

NAFSA Workshops:

  • “F-1 Regulations: Second Step”

  • “J-1 Regulations for Beginners”

  • “Academic H-1B Petitions”

  • “Campus & Community Programming”

  • “Unpacking International Experiences”

  • “Nonresident Alien Tax: What International Educators Need to Know”

Summer Institute for Intercultural Communication (SIIC) Workshops:

  • Facilitating Intercultural Discovery

  • Foundations of Intercultural Communication

  • Training Design for Intercultural Learning

  • Training Methods for Exploring Values

COMMUNITY LEADERSHIP & INVOLVEMENT

I’m involved in the local New Orleans community in a number of ways. I served for many years as a board member of a local non-profit organization called Grow Dat Youth Farm, whose mission is to nurture a diverse group of young leaders through the meaningful work of growing food.

I have been a member of the Ice Divas Social Aid & Pleasure Club since 2010. S&P clubs can be traced back to 19th century benevolent societies in New Orleans that provided health care and burial services to their members. Besides these benefits, the clubs also encouraged leadership skills and provided a space for discussing social issues as well as entertainment in the form of picnics, parades, dinners, and balls.

I created a local music festival called Laharpe Fest and a music series benefitting New Orleans musicians called Laharpe Strings.

INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE

Living Abroad: Queretaro, Mexico: July – December 2005, Rajpur, India: August 1989 – May 1991

Traveling Abroad: Australia, Argentina, Belize, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, France, Iceland, India, Italy, Mexico, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Peru, Portugal, South Africa, Spain