Our team has great commitment to the important mission of international education, in-depth understanding of global primary and secondary education, and most importantly, incredible passion for the professional development of K-12 educators.
Members of our team come to work every day knowing that their contributions will dramatically change the life of the teachers they support and, in turn, the lives of the students such teachers reach. The face of basic education is changing thanks to the increased awareness of global competence and the importance of teacher exchanges.
As if passion and commitment were not enough to make a great IIE employee, they have all lived, worked, studied, and traveled abroad. They have been “in the shoes” of the grantees they support, overcome cultural barriers, learned to communicate in a foreign language, and most importantly, become global citizens.
Holly Emert, a former educator herself, taught EFL in Cornimont, France via the Fulbright Classroom Teacher Exchange program. She also had the opportunity to teach in China. Holly is the Program Lead for the Fulbright Distinguished Awards in Teaching Program.
Becky Zook supports teachers on the Fulbright Distinguished program and is the editor of monthly Global Opportunities for Teachers e-newsletter, which features the impact of the over 10, 000 alumni of IIE-administered teacher programs. Becky studied abroad in Paris, France and managed youth exchange programs in Vientiane, Laos.
Susan Gundersen lived, studied, and worked in Japan for close to five years, first as an exchange student at Kansai Gaidai University in Osaka and later on the JET program as both an Assistant Language Teacher and a manager at the prefectural and national level. This makes Susan the perfect Project Lead for the Japan-U.S. Teacher Exchange Program for Education for Sustainable Development. Susan previously managed the Japan Fulbright Memorial Fund Teacher Program and the Korean Studies Workshop for American Educators.
Nehal Gandhi, a native of Mumbai, India is our divisional Finance Manager. Nehal received the Department for International Development (DFID) Scholarship to pursue her Master’s Degree in Economics and Finance at the University of Birmingham, UK.
Chelsea Ridenour worked in Paris, France at a legal advocacy organization dedicated to immigrant rights. She was recently awarded an IIE Travelling Fellowship and will be attending the Asia Corporate Social Responsibility Summit 2014 in Hong Kong this fall. Chelsea manages the Hilton Worldwide Teacher Treks Program.
Jared McCathren, our Program Assistant, spent close to two years studying and working in France. He first studied in Provence as an undergraduate student, taught English in the Savoie region, and then returned to Provence as the assistant to the director of his study abroad program.
My personal journey involved academic and professional experiences in Ecuador, Japan, and the United Kingdom—all leading to a rewarding career in the field of international exchanges.
Our team is #generationstudyabroad and we are proud to work with extraordinary teachers who are shaping future generations of global leaders.