Center Directors
You are here
Meet our Center Directors, the greatest force in study abroad!
Chantal Omloo earned an M.A. in the History of International Relations at the University of Utrecht and an MSc in Development Studies at the School for Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London. Her academic focus was centered on economic development in Sub Saharan Africa and she has published a number of articles in this field.
Prior to joining IES Abroad in 2001, Chantal worked for Voluntary Services Overseas (VSO), an NGO based in the United Kingdom. Chantal managed customized programs for IES Abroad out of the London Center before moving back to her native Netherlands to become our Amsterdam Center Director.
Originally from the Netherlands, Hester has been a long-time resident of Arles. She earned her Master's degree in French language and literature from the University of Amsterdam and during her undergraduate years was an exchange student at the University of Lyon and in Annecy. She is passionate about travel and exchange and is particularly eager to share her knowledge and appreciation of Arles with future IES students.
Bianca has a degree in Sport and Recreation – Outdoor Education from AUT, Auckland University of Technology. She has had many years’ experience working with local Māori, youth at risk, international students and international visitors, providing customized programs and tours to support and engage the various groups and individuals she works with. Tikanga Māori is at the heart of the work she does, engaging students with the outdoor environment, on local marae, and engaging with Māori arts & culture.
Dr. Cèsar Alegre Alsina has been the Director of our Barcelona programs since 2008. He is originally from Barcelona and speaks Spanish, Catalan, and English fluently. He brings more than 20 years of experience in higher education to IES Abroad, including a noteworthy teaching career in the United States, experience in student services, and a strong research portfolio. Before coming to IES Abroad, Dr. Alegre Alsina taught Spanish language, as well as Spanish and Hispanic Culture and Literature at Amherst College for 16 years. He is the author of a book on Hispanic Americans (Scholastic), and has contributed to the Encyclopedia of Hispanic Americans (BRG Oxford) and numerous articles and reviews in American and international journals. Dr. Alegre Alsina received his Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Auburn University, his Master’s degree in Hispanic Literature at Auburn University, and his doctorate from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
Barbara holds an M.A. and a Ph.D. degree in political science from the University of Mannheim in Germany. She also studied for a year at the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore with a fellowship from the German Academic Exchange Service DAAD. Barbara conducted her Ph.D. research on the legitimacy of non-governmental organizations in global governance with a case study on women’s NGOs in the United Nations system. She has taught and published on civil society in global and European politics and on international relations theory. From 2007 to 2017, Barbara was Program Head at the Hertie School of Governance in Berlin, a distinguished international graduate school that focuses on public policy and international affairs.
Born and raised in Argentina, Juan (John) Hudson has extensive experience living and learning abroad. He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Electrical Engineering from Purdue University, and he earned a Master’s Degree in Business Administration at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business. Prior to joining IES Abroad, Juan held senior academic and managerial roles in the study abroad field in Latin America. Juan has also served as the Director for the Graduate Marketing Program at the Universidad Argentina de la Empresa, as well as Director of the MBA Program at the Universidad de Palermo's Graduate School of Business in Buenos Aires. In Argentina, he has held numerous teaching appointments in the fields of international business and marketing, and he has served as a Visiting International Scholar at Virginia Commonwealth University.
Candice is returning to her hometown of Christchurch after several years working in Sydney, Australia, at Macquarie University and Sydney University. She has extensive experience in student housing, event management, and hospitality. She is returning to her alma mater as well—she has a degree in Classics from the University of Canterbury, where she will work from an on-campus office to support our IES Abroad students in their direct enrollment program there.
Megan Markey earned an MBA in Education Management from the Institute of Education, University of London and a Masters in Sociology from University College Dublin. Employed by IES Abroad since 2004, Megan teaches our service learning seminar, Service Learning: Youth Engagement and Education in Ireland. She has also taught qualitative research for the Sociology Department at University College Dublin. Megan was the Assistant Director of the Dublin Center from 2010-2014 and became the Center Director in 2015.
Dr. Jörn Weingärtner, our new Center Director of the IES Abroad European Union and Freiburg Centers, joins IES Abroad from Witten/Herdecke University, Germany’s oldest and most highly regarded private university. Prior to joining IES Abroad, Dr. Weingärtner was Managing Director of the Faculty of the School of Management and Economics and Chief Internationalization Officer at Witten/Herdecke University; in these roles, he served as joint head of the faculty team and as a member of the extended university leadership body. As Chief Internationalization Officer, he was also the senior internationalization strategist, with responsibility for the development of the university’s international partner network and the process of internationalizing the university’s student body.
Prior to his time at Witten/Herdecke University, Dr. Weingärtner served at the German National Academic Foundation, supervising and consulting German students going abroad. He received his Ph.D. in History and his Master of Arts in History from Hamburg University.
Dr. Weingärtener’s appointment coincides with the formal administrative merger of our Freiburg and European Union Centers. The merger will accomplish some streamlining and will also benefit our relationship with the University of Freiburg and Studentenwerk.
As Center Director, Dr. Weingärtner will oversee the Freiburg and European Union Centers and manage the further development of our Freiburg programs.
Dr. Javier Martínez de Velasco has been the Director of the Granada Program since 2005. He received his doctorate in Hispanic Literature from the University of Kansas with a concentration in International Theater, and his Bachelor’s in English Philology from Universidade de Santiago de Compostela. He was a professor at Central Washington University, including the William O. Douglas Honors College, from 1994 to 2002, teaching Hispanic and Latin American Literature and Spanish. He developed a Spanish language program for Spanish Speakers at CWU and directed CWU’s Summer Program with the University of La Coruña in Galicia, Spain. As a complement to his academic work, he is an accomplished theater director.
John brings over 15 years of experience with IES Abroad, including seven years with IES Abroad Milan and nearly three years with IES Abroad Siena before coming to IES Abroad London. During his time in Siena, John developed and implemented a banner program with a strong focus on cultural immersion and academic rigor. In Milan, he played a key role in improving and developing the Milan program, notably in the areas of student housing, student activities, orientation, and supervision of the student services staff. Prior to working for IES Abroad, John received his undergraduate and graduate degrees in Italian Literature and Art History from Brigham Young University and worked in Geneva for the United Nations.
Dr. Elvira Muñoz has been the IES Abroad Madrid Center Director since 2005. She served a two-year appointment as Associate Director for the Education Abroad program at the University of California Madrid. Her association with the University of California began at UCLA, where she was a Lecturer and Associate Undergraduate Vice Chair of the Mathematics Department, 2000–2002, and visiting Assistant Professor, 1995–2000. Dr. Muñoz received two Distinguished Teaching awards during her career at UCLA. She also has taught mathematics at State University of New York at Stony Brook, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, and Universidad Complutense de Madrid. She holds a Ph.D. and M.A. in Mathematics from Université Paris XI, and a B.S. in Mathematics from Universidad de Salamanca. Her considerable experience abroad also includes work and study in Germany, Sweden, and Brazil.
For more than 20 years, Roberto Andreoni has been the Director of the Milan program. Dr. Andreoni holds a doctorate in Music from the University of California, Berkeley. He earned his undergraduate degrees at the Conservatorio G. Verdi in Milan and the Civica Scuola di Musica. He has previously served as the director of the Civica Scuola di Musica in Assago and Milan. Dr. Andreoni is an internationally recognized composer whose works are regularly commissioned, performed, published, and recorded. Dr. Andreoni also serves as the Music Coordinator for IES Abroad Milan and is a professor of Composition at the Conservatorio di Musica G. Rossini in Pesaro. During Fall 2010, he was the Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence for Music and Italian Studies at Scripps College.
ABOUT THE CENTER DIRECTORS
Juan Hudson
Center Director
IES Abroad Buenos Aires
Born and raised in Argentina, Juan Hudson has extensive experience living and learning abroad. He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Electrical Engineering from Purdue University, and he earned a Master’s Degree in Business Administration at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business. Prior to joining IES Abroad, Juan held senior academic and managerial roles in the study abroad field in Latin America. Juan has also served as the Director for the Graduate Marketing Program at the Universidad Argentina de la Empresa, as well as Director of the MBA Program at the Universidad de Palermo, Graduate School of Business in Buenos Aires. In Argentina, he has held numerous teaching appointments in the fields of international business and marketing, and Juan has served as a Visiting International Scholar at Virginia Commonwealth University.
María del Carmen Cortés Arce
Center Director
IES Abroad Santiago
A native of Santiago, Maricarmen has over 30 years of experience with local development activities with government and non-profit organizations, including Wilder Center for Communities (part of the Amherst H. Wilder Foundation), Franklin Covey Chile, the United States Peace Corps in Santiago, FINAM (a Women's World Banking NGO), and the Fundacion Miguel Kast. Maricarmen holds a Master's and B.A. in Architecture from the Universidad de Chile, and was also a Fulbright Scholar through the Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship program with the University of Minnesota.
A native of Nagoya, Dr. Satoshi Tsukamoto has been the Director of the IES Abroad Center in Nagoya since 2000. He earned his Ph.D. in Cultural Foundations of Education from Syracuse University. His fields of study include the philosophy of education, multicultural education, cultural studies, and qualitative research methods. In addition to his work for IES Abroad, he is a professor in the Department of International Communications at Aichi University in Nagoya.
Thibaut de Berranger
Center Director
Thibaut first joined IES Abroad Nantes in 1988 as instructor when he taught Government and Politics in France Since 1958. He also served as an academic advisor, helping students select courses and navigate the university system.
In 2004, Thibaut was named Director of the IES Abroad Nantes Center. Thibaut has passionately educated thousands of students, sharing with them his love for Nantes and the discovery of new languages and cultures, and celebrating with them the sense of achievement that comes from a full immersion experience.
After 12 years as Center Director, Thibaut stepped down in 2016, but continued to assist IES Abroad Nantes as an academic advisor, consultant, and liaison with the University of Nantes.
In 2019, Thibaut returned as Center Director. Welcome back, Thibaut!
Nicolas Stefanni
Associate Center Director
Nicolas joins IES Abroad from the University of Nantes, where he held several different positions, including European Project Manager, Project Engineer, and Finance and Administrative Manager. He earned his Master’s degree in Arts, Literature, and Languages at the University of Nantes, and spent one year at the University of the South as Director of the Maison Française.
Together, Thibaut and Nicolas manage all aspects of the Center, Thibaut serving as our IES Abroad Nantes Center Director on a part-time basis heading the academics and overarching direction of the Center, and Nicolas fulfilling his role as full-time Associate Director and managing day-to-day operations, including student affairs, housing, and customized programs.
Berit holds a Master of International Business Law from the University of Rostock, Germany. She had her own law firm in Rostock for a few years before relocating to Nice, where, for the past four years, she has worked in customer service and training for Questel, a software manufacturer. Berit also teaches IES Abroad Nice’s Business Ethics course.
Nathalie Lenfant has been the Director of the IES Abroad Paris Business & International Affairs Program since its inception in 2007. She has worked with IES Abroad since 1998, when she began as the Internship Coordinator of the Paris French Studies Center. She was named Associate Director of IES Abroad Paris French Studies in 2002. She holds a French License in English with a specialization in American Civilization from the University of Poitiers and a graduate degree from the École Supérieure de Traducteur Interprète et Commerce Extérieur of the Catholic University in Lille. During her studies, Mme. Lenfant spent a year as a foreign exchange student in Richmond, Virginia, and a summer as a student at Oregon State University. Prior to joining IES Abroad, Mme. Lenfant worked at the French National Office of American Field Service (AFS) as a regional coordinator of volunteering, and as a coordinator of housing, intercultural training, and student activities.
Dr. Scott Lyngaas has been the IES Abroad Paris French Studies Center Director since 2014. Scott came to IES Abroad from Beloit College, where he was Associate Dean and Associate Professor of French. He received his doctorate from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he wrote his dissertation on Francophone historical fiction. Dr. Lyngaas previously served as the Resident Director of study abroad programs in both Brussels and Paris.
Tania has been the Director of the Quito and Galápagos Islands programs since 2018. Tania brings a wide range of international education administration experience. She directed the International Partnership for Service Learning and Leadership Program at the Universidad San Francisco de Quito (USFQ), and spent 10 years as the Resident Director in Quito for Kalamazoo College. Previously she taught for IES Abroad, instructing our Internship Seminar and Social Science and Service Learning classes at USFQ. Tania has traveled and worked around the world, spending nearly 20 years devoted to NGOs.
Prior to his work as Director of the Rabat program, Mr. El Addouli was the Director and co-founder of the International Arabic Institute in Meknes. He was also the Program and Outreach Director at the Moroccan American Commission for Educational and Cultural Exchange (Fulbright Commission) in Rabat. Mr. El Addouli is a former Fulbright Visiting Scholar at the University of New England in Maine. He held teaching, coordinating and training positions at different institutions in Morocco, the U.S and Europe namely Al-Akhawayn University in Ifrane, the International School of Bologna in Italy, and QWL in Rabat. He first studied Social Entrepreneurship and Philanthropy at the University of Bologna in Italy and then participated in a four partner university program to obtain two masters in Global Studies and International Relations from the Universities of Leipzig in Germany, the London School of Economics in the UK, the University of Vienna in Austria, and the University of Wroclaw in Poland. Mr. El Addouli's interests span the fields of TAFL, Educational Curriculum Development and Design, Global Studies, Educational Governance, Civil Society and Democracy, Cultural Studies, and International Law. He has translated books and written and published articles and book reviews on transformational Education, issues on North African Politics and other related subjects. Mr. El Addouli holds a strong cosmopolitan outlook as he has studied, visited, lived in, and was trained in more than twenty foreign countries.
Dott. Ponti is an archaeologist specialized in Imperial Roman architecture. After earning a BA in Classics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Dott. Ponti obtained a Laurea in archaeology from the University of Rome. He has worked on a number of archaeological excavations in the Mediterranean, including Troy, Aphrodisias and Leptis Magna. His studies and research focus on the use of marble in Roman construction, the ancient marble trade, quarrying and carving techniques. Dott. Ponti has worked on a number of excavations in Rome, including the Palatine Hill and the Imperial Fora. He has done research for the Department of Antiquities on a number of conservation projects including the Ara Pacis, the Column of Trajan and the Arch of Constantine. He is currently directing an excavation at the Villa of Maxentius on the Via Appia, as well as conducting architectural studies at Leptis Magna, Libya, with the Università di Rome Tre. Dott. Ponti has taught at the Istituto Centrale del Restauro of the Department of Antiquities and is currently Archaeology Advisor of the American Academy in Rome. He has been teaching archaeology courses at IES Abroad Rome since 2004.
Originally from the United States, Barbara Liberatore has been living and working in Salamanca for over 25 years. She is fluent in Spanish and Italian. She earned her Bachelor’s degree from the University of Rhode Island, where she studied languages, and her Master’s degree in Italian Studies from Brown University, where she also held a teaching assistantship. Barbara brings to IES Abroad more than 25 years of experience in teaching, management and supervision in international education. She has taught a wide range of courses and languages to students of all ages. Barbara taught in Brown University’s Summer Intensive English Program, was the Assistant Director for the University of Rhode Island’s Summer Study Abroad Program in Salamanca, and directed other American study abroad programs in Salamanca before beginning with IES Abroad. She has held the position of Center Director at the IES Abroad Salamanca Center since 2008. As Center Director, Barbara is in charge of Center management, supervises both staff and faculty, and focuses on academics and curriculum development at the Center.
A native of Santiago, Maricarmen has over 30 years of experience with local development activities with government and non-profit organizations, including Wilder Center for Communities (part of the Amherst H. Wilder Foundation, Saint Paul, MN), Franklin Covey Chile, the United States Peace Corps in Santiago, FINAM (a Women's World Banking NGO), and the Miguel Kast Foundation. Maricarmen holds a Master's and B.A. in Architecture from the Universidad de Chile, and was also a Fulbright Scholar through the Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship program with the University of Minnesota.
Qinbo "James" Gao has been involved in international education for many years. Prior to joining IES Abroad Shanghai as the Center Director, he was the Director of the International Affairs Office (IAO) at Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU)-Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance (SAIF). He joined SAIF in 2009 as a founding member for the institution, which is a collaboration between the Shanghai Municipal Government (SMG) and SJTU.
Before joining SAIF, James worked at the Chinese Europe International Business School (CEIBS) as Accreditations & International Programs Manager. He started his career as an English lecturer at Tongji University, where he received “Junior Teacher Awards” in 1998 and 1999, based upon student voting and academic reviews.
James received his bachelor’s degree from the International Studies University in Xi’an, and his M.A. in Tourism Administration from The George Washington University School of Business. He is a candidate for the Doctorate of Education at the University of Nottingham (China Campus), focusing on practical research in higher education.
Veronica Semeraro has worked at our IES Abroad Siena Center since the founding of the program in 2006 when she was hired as the Student Affairs Coordinator. Since that time, she has been actively involved in all aspects of the program, including housing, customized programs, arrival and orientation, field trips, and academic coordination. Veronica was promoted to Center Director of IES Abroad Siena in 2012.
Prior to working with IES Abroad, Veronica graduated with honors in Archaeology from the University of Siena. Her thesis addressed the GIS platform of the newly discovered and frescoed rooms beneath the Cathedral of Siena. She contributed, with vectorial maps and archaeological drawings, to the publication Sotto il Duomo di Siena (2003). Upon winning a research grant following graduation, Veronica spent six years working in the University of Siena archaeology laboratory in Computer Science. She also spent several years drawing dig maps while working on site in various important archaeological digs in Tuscany (rooms beneath the Siena Cathedral; castle of Miranduolo, Podium Bonizio village) specializing in GIS technology. Veronica is an avid traveler and a member of an all-female Brazilian drum group in Siena.
Kate Smart has been the Director of the Sydney programs since 2016. Kate has over 15 years of experience in International Education, including senior Study Abroad roles at Macquarie University, the University of Sydney, and University of New South Wales.
Kate has lived and worked in the United States and studied abroad in Thailand and Jamaica. She has a Master of Arts in International Studies from the University of Technology, Sydney, and a Master of Education in International Education from Monash University. Kate loves sharing her knowledge of the city (and the rest of Australia) with new students, from her favorite beaches to swim at to the best place to grab a great flat white.
Caleb Foale
Center Director
Caleb Foale was first appointed as Center Director in 2015 and his personal and professional experiences span the globe. Born in Britain, he grew up in the UK and New Zealand, graduating from the University of Otago in New Zealand with a degree in Politics. He then carried out research and postgraduate study in Japan and Australia. While in Australia, he earned two Master’s degrees—an M.A. in Strategic and Defense Studies from the Australian National University and an M.Ed. in TESOL from Queensland University of Technology. He also spent a significant amount of time living and working in Brazil, before his return to Japan in 2000. He graduated with an M.B.A. from the University of Leicester in 2016. He worked on an education related project in the Philippines from the latter half of 2018 to early 2019, and brings extensive experience in teaching and management in tertiary education to our Tokyo Center.
An international scholar, Dr. Solvik holds a Ph.D. in Musicology from the University of Pennsylvania and a B.A. in Music and Intellectual History from Cornell University. Born in Norway, he speaks Norwegian, German, and English fluently, and uses French as a research language.
Dr. Solvik was instrumental in setting up the IES Abroad Vienna Music Program, which he has coordinated since 1999, and has also designed and taught numerous courses in Music History. In addition to his work with IES Abroad Vienna, Dr. Solvik has served as lecturer at the Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst (The University for Music and Performing Arts). His teaching and administrative experience is augmented by his active and productive scholarly career as an expert on Gustav Mahler.
Melissa joined IES Abroad in 2013 and has worked in a variety of roles including advisor, recruiter, manager, and currently Executive Director overseeing the Internship Programming department. As Director, she leads a team of talented professionals in developing and expanding IES Abroad’s full-time global internship programs. Melissa has worked in higher education for 10 years. Previously, she worked in career services at DePaul University and at the University of Chicago, where her primary focus was counseling students on career exploration and preparedness. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of Illinois at Chicago and a Master of Education degree in Counseling with a concentration in College Student Development from DePaul University.
Rachel joined IES Abroad in 2014 as a College Relations Manager. In 2019 she transitioned to her current role as Program Director, North America for IES Internships. With over a decade of experience in higher education in Manhattan, Rachel is passionate about introducing students to the dynamic global metropolis that is New York City. Prior to joining IES Abroad, Rachel was the Program Director at Barnard College, where she developed programs for visiting international students. She received her BA in European Studies from Barnard College, Columbia University and her MA in Educational Psychology from NYU-Steinhardt.
