NAFSA 2023 Annual Conference Committee (ACC)
Executive Team
The Executive Team provides vision and oversight and ensures the conference is aligned with NAFSA’s strategic plan. They set content and networking priorities for the conference, including both concurrent sessions and poster events. They lead the content planning meeting to review the program submitted by the Conference Content Team and, with their help, engineer or re-engineer sessions, seminars, and workshops to meet content goals. In addition, they evaluate data from the previous year’s conference to inform their goals for the upcoming conference.
- Conference Chair: Margaret Wiedenhoeft, Kalamazoo College
- Content Chair: Jennifer Creamer, Robert Morris University
- Content/Workshop Coordinator: C.K. Kwai, Cleveland State University
- Poster Chair: Misty Wilson, IELTS USA
- Chair-Designate, 2024 Annual Conference Committee: Jenny Bowen, Indiana University-Bloomington
- Vice President for Scholarship and Institutional Strategy: Ahmad Ezzeddine, Wayne State University
- President of the Board of Directors: LaNitra Berger, George Mason University
Margaret Wiedenhoeft, PhD
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Kalamazoo College
Chair, 2023 Annual Conference Committee
Margaret Wiedenhoeft, PhD, holds a BA in international studies from Emory University, an MBA in international business from Western Michigan University, and a PhD from Western Michigan University. Margaret has been at KC for more than 20 years and at one time or another has performed just about...
Jennifer Creamer
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Robert Morris University
Content Chair, 2023 Annual Conference Committee
Jennifer Creamer is the director of global engagement at Robert Morris University where she oversees education abroad, international student services, and campus internationalization. Creamer has experience studying abroad (Mexico and Japan) and teaching ESL in Japan. A cultural anthropologist by...
C.K. Kwai, PhD
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Cleveland State University
Content/Workshop Coordinator, 2023 Annual Conference Committee
C.K. Kwai, director of the Center for International Services and Programs at Cleveland State University, has extensive experience in all areas of international education. C.K.’s research interest is in the areas of international education and cross-cultural communication and management. He holds a...
Misty Wilson, EdD
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IELTS USA
Poster Chair, 2023 Annual Conference Committee
Misty Wilson, Ed.D. has 17 years of experience in the field of international education as an instructor, academic administrator, and service provider. She currently uses her expertise to support teacher training, test taker resource development, and research initiatives for IELTS USA. Misty’s...
Jenny Bowen, MA
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Indiana University-Bloomington
Chair, 2024 Annual Conference Committee
Jenny Bowen has been involved in international student advising for nearly 25 years at Indiana University, and she currently serves as the university's director of international student advising. Active in various NAFSA roles at the national and regional level for 20 years, including with the ACC...
Ahmad Ezzeddine, PhD
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Wayne State University
NAFSA Vice President for Scholarship and Institutional Strategy
Ahmad Ezzeddine, PhD, is the vice president for Academic Student Affairs and Global Engagement at Wayne State University (WSU) in Detroit, Michigan, where he leads the university’s national, global, and corporate educational outreach programs. As the senior international officer, he is responsible...
LaNitra Berger, PhD
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George Mason University
NAFSA President and Chair of the Board of Directors
LaNitra Berger, PhD, is the Associate Professor of Art History and Director of African and African American Studies at George Mason University (GMU). She has helped students secure more than 60 prestigious fellowships such as the Fulbright, Boren, Gilman, Truman, Udall, and Critical Language...
Content Team
The Content Team develops a content plan for the conference and helps shape the Call for Proposals. They solicit and review proposals for sessions, poster events, and workshops that fit the conference theme and advance knowledge and skill-building for the field of international education and exchange. Each team member develops a ranked set of session and workshop proposals for their respective audience group to contribute to the creation of a coherent, comprehensive, and cutting-edge program. The team reviews and organizes posters under the direction of the Poster Chair.
- Education Abroad Knowledge Community Representative: Mariette Thomas, Loyola University New Orleans
- International Education Leadership Knowledge Community Representative: Jiangyuan (JY) Zhou, Stockton University
- International Enrollment Management Knowledge Community Representative: Katie Jabri, Concordia University, St. Paul
- International Student and Scholar Services Knowledge Community Representative: Rose Francois, Enroot Education
- Teaching, Learning, and Scholarship Knowledge Community Representative: Ling LeBeau, Syracuse University
Mariette Thomas, MA
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Loyola University New Orleans
Member at Large, Leadership Development Committee (LDC)
Mariette Thomas is the Director of the Center for International Education at Loyola University New Orleans. She has also worked Tulane University, ArtCenter College of Design, Babson College, IFSA-Butler and ISA. Thomas has been active in NAFSA for 20 years, has held leadership positions at regional...
Jiangyuan (JY) Zhou, EdD
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James Madison University
Chair-Designate, 2026 Annual Conference Committee
Jiangyuan (JY) Zhou, EdD, is the executive director, Center for Global Engagement at James Madison University. Her work focuses on internationalization, faculty empowerment, global learning, and assessment. JY keeps an active research agenda on a new theoretical framework to define and assess...
Katie Jabri, MA
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University of Minnesota, Morris
2023 Annual Conference Committee Member, IEM KC; Past Chair, IEM KC
Katie is the associate director of admissions, multicultural & international recruitment at University of Minnesota, Morris. She received her bachelor's degree in psychology from the University of Minnesota and a master's degree in leadership in student affairs from the University of St. Thomas.
Rose Francois, MA
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Enroot Education - Cambridge, Massachusetts
2023 Annual Conference Committee Member, ISSS KC; Past Chair, ISSS KC
Rose Francois is the interim executive director of Enroot Education in Cambridge, Massachusetts. With more than 10 years of international education experience, Francois is passionate about higher education, intercultural relations, and the intersectionality of global experiences and self-efficacy. A...
Ling LeBeau, PhD
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Syracuse University
2025 Annual Conference Committee Member, TLS KC
Ling Gao LeBeau, PhD, is director of international student success at Syracuse University. LeBeau is a scholar practitioner in the field of international higher education with many years of experiences in teaching, research, and administration. She has served in various roles in international...