Mark Lenhart - Director Mark's association with the organization dates back to 1987, when he traveled to Beijing as a CET student for his junior year. Mark has worked as a Resident Director in both Beijing (1991-92) and Harbin (1990-91). As CET's Director, Mark is responsible for staff management, program promotion and CET's finances. Mark has a BA from Bowdoin College (1989), he studied at the Hopkins-Nanjing Center (1989-1990), he earned his MA from Harvard's Regional Studies Program (1995) and his MBA at the University of Maryland (2001).
Katie Smithson Burch - Senior Manager, Italy Programs Katie has a BS from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ('98). After graduation, Katie traveled to ten different countries throughout North America and Europe with Up With People. During her Up With People experience, Katie served as an Event Coordinator, Education Intern and Lead on-stage Performer. Katie has worked with CET since 2000 as CET's Program Development Officer ('00-'02), Recruitment Officer ('03-'04)and as Italy Programs Manager (04-07). Now, as CET's Senior Manager, Italy Programs, Katie serves as the point person for Program Managers and is also responsible for the development, administration and promotion of CET's programs in Italy.
Adam Jones - Asia Senior Programs Manager From 2004 to 2008, Adam served as the Resident Director and Beijing Programs Manger for CET in Beijing. He then returned to the DC office to work as the China Programs Manager and then the Asia Senior Programs Manager. Adam first became interested in China when he visited the country during a summer abroad trip through his university and since then has spent more than 8 years living, working, and studying there. Prior to CET, he served as the Program Director for the Brethren Colleges Abroad Study Center at Dalian University of Foreign Languages. Adam received a BA in Economics and Business Administration from Ouachita University in Arkansas (1993) and an MA in East Asian Studies (2004) from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Ingrid Lombardo - China Programs Manager Not only the China Programs Manager at CET, Ingrid is also a CET Hangzhou Summer Immersion alumna (2006). She holds a B.A. from the Pennsylvania State University and an M.A. from the Monterey Institute of International Studies. She has studied and worked abroad in China, first as a student and then as a U.S.-China high-tech trade consultant; in Taiwan as an English and German language instructor; and in Germany as a student and intern in the German Bundestag. She speaks English, German, and Mandarin Chinese. Ingrid's favorite hobbies are fiction writing and travel blogging.
Rachel Howard - Czech Republic and Spain Programs Manager Rachel has been an aficionado of Czech language and culture since studying in the Czech Republic in 1998. Since then she has traveled to and lived in the Czech Republic several times as both a student at the Summer School of Slavic Languages and as an English teacher in Prague. She holds a BA in Biology from Carleton College ('00) and a Master of International Public Affairs from the University of Wisconsin-Madison ('06). In addition to Czech, Rachel also speaks German and Russian, and she has recently started learning Spanish. Among other organizations, Rachel has worked for Lutheran Human Relations Association of America, Jewish Social Services of Madison, Wisconsin, and the U.S. Department of State's Office of International Religious Freedom. She is excited to be managing CET's new program, The Crossroads of Islam, Judaism and Christianity in Avila, Spain. When she's not learning languages, Rachel enjoys cooking, hiking, and cross-country skiing.
Kala Carruthers Azar - Syria Program Manager Originally from the Land of Enchantment (New Mexico), Kala holds a BA in Political Science and Philosophy/Theology from Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego, CA and an MA in Contemporary Arab Studies from Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service. She fell in love with Syria in 2004 as a Fulbright Fellow, stayed for nearly two years, and returned in 2008 as a CASA (Center for Arabic Study Abroad) Fellow. She has traveled extensively throughout the Middle East. Her love for the Arabic language, along with the people, sitcoms, and delicious food in Syria, brought her to CET to launch the inaugural Aleppo program.
Kate Maruyama - Japan and Vietnam Program Manager Kate Maruyama is a 2005 summa cum laude graduate of Macalester College in St. Paul. She majored in Japanese and Religious Studies (minor in Anthropology), and during her undergraduate years she participated in study abroad programs in Bangladesh and Japan. After graduation, she spent three years as a JET Programme teacher in Izumi-City (in Osaka prefecture), Japan. Kate's curiosity about new cultures and lands led her all over the world, including Vietnam, China, Cambodia, India, and Israel. Immediately before joining CET, Kate assisted in the organization of Concordia Language Villages' Europe Day celebration. Kate coordinates Vietnam and Asia Journeys programs.
Jennifer Tidwell - Marketing Director Jennifer studied abroad in France during her junior year of college. Although language study was not her forte, she developed a passion for education abroad. After completing a BA ('94) from George Washington University, she completed a MA ('99) at School for International Training. Her professional experience has focused on study abroad marketing at organizations such as CIEE, CUNY, Youth For Understanding, and Global College. As the Marketing Director, she directs CET's efforts in the creation and implementation of a marketing strategy that will facilitate growth.
Michael Lucerto - Northeast Campus Relations Manager Michael received a National Security Education Program David L. Boren Scholarship to attend the CET Central European Studies Program in Prague during the fall of 2001. His experience would leave a deep personal connection and fascination with Czech culture and after graduating from American University with a BA in Political Science(02), Michael returned to Prague. For the next two years Michael occasionally assisted the CET Prague Programs while completing a dual MA in International Economics and International Politics at Charles University (05). Although he has made the journey back to the United States, Michael's passion for international education remains alive. As Northeast Campus Relations Manager, Michael will team up with Janelle Murphy to assist students interested in studying abroad with CET within the New York and New England areas.
Daniel Riley - Mid-Atlantic Campus Relations Manager Daniel studied abroad twice in France while earning his BA in French at the University of Florida. Wanting to share these incredible educational experiences with others, he joined the field of education abroad after graduation and spent five years as Resident Coordinator of the CIEE programs in Brussels, Belgium. While in Belgium he earned his MA in International Relations at the Brussels campus of the University of Kent. He joined CET in 2009 as the Campus Relations Manager for the Mid-Atlantic region. His passion both in the US and abroad is to help students have the very best study abroad experience possible.
Sarah Dixon - Southeast Campus Relations Manager At the age of eleven, Sarah boarded a plane to attend a youth peace camp in French Guiana. This was just the beginning of a life full of international adventure. She continued to travel through her youth and was eager to participate in study abroad as she selected Elon University as her college of choice. In fact, her double major in Spanish and International Studies was profoundly impacted by her studies in Costa Rica, Spain, and Guatemala. Sarah then worked as a Study Abroad and International Student Advisor at her alma mater, Elon. After learning about the field of international education behind the desk, Sarah decided to expand her perspective by taking the advice she had offered thousands of students. She stepped outside her previous experience and taught English in a small village in Japan through the JET Programme. As the Campus Relations Manager in the Southeast, Sarah is excited to meet students and university staff in the area that she calls home.
Michael Nelson - Midwest Campus Relations Manager After spending a year in Italy as a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar at the Universita' di Padova, Michael knew he wanted to use his passion for international education to inspire others to study abroad as a potentially life-changing endeavor. Michael spent his last undergrad semester as an intern in the Office of International Programs at North Dakota State University, propelling him to take his next step into education abroad as a full-time career upon graduating. Michael served as a Study Abroad Adisor at International Studies Abroad (ISA) from 2002-2004, then as a Field Director at the Institute for Study Abroad Butler University from 2004-2009. He has enjoyed traveling to 26 countries, and after seven years in the field of study abroad, he plans on many more years of helping students discover what a powerful experience a term abroad can prove for building goodwill between nations and a lifestyle of transformative learning.
Dawn Gordon - West Region Campus Relations Manager Dawn's interest in world cultures was sparked at a young age when she met a variety of people through family travels. Excited to make college her resource for more exposure to world cultures, she chose to attend the University of Denver (DU) where a large portion of the student body was international. While earning her BFA ('02) at DU, Dawn studied abroad in Australia. She has also aided in conducting rainforest research in Queensland and has made numerous return trips to Australia. Dawn plans to continue exploring the world while she reaches out to students who wish to do the same as the West Region Campus Relations Manager.
Janelle Murphy - Northeast Campus Relations Coordinator Janelle spent part of high school with her family in East Asia living first in Kobe, Japan and later in Hanoi, Vietnam. She was so inspired by her early experiences that she returned to Japan to live with a host family and study in Kyoto while getting her B.A. in East Asian Studies from Smith College in 2003. After Smith, Janelle began studying Chinese and, after two summers at the Middlebury Language Schools, participated in the CET Intensive Chinese Language in Harbin program. Janelle went on to study at the Hopkins-Nanjing Center and then returned to Western Mass to work on her M.A. in Chinese at Umass-Amherst where she interned in the International Programs Office. Janelle finds great joy in assisting students through the process to go abroad and strongly believes in the importance of learning about other cultures as well as gaining perspective on your own. She (enthusiastically!) joins the CET team to work in the New England and New York areas with Michael Lucerto as the Northeast Campus Relations Coordinator.
Ben Peacock - Finance and Technology Manager Ben holds a B.A. in Chinese language from the University of Michigan and an M.A. in International Education from George Washington University. Ben taught Chinese in the DC area and helped coordinate an exchange program that brought Chinese students to US schools. During summers between teaching, Ben led experiential learning trips for high school students across China's Silk Road and studied classical Chinese at Middlebury College. He began working with CET in Beijing as Resident Director of CET's Chinese Studies Program. He then relocated to the Washington, DC office to serve as China Operations Manager, and took up his current role of Finance and Technology Manager in 2010.
Meagan Seitz-Smith - Asia Programs Officer Meagan hails from the great state of Connecticut. She spent her New England youth busy with theater, 4-H dairy and leadership projects, as well as competitive dancing. After graduating from the University of Virginia with a BA in East Asian Studies and Foreign Affairs, she went on to teach English and study Chinese in Shenzhen, China for two years. She has traveled extensively throughout China, riding camels in Xinjiang, testing her spice tolerance in Sichuan and Hunan, visiting her sister's hometown in Zhejiang, and surviving intense monkey encounters in Hainan. Now that she is back in America, she's excited to be part of the CET team and see so many students head off on their own Asia adventures.
Jean Pyun - Asia Programs Officer Jean studied abroad in China during her junior year in college, and had such a great experience, that she decided to stay in China to teach English for the summer. A research trip on Chinese media brought her briefly back to China during her senior year. After graduating with a degree in International Politics and Economics from Middlebury College, she worked in the management consulting field before deciding that she would rather be helping students have an amazing study abroad experience, and decided to join the CET team.
Randall Salisbury - Italy Programs Officer Randall grew up abroad living in India, Holland, and Finland before returning to Washington, D.C. for high school. Passionate about travel and language, Randall spent 2 consecutive summers in France, learning French, before switching gears to learn Italian. He spent his junior year abroad in Bologna, Italy and then, after graduating from Dickinson College with a degree in Political Science, returned to Bologna to work as the Program Associate for an American abroad program there. After 2 more years in Bologna, which included extensive European travel, non-stop consumption of the best Italian food in the world, and learning a lot about American students abroad, Randall came back to his native Washington, D.C. and joined the CET team.
Meredith Akery - Europe Admissions Coordinator Meredith's
fantastic high school Spanish teacher encouraged her to study abroad in
college and develop her language skills. After just one semester abroad
in Madrid, Spain, at Universidad Complutense, her enthusiasm for
international education was unleashed. She graduated from The College
of New Jersey with a BS and moved to New York City. She worked for CUNY
and Global College while finishing her MSEd from Baruch College in
2008. Most recently, Meredith lived abroad in London and worked with
U.S. study abroad students on location. Besides traveling widely
throughout Spain and England, Meredith has visited Costa Rica, Ireland,
Italy, France, and Hungary. She is thrilled to be living in our
nation's capital working with students interested in Spain, Italy, and
Prague as Europe Admissions Coordinator.
Marisa Sterling - Marketing Coordinator Originally from Colorado, Marisa attended the University of Colorado at Boulder, where she earned a BA in Spanish for the Professions, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, and a minor in Business Administration. During her collegiate experience she studied in Alcalá de Henares, Spain and was fortunate to visit ten additional countries including Morocco during her time abroad. One of her favorite countries to visit continues to be Jamaica, where many of her relatives reside. Marisa initially came to CET as an intern and is now part of the talented marketing team helping to promote each of the great CET programs.
Jocelyn Flint - Senior Programming Consultant Jocelyn's interest in international education began with her own study abroad experience in China in 1991 as a junior at Wesleyan University. After earning a BA in East Asian Studies in 1993, she moved to Taiwan where she studied intensive Mandarin at the International Chinese Language Program in Taipei (formerly, IUP or the Stanford Center) for two years, the latter as a Blakemore Fellowship recipient. A graduate scholarship from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, brought her back to the US and, while earning an MA in Chinese Language and Literature (1999), she was involved with university-level international education in a variety of ways--as Chinese language Teaching Assistant, as writing program Resident Fellow, as Center for Chinese and Japanese Studies Outreach Program Coordinator, and as Graduate Student Services Assistant. Jocelyn began working for CET Academic Programs in 2001, first in China as the Academic Director of CET's Beijing Chinese Language Program and then in the Washington, DC as the Senior Manager of China Programs. Since 2008, she has served as CET's Senior Programming Consultant out of her home office in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Erika Esposito - Consultant A graduate of Connecticut College with a double-major in French and Economics, Erika is passionate about travel. She speaks French and Italian and has studied and worked abroad in France, Switzerland, and Italy. Erika began work at CET as the Europe Programs Coordinator in 2002. In 2004, Erika transitioned into a new role as the Mid-Atlantic Campus Relations Manager. She then spent a summer serving as Assistant Resident Director of CET's Siena, Italy Program. Most recently, Erika served as the Director of Marketing, before returning as a part-time Campus Relations Manager. She has been consulting part-time for CET while living in Baltimore, Maryland with her husband and two young children.
In Memoriam: Hiliary Douglas Tragically, Hiliary died in a car accident on July 22, 2008. Click here to visit our memorial page for Hiliary. Hiliary graduated from the University of Evansville in 1999 with a BA in Theatre Arts and a minor in International Relations. She then traveled to Vietnam with a Fulbright Fellowship to investigate modern theatre in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, focusing on how the increasing privatization of Vietnam economic policy was affecting the development of local theatre companies. After two more years working for various international cultural collaborations in Vietnam (including a brief stint as an interpreter for the film The Quiet American,) Hiliary joined the CET as the Vietnam Immersion Resident Director in 2002 - a position she loved so much she stayed in for the next 5 years. Upon relocating to Portland, Oregon in August 2006, she transitioned to become CET's first Campus Relations Manager for the West Region. As a former Resident Director, Hiliary brought a wealth of practical experience and knowledge of study abroad to her new position as liaison between CET and universities located in the West.
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