Alumni News
| Undergraduate European Studies Major receives Fulbright |
| Directly after graduation in 2008, Diana Hujeij taught at Höhere Bundeslehranstalt für Land- und Ernährungswirtschaft Elmberg in Linz, Austria through the Fulbright Program. Upon returning to the states (Ohio) she opened her own retail store at a local mall and sold gift items from local and international artists (as well as hand made jewelry that she designed). She then worked with Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions in New York City and is planning on starting a masters in Strategic Marketing in England. |  |
| Tom Langehaug (IDS '09) is now Colorado State Program Specialist | |
| Tom Langehaug (IDS '09) is now Colorado State Program Specialist for the Corporation for National and Community Service. He manages Colorado VISTA program, approves funding (grants) for Senior Corps programs statewide, and monitors both programs. | |
| Gibbs Kanyongo is now an Associate Professor of Educational Statistic | |
| Gibbs Kanyongo (IDS '98) earned his PhD in Educational Research and Evaluation from the Ohio University College of Education in 2004 and is now a tenured Associate Professor of Educational Statistics and Research at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. |  |
| Roger Anderson, African Studies graduate 2009 is among the winners of the Fulbright award |
Anderson, who received his master's degrees in African studies and French in June 2009, will travel to Morocco. His project is titled "Al-Harrali and the Wahdat al-Wujud: A translation and analysis." He also will be taking advanced Arabic classes thanks to a Critical Language Enhancement Award, also provided through the Fulbright program. |
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| Omolola Anne Famuyiwa was a recipient of (SLDF) |
| Omolola Anne Famuyiwa (CommDev ’07) was a recipient of a Sexuality Leadership Development Fellowship (SLDF) and conference participant, which took place from 19th – 30th July 2010. The SLDF is an annual capacity development programme organised by the ARSRC (African Regional Sexuality Resource Centre), a project of Action Health Incorporated (AHI) with funding from Ford Foundation. The workshop brought together participants from Ghana, South Africa, Zambia, Uganda, Kenya and Nigeria to Action Health Incorporated, Lagos to develop a better understanding of the concepts and contexts of sexuality, sexual health and sexual rights in Africa, increase the capacity to interrogate specific contemporary sexuality issues and challenges on the continent, and articulate how to engage with promoting sexual health and rights in different countries. |  |
| An alumnus rose high in his home country Laos | |
| Anouparb (Parb) Vongnorkeo, MAIA Class of 1998, has served as Director of the United Nations Division (Social and Economic Affairs) and member of the Cabinet of Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Laos since June 2006. During the past decade, he has travelled extensively to more than 30 countries in Asia, Europe, America, and Africa. He has also been a regular member of the Lao delegation attending the annual UN General Assembly as well as several regional and international events. |  |
| Kurie is the new USINDO Representative in Jakarta | |
Southeast Asian Studies Graduate Kurniasih "Kurie" Suditomo has been appointed the new USINDO Representative in Jakarta, starting August 2, 2010. Kurie has been a journalist and reporter with Tempo (including Tempo, Koran Tempo, and Tempo Interactif) for over ten years. She was a Fulbright Scholar, receiving her Masters Degree in Southeast Asian Studies from Ohio University in 2005, and her Bachelor's Degree in Communication from Padjadjaran University, Bandung. She is an accomplished writer and reporter in both Bahasa and English, including coverage of how Indonesians view the United States. |
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| Mark Mason Experience in Afaghanistan | |
| For ten months between 2009-2010 Mark was deployed to Afghanistan on a Human Terrain Team as part of the Army's proof of concept program known as the Human Terrain System. The program deploys former military, often former special forces, and civilians with doctoral and master's degrees in anthropology, sociology, international development, conflict resolution and international affairs on small teams to conduct social science research with local Afghan and Iraqi populations to increase understanding of culture, customs, history, economics and social dynamics of local populations. Mark was stationed in Jalalabad but conducted the majority of his field research in eastern Afghanistan, along the mountainous border with Pakistan, in the provinces of Kunar and Nuristan. He also worked in Nangahar and Laghman provinces. |  |
| For travel to mountainous districts and forward operating bases
he regularly traveled by helicopter; Black Hawks, Hueies, and Chinooks,
often late at night in black out conditions. Once to the rural mountains he
jumped rides on MRAPS and Humvees as well as joining foot patrols to
villages where he could spend time with village elders, shuras, maliks,
teachers, district government officials, Afghan National Army officers and
soldiers. Mark typically partnered with Army or Marine units, such as Civil
Affairs and Embedded Training Teams as well as USAID and Department of State
representatives that interacted with Afghans on a daily basis. In ten months Mark conducted over a hundred interviews lasting on average between 45-90 minutes. When focus groups participated, semi-structured interviews would be followed by well appointed Afghan meals. Employing his skills in ethnographic and social research methods honed at OU and while in Aceh, Indonesia working on his thesis, Mark analyzed and processed his research into approximately twenty formal written deliverable reports that were utilized by Army Civil Affairs, Agri-business Development Teams (ADT), Provincial Reconstruction Teams, Female Engagment Teams (FET) US government District Support Teams (DST), USAID and the Department of State. Much of his work is now being declassified for publication and potential use by development agencies and NGOs. Mark may soon be training new social scientists on the various ways to conduct their research in Afghanistan and other conflict areas as well as how to work within the the trilateral government department environments where the US finds itself engaged in counterinsurgency theory and application. Highlights of his year with the Department of Defense were; convincing the military to provide daily weather reports for the Afgahn population, having an ADT pursue a rainwater harvesting demonstration project built by Nangahar University students, convincing brigade command to pay much more attention to the Afghan female population with increased support for the use of FETs, the State Department using his research on local government mentoring models to develop their DSTs, his research on the Afghan populations lack of a shared common experience with the Taliban, his governance case study being presented by the Secretary of Defense in high level meetings and being awarded the Commander's Award for Civilian Service (Department of the Army). At present Mark and his spouse live in San Diego, California. |
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| Stephanie Jackson Named Outstanding Undergraduate Advisor | |
Stephanie Jackson (IDS '98) was recently selected as the recipient of the 2010 Outstanding Academic Advisor award at the Georgia Institute of Technology. This annual institute-wide award recognizes outstanding performance in undergraduate academic advising. For more information, visit http://www.iac.gatech.edu/news-and-events/story?id=4254 |
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| Deanna Behring received the 2010 Spirit of Internationalization Award | |
| Deanna Behring (IDS '87) is Director of International Programs in the College of Agricultural Sciences at Penn State University. She was selected as a recipient of the 2010 Spirit of Internationalization Award at Penn State. These annual awards honor women with international interests who have shown extraordinary strength of character and commitment to the cause of internationalization, whether through a specialized focus on one project, or a variety of initiatives or methods of support. |  |
| Nathan Olah Work Experience in Iraq |
| In May and June of 2009, I worked in Baghdad, Iraq for Management Systems International (MSI), a private development company based in Washington DC. As a Project Manager for MSI, I provided short-term technical assistance to the USAID-funded Iraq Tatweer (“development” in Arabic) National Capacity Development Project. Since its inception in 2006, this project has trained thousands of Government of Iraq employees from 10 central ministries and several key executive offices. During my seven weeks in Iraq, I lived and worked on a compound located in the so-called “red zone”. While I was there, I assisted in the preparation of several reports to the US government, trained field accounting staff, facilitated the design of websites and logos for the Iraqi Government, and advised the project staff on GIS-related activities. |
| Overall, my experience in Iraq was very rewarding and I feel that my work there has contributed to positive change and a better future for the nation. Traveling around the country, I felt safe despite having to follow safety and security protocol including wearing a helmet and bullet-proof vest. The best part of my trip was working directly with the citizens of Iraq. I felt privileged to be able to work with individuals whose bravery and resourcefulness allows them to accomplish great things under difficult circumstances. Since my return to the US, I have continued to work for MSI as a Project Manager on the USAID-funded Iraq Tatweer National Capacity Development Project. I currently handle the IT needs of the project, manage the procurement of goods and services, and continue to advise on GIS-related activities. |  |
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