Intercultural Relations

Louise Michelle Vital, PhD, is an Assistant Professor of International Higher Education and Co-Director of the Institute for English Language Programs Beyond Borders at Lesley University. Vital has nearly 20 years of experience in post-secondary education, including in student services, international education, teaching and academic service, and higher education scholarship. Her primary line of inquiry is related to the global dimensions of higher education. Broadly, her interests center on a country and regional focus on Haiti and the Caribbean, student experiences in higher education, scholar/practitioner preparation, and critical reflexive practice in academia. Her teaching, research, and scholarship are driven by key suppositions and questions, including how inequalities in power and privilege exist in society: What are the consequences of these realities, and how do they impact experience in higher education contexts?

Professor Meenakshi Chhabra is a graduate of the Intercultural Relations Program at Lesley University, where she also completed her Ph.D in Educational Studies with a focus on youth development in protracted conflict contexts.  As a scholar and practitioner in Peace and Conflict Studies, Meenakshi has been recognized as a Fulbright Specialist in the field. She has also been awarded two Fulbright Senior Scholarships for her research and teaching related to Peace Education.

Her current research focuses on a comparative study examining teaching about historical events of conflict in India, Northern Ireland, and South Africa for which she has received a Fulbright Global Fellowship. Her research interest includes, peace education, youth leadership, and trauma and resilience, in conflict contexts. In addition to research and teaching, Meenakshi has been working with youth and educators in international conflict and post-conflict contexts.

Co-Founder and Co-Chair of Violence Against Women Initiative. 
Violence against Women: Representations, Interpretations, Explorations/Education is a call for action to put a stop to violence against women.

Ann Moritz is a management consultant with over 30 years of experience in HR management and training. She specializes in issues of social, racial, and economic diversity and inclusion, in communications and organizational management.  Ann is principal of Moritz Advisory Group, founded in 1989, where she has consulted to both corporate and non-profit organizations in diversity and inclusion assessment, plan development, executive coaching, communication skills, training, and team-building.  She co-designed the ongoing workshop program: Building Alliances Across Race for Women Leaders.  Ann chairs the Boston Cultural Council,  served on the Executive Committee of Commonwealth Compact, the Steering Committee of Boston Busing/Desegregation Project, and chaired the Trustee Committee on Diversity of Outward Bound/Thompson Island.  The 25 years of Gospel Night at the Boston Pops began with the initiative of a BSO Diversity Committee that she helped design.  She formerly headed Human Relations, Training and Development for the newsroom of the Boston Globe.  She also has served as Director of the Management Training Center at the Northwestern University/Kellogg Graduate School of Management.

Jay Jones has professional experience centered on 15 years of college teaching at various institutions, including Boston College, Southeastern Massachusetts University, the University of Western Ontario in London Ontario, Canada, and since 1980, Lesley University. In these settings, he has taught a variety of economics courses including Urban and Regional Economics, Environmental Policy Design, International Political Economy, Development Economics, Industrial Organizations, and Statistics.

At Lesley University, he has been a major contributor in the initial planning, execution, and continued success of the master's degree program in International Higher Education.

Arlene retired in May 2018 after teaching at Lesley for 23 years. Her teaching and scholarship have been focused on examining sociology and feminist theory and pedagogy from a cross-cultural perspective.

Her areas of academic focus and expertise include: sociology, qualitative methodology and ethnography, diaspora and transnationality, gender and globalization, and film and advocacy. At Lesley, she has taught the following courses: Sociology of Family Gender and Globalization Global Social Change Film, Media and Advocacy Dimensions and Methods of Cultural Exploration II. 

Arlene holds a BA from Tufts University, and a MA and PhD from the University of California Los Angeles.