International Higher Education

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.

Dr. Vital is a core faculty member in the International Higher Education program at Lesley University. Concurrent with her doctorate degree Dr. Vital earned a graduate certificate in international development and specialized in Latin American and Caribbean studies. She writes, “my positionality as a first-generation American and daughter of Haitian immigrants has largely shaped how I view and understand the world and has proved instrumental in the academic and professional decisions I have made thus far.”

Dr. Vital’s research interests include global student access, persistence, and success in higher education; the role of higher education in society; critical reflexive practice in academia, and scholar/practitioner preparation for international engagement. She seeks to unpack challenges in marginalized communities and discover how higher education can be used as a tool for addressing those challenges. Additionally, she endeavors to learn more about others and the cultural influences that underpin their lived experiences. Thus, in her teaching practice she emphasizes the increasing interconnectedness of our global community and asks students to consider their place and role in society. She encourages students to adopt critical reflective practices to understand what influences their decisions in practice and research and asks them to contemplate their positions in a new setting to minimize their impact to the environment and those they encounter.

Dr. Vital is the Vice President for Academic Partnerships Development for the USA chapter of Le Groupe de Réflexion et d’Action pour une Haïti Nouvelle (GRAHN). Additionally, she is the Senior Instructional Advisor for The Global Citizens’ Initiative online course Fundamentals of Global Citizen Leadership for international development professionals across the globe. Dr. Vital is a reviewer for the International Journal of Doctoral Studies and the Journal for the Study of Postsecondary and Tertiary Education and is a member of the American Educational Research Association, Association for the Study of Higher Education, and the Comparative and International Education Society.

Anne has been a panelist and workshop leader for several national and international conferences including the following: NAFSA (Association of International Educators), OACAC (Overseas Association for College Admission Counseling), and NACAC (National Association for College Admission Counseling).  She has also served on the Region XI NAFSA Board for International Enrollment Management (IEM).

Currently, Anne is the Director of International Admissions at Boston University. During her tenure at BU, she has worked with one of the largest international student populations in the United States, with student representing more than 100 countries.  While her primary responsibilities include managing the recruitment and selection of First-Year students at Boston University, her role also encompasses the initial immigration process for First-Year students.  Her recruitment travels have taken her around the world, with a special focus on India.

Dr. Cowan has more than 30 years of experience working in the field of education and professional development with educational institutions and the intersection with private and public sectors. She has taught and provided professional development seminars to more than 2000 educators. She directed training services and developed an international network of trainers for two major intercultural consulting firms serving Fortune 500 companies. She conducted a major international development training project for 492 professionals—university professors and business owners/managers in a variety of industries—and led international projects on conflict resolution and multicultural understanding for leaders in human services, education and government. 

Dr. Cowan has worked with educators and private sector professionals in program and curriculum development and evaluation. As Director of Faculty and Curriculum at the Emmanuel College Advancement Program in Business Administration, Dr. Cowan worked with faculty to develop, modify, and adapt curricula for 37 courses in business management areas; she supervised 80 experienced faculty in this accelerated adult degree completion program for working professionals and managers. As Program Director for Babson College’s Executive & Management Programs, Dr. Cowan designed and oversaw delivery of programs for entrepreneurs, small businesses, and Fortune 500 companies. At the Multicultural Institute for Change at Regis College, Dr. Cowan worked with faculty from six Boston-area colleges to develop multicultural curricula. Her recent research focuses on Cambodian immigrant communities in Massachusetts.  

Dr. Cowan served as Director for the Master's Program in International Higher Education and
Intercultural Relations at Lesley University for 15 years prior to her retirement from full-time teaching in 2015, and holds the title of Esteemed Faculty.

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. 

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.

Tana Ruegamer serves as Director and International Student and Scholar Advisor at the Slater International Center, Wellesley College. 

Previously, Tana worked at Bentley University’s Center for International Students and Scholars as the Assistant Director and as an adjunct lecturer in the Global Studies Department. Prior to her employment at Bentley, she worked at Boston University in the International Students and Scholars Office.

Tana recently completed a graduate certificate in Organizational Behavior from the Harvard University Extension School. She was selected to participate in the Fulbright International Education Administrators Program (IEA) to South Korea in 2011 and served as the New England Teaching, Learning, and Scholarship (TLS) rep for NAFSA: Association of International Educators Region XI from 2013-2015. Over the last six years she trained and coached with NAFSA’s National Trainer Corps Team facilitating both national and regional workshops focusing on immigration and advocacy for international students and scholars. She is also currently a fellow of the Harvard Administrators Fellowship Program (2017-2018).

Tana's area of expertise at Lesley University is international student and scholar services.

Bennett Savitz has practiced exclusively in the area of immigration law since 1994.  Prior to forming Savitz Law Offices, P.C. (ImmigrationOptions.com), he was with the firms Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris Glovsky & Popeo, P.C. in Boston; and Pampanin Law Offices in Cambridge.

Since 1994, he has been an active member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), serving on several local and national AILA committees, helping shape policies and procedures for the entire Immigration Bar.  He has also served as the Chapter Chair of the New England Chapter of AILA. Since 2008, Bennett has been selected as one of Boston's Best Lawyers in Immigration Law by Best Lawyers of America.  

Bennett speaks frequently and writes numerous articles on various aspects of Immigration Law.  He also authors articles in AILA's Immigration & Nationality Law, a nationally distributed handbook published annually at the national conference, where he is frequently a speaker.  Bennett was also the Chairman for a series of Immigration Law seminars sponsored by Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education.  Additionally, he was the editor of their two-volume reference set entitled, Immigration Law Primer.  He is currently teaching a Graduate School course on Immigration Law and Policy at Lesley University.

Bennett also presents immigration information annually to thousands of attendees at the BIO international biotechnology conferences, and has also presented at the Pacific Rim international biotechnology conferences, and the INTERPHEX international pharmaceutical conferences.  He also presented immigration information to thousands of Human Resource professionals at the SHRM Global Forum and SHRM World Congress.

He has published a chapter on Immigration Law in Legal Aspects of Doing Business in North America, Juris 2011.

Amy has been a leader and contributor to the field of international education and education abroad over the course of her career in various ways including: session panelist and chair, workshop leader, NAFSA Academy Coach, NAFSA Annual Conference session proposal reviewer, and scholarship reviewer for the Fund for Education Abroad (FEA). 

She has also held NAFSA volunteer leadership positions on both the Region XI Leadership and Trainer Corps Preparation teams. In 2018, after being nominated by colleagues, Amy was presented with the James Leck Distinguished Service Award for contributing to NAFSA Region XI in a significant manner by training, teaching, and mentoring international education professionals in New England and throughout the U.S.   

Currently, Amy serves as an Institutional Relations and Outreach Regional Director in New England for Academic Programs International (API), where she has the privilege of working closely with students and colleagues from a variety of partner institutions in New England and throughout the U.S. And this experience allows her to see first-hand what issues colleagues at partner institutions are confronting in addition to understanding what the current trends are in both Education Abroad and Higher Education.  

She oversaw the Fulbright program in Latin America and the Caribbean in her previous role as Program and Development Manager at LASPAU, an affiliate of Harvard University. Prior to that, Amy was a study abroad advisor at both Harvard University and Brandeis University. She has served as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Dominican Republic, taught ESL to Fulbrighters in Managua, Nicaragua, and studied abroad in both Mexico and Spain.