Ms. Jennifer Strauss
Director, International Exchange Programs

Jennifer Strauss has been involved in international educational exchange for nearly three decades with fifteen years of experience administering the State Department's International Visitor Leadership Program. In addition to her current management responsibilities, she is also an active program officer, planning programs for individuals and groups on such diverse topics as NGO management, economic development, education, and rule of law. Ms. Strauss first became involved in international education as an AFS host sister, then lived in Denmark for a year as an AFS participant in the school-year abroad program. She also ran mid-year evaluation programs for exchange students, interviewed prospective host families and student applicants, and served as liaison between international au-pairs and their hosting families.
After receiving her BA in Political Science, graduating with high honors and distinction from the University of Michigan, Ms. Strauss spent two years in Togo, West Africa, as a Peace Corps Volunteer, teaching English and health. Upon her return to the United States, she joined the staff of the Institute of International Education, working in their Professional Exchange Programs Division for thirteen years, first as Program Associate and then as Program Officer.  She left IIE in 1996 to spend time raising her children. She also taught parenting skills to other parents, volunteered in the community, and consulted on a variety of international education and citizen diplomacy projects including developing a training manual called "The Art of Programming" and writing proposals for International Student Exchange Programs. 
In 2004, Ms. Strauss became Deputy Director of International Exchange Programs at the Phelps Stokes Fund and was quickly promoted to Director. She enjoys tennis, travel, reading, cooking, and foreign languages and speaks French, Spanish, Ewe, and some Danish

Ms. Katie Irvin
Program Associate, International Exchange Programs

Katie Irvin joined the Phelps Stokes Fund in June 2007 with a background in both international organizations and higher education.  Her previous experience includes internships with Women’s Campaign International, Gender Education and Training Network, and the World Affairs Council of Pittsburgh. She has also held administrative positions at Carnegie Mellon’s Office of the Provost and Department of Academic Development. In addition, she spent a year teaching high school English in the north of France.
 
Ms. Irvin received her B.A. in International Relations with a minor in Women’s Studies from the University of Pennsylvania, where she spent her junior year as an exchange student at the University of Stockholm. She also holds an M.Phil in Development Studies from the University of Cape Town. Her master’s thesis focused on the growing field of volunteer tourism, particularly on the positive and negative impacts of volunteer tourists on the local communities they are aiming to assist.  Her thesis outlined ways in which to improve the volunteer tourism industry so that the focus is less on the volunteer’s needs and more on empowering local communities while facilitating international exchange.
 
Ms. Irvin is interested in women’s empowerment, international education, and international exchange, particularly as it pertains to Africa. She has lived in Sweden, South Africa and France and has traveled to Haiti, Namibia, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Ireland, and Canada. She speaks Swedish and French.

Ms. Elisabeth Frost
Program Associate, International Exchange Programs

Elisabeth joined the Phelps Stokes Fund in August 2007 after working as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Burkina Faso, West Africa.  She has also taught English as a Second Language to adults at LADO International College and worked as an intern at the Public Policy and Advocacy Office of Girl Scouts of the USA and the Public Affairs Section of the American Embassy in Buenos Aires, Argentina. 

Ms. Frost began traveling at a young age as the daughter of a Foreign Service Officer, living in Mexico, Guinea, Honduras, Brazil, and Argentina.  As an undergraduate at Bates College, Ms. Frost continued to cultivate her interest in foreign cultures, studying abroad in China and France and receiving degrees in Asian Studies and French.  She speaks Spanish, Portuguese, French, and Mandarin Chinese.     

Ms. Edenn Perez
Program Officer, International Exchange Programs

Edenn Perez joined the Phelps Stokes Fund in October 2006 and is currently working with the Fund’s International Exchange Programs.  She brings considerable experience in non-profit management and education to her position at the Fund, having worked for 7 years with Heads Up, a nonprofit in Washington, DC whose mission is to provide children and youth from low-income neighborhoods with the academic skills and learning opportunities they need to succeed and become effective social change leaders. 

Ms. Perez has a B.A. in Public Communications with a minor in English Literature from American University in Washington, DC.  She also holds a certificate in Public and Nonprofit Executive Management from Georgetown University.  Ms. Perez has taught English in Gijon, Spain.

Ms. Jennifer Thorvig
Program Officer, International Exchange Programs

Jennifer joined the Phelps Stokes Fund in August 2007 after nearly 3 years of designing and implementing international exchange programs at both the Minnesota International Center and the Institute of International Education.  In addition to intercultural exchange, she is passionate about civic engagement and has volunteered on issue-based and political campaigns in every national and state election since 2000.  She was awarded the National Council for International Visitors’ 2006 Outstanding Community Organization Programmer Award for her work on the U.S. Department of State International Visitor Leadership Program in Minnesota and, though now working in Washington, she remains an advocate for the local councils and the grassroots nature of the IVLP.  Ms. Thorvig has a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies and History from Hamline University and also studied in Vienna, Austria.

Ms. Tonija Hope Navas
Program Officer, International Exchange Programs

Tonija Hope Navas joined the Phelps Stokes Fund in June 2006 after a decade working in the restaurant industry. One of Ms. Navas’ many passions is facilitating exposure to international arenas and exchange opportunities for youth with limited resources. The Fund’s focus on international exposure for underserved populations was of particular interest to Ms. Navas as was the Fund’s work in Liberia, because her mother is Liberian.

Ms. Navas has a variety of experience working with the State Department’s International Visitor Leadership Program through internships at both the Minnesota International Center and the Institute of International Education’s Professional Exchange Programs Division.

Ms. Navas’ heart has always been in the field of international understanding and education and she has visited many parts of the world including Sweden, Finland, France, Spain, England, Guatemala, Bahamas, Argentina, Uruguay, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Brazil and Jamaica. She loves dancing and listening to salsa, playing and watching soccer, photography, reading, and dining out. Fluent in Spanish and Portuguese, she hopes to one day add French and Italian to that list. She earned a B.A. in Spanish/Latin American Literature and Latin American Studies from Macalester College in St. Paul, MN in 1997 and a master’s degree in Tourism Administration with a concentration in International Education from George Washington University in 2003.

Ms. Shantoba Carew
Program Associate, International Exchange Programs

Shantoba Carew joined Phelps Stokes Fund in August 2006, upon finishing an M.A. in Asian Studies with a focus on East Asian Languages and Cultural Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB). Ms. Carew earned her B.A. in Asian Studies and Anthropology from Mount Holyoke College in June 2004. At Mount Holyoke College Ms. Carew interned at museums in the U.S. clarifying provenance issues, creating marketing campaigns, addressing historical accuracy issues as well as assisting with education projects. She spent her junior year abroad in Beijing , China studying Chinese language and culture, in addition to working at the Golden Key Research Center for Education in Beijing , China on issues of education for the blind. Most recently she was a Teaching Assistant (TA), grant writer and course co-creator at UCSB, teaching East Asian Traditions: Pre-modern and Modern China and Japan , Tourism in East Asia , and Popular Culture in Japan.

Ms. Carew’s presented and published works illustrate her varied interests. She was selected to present her undergraduate work on the Inca in South America as well as the socio-politics of water in China at anthropology conferences in Massachusetts and published a piece on race relations and Malcolm X in Race and Class. Her M.A. thesis concerned Chinese intellectual and revolutionary conceptions of race, ethnicity, scientism, nationalism and the nation-state in China at the turn of the twentieth century.

Ms. Carew’s other interests include international health and access to healthcare within marginalized communities, international affairs, travel, archaeology, nonfiction, tennis, and facilitating international exchanges in order to promote positive world change. She has lived in Mexico and China and has traveled to Cuba, Barbados, Trinidad, Jamaica, Dominican Republic, Guyana, Brazil, Egypt, Japan, China, France, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, United Kingdom, Austria, New Zealand, Australia, Denmark, Hungary, Switzerland, Tibet, Mexico and Canada. She speaks Mandarin Chinese, German and Japanese.

Central Administration Staff

Mr. Leon Collins
Director, Education and Leadership Programs

Leon Collins began working with the Phelps Stokes Fund in June, 2005. Previously, Mr. Collins currently worked as an independent consultant, doing broad-based strategic content development, marketing and workforce development in both the private sector and for nonprofit organizations. His experience and adaptive leadership style spans many disciplines. As an accomplished media executive and administrator, he has a reputation for effective strategic planning and visionary skills in management, brand building and production including senior management positions in radio and television, education, fundraising, business, organizational development, educational technology, consulting on technology grants, coaching, mentoring, workplace diversity, marketing and financial management.

Through the years, Mr. Collins has held a variety of leadership positions, domestically and internationally with public broadcasting, commercial broadcasting and community radio stations including working with the following institutions: University of Michigan Public Broadcasting TV 28 PBS, University of Houston PBS, WPFW FM radio in Washington, DC, WLII TV Lorimar Telepictures in Puerto Rico, and WTJX TV PBS in the Virgin Islands.

Mr. Collins has excellent administrative skills including the ability to diagnose a situation and un-bundle the values and issues at stake and to manage projects on time and within budget.

Mr. Collins received his Master of Arts degree from Antioch College in 1976.

Bethany Dickerson is the Associate Director of Education and Leadership Programs at the Phelps Stokes Fund, located in Washington, DC.  Dickerson’s responsibilities at the Phelps Stokes Fund include developing and supporting the Ralph Bunche Societies at colleges and universities throughout the United States.  The goals of the program initiative include developing a cadre of undergraduate minority student leaders by encouraging them to pursue opportunities in the international arena and apply their academic skills on a global scale – regardless of their field of study.

Dickerson earned a Master of Public Policy degree from Georgetown University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Government from the University of Virginia.  She has also participated in numerous professional development workshops and conferences related to development/grantwriting and leadership development.  Dickerson also has studied abroad in Japan and Great Britain.  She and her family have hosted exchange students from Japan, Paraguay, and Liberia.  She is an active member of the National Legal Aid and Defender Association and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.

Ms. Yolanda Hampton
Director of Finance and Administration

Yolanda Hampton joined the Phelps Stokes Fund in April 2006 coming from an extensive background in nonprofit finance and administration. Ms. Hampton’s previous experience includes working with a variety of nonprofit organizations managing their daily operations including financial processing, human resources, office management and general administrative functions. She has also worked in the banking industry specializing in Trust Administration.

Ms. Hampton enjoys reading, African-American history and spending time with her family. She also has traveled to Germany, England, Turkey, and the Caribbean.

Ms. Misha Charles
Associate Director, Planning and Board Relations

Misha Charles began working with the Phelps Stokes Fund in September 2006. Prior to joining the Fund, Ms. Charles was an Administrative and Program Associate at the Association of American Colleges & Universities. There, she planned a variety of national conferences and contributed to a number of projects designed to help colleges and universities develop leadership capacity and institutional perspectives among faculty and administrators, to increase access for traditionally underserved students, and to redefine excellence to include a diversity of perspectives. Previously, Ms. Charles also taught quantitative literacy at the University of Cape Town for two years.

Ms. Charles received her A.B. in history with a certificate in African American Studies from Princeton University. She holds a B.A. (honors) in African Studies and an M.A. in Historical Studies from the University of Cape Town. Her master’s thesis examined black immigrants from the U.S. and the Caribbean who settled in Cape Town during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and the creation of a disparate “American Negro” community that operated in tandem with the emergent “Coloured” identity. She is currently pursuing a second M.A. in Higher Education Administration with a concentration in International Education from the George Washington University.

Ms. Charles is interested in global learning and exchange within the African world, particularly as it is facilitated by higher education and other nonprofit institutions. She is an avid reader of fiction and nonfiction and enjoys listening to music, traveling, and spending time with friends and family. In addition to living in South Africa, she has lived in Germany and has traveled to Botswana, Zimbabwe, Austria, Jamaica, Canada, Spain, and The Netherlands. She is learning to speak isiZulu.

Geary Williams is the Program Manager of Education and Leadership Programs at the Phelps Stokes Fund.  Mr. Williams has extensive experience working with social advocates, community planners, educational institutions, mentoring, and community outreach and leadership projects.  Mr. Williams has been directly involved with planning and implementation of innovative and successful grant-funded projects for the last 8 years.  Mr. Williams has taught college computing courses as well as professional development courses for k-12 schoolteachers on incorporating technology into classroom curriculum.  Mr. Williams has implemented many education, technology, and leadership projects for k-12, non-profit, and private sectors.  Mr. Williams also has a strong background in fiscal planning and management, helping individuals establish several successful small businesses throughout mid-Michigan. Prior to joining the fund, Mr. Williams worked at the University of Michigan-Flint, where he worked in the Center for Civic Engagement as a Associate Project Manager/Program Coordinator as well as running his own consulting company called Simple Technology Solutions, LLC.

Mr. Williams possesses a Bachelors of Science degree in African-American Studies from Eastern Michigan University, as well as a Masters of Science in Public Administration degree from Central Michigan University.  Mr. Williams has also done extensive coursework and research in Anthropology and Psychology at the University of Michigan-Flint. Mr. Williams has traveled to Liberia.  

Ms. Belinda Chiu
Special Assistant to the President

Belinda Chiu joined the Phelps Stokes Fund in November, 2004. Ms. Chiu has extensive knowledge developing human capital and education programs, conducting strategic research and analysis, addressing needs of underserved populations, improving organizational processes, and promoting cross-cultural integration and communication. Her previous experience addressing the needs of the private and public sector includes social and minority marketing; strategic consulting for non-profits, academic institutions, and hospitals; and global management consulting in the food and marketing industry, focused on branding, distribution, and availability. Ms. Chiu also worked in domestic and international admissions at a highly-selective U.S. undergraduate institution.
Ms. Chiu graduated cum laude from Dartmouth College with an A.B. in Government with Honors. She received her Master's in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University, where she concentrated on International Education Management and Entrepreneurship and International Negotiation and Conflict Resolution. A leader and member of various organizations focused on promoting people of color in international affairs, the Asian American community, and the promotion of public-private initiatives, she is also trained in mediation and focus group facilitation. An avid traveler, she is fluent in Cantonese and proficient in Spanish.