Ben Alexander, Sr. Partner, Alexander Consulting & Training, Inc.
Session Title: Back to Basics: The EEO/Workforce Diversity Interface
Day: N/A

For over 20 years Ben Alexander has designed and presented workshops in the areas of EEO, Human Resources Management, managing workforce diversity and dispute resolution to thousands of participants in over two-hundred private and public organizations. In collaboration with Vision Pointe Productions, Inc. Ben and his spouse and partner, Debra B. Alexander have written and co-produced best selling video training programs such as The FAIR-Way to Manage Diversity; MEET on Common Ground: Speaking Up for Respect in the Workplace; We Need to MEET: Managing for Respect in the Workplace; and the Telly Award winning program, Just BE FAIR: A Practical Approach to Diversity in the Workplace.

Fanta Aw, Vice President of Campus Life, American University
Session: Current Challenges and Opportunities in International Education - Panel (with Shoshana Sumka and Kristina Thompson)
Day: N/A

Fanta Aw is Assistant Vice President of Campus Life at American University since September 2007. Prior to assuming the functions of Assistant Vice President She was director of International Student and Scholar from 1998-2007. Ms. Aw serves as a senior administrative officer of the Office of Campus Life (executive level) with responsibility for the development and administration of intercultural student services, policies and programs. Her portfolio includes the GLBTA Resource Center, International Student and Scholar Services, Kay Spiritual Life Center, Multicultural Affairs, Student Activities and the University Center. Fanta Aw has over 15 years of experience in the field of international education exchange and higher education. She has taught and lectured on a range of international and intercultural topics at AU and at George Washington University. She had led workshops for organizations including the Department of State, the Institute for International Education, American Council, the Academy for Education Development, and NAFSA: Association of International Educators, among others.

Neeta Bhasin , President/CEO, ASB Communications
Session: Understanding New Markets: The South Asian Diaspora
Day: N/A

Neeta Bhasin is the President/CEO of ASB Communications, a full service multicultural communications agency dedicated to the ethnic markets, especially the South Asian (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal) and Middle Eastern markets, in North America. Neeta not only knows the areas of community concentration but also has a personal relationship with their leaders and the media. She believes that client needs are as diversified as they are specific and something that works for one product may not necessarily work for another. Aside from possessing psychographic insight, she also possesses insight on the psychology of this vibrant, affluent, evolved and phenomenally growing ethnic group in the USA.

Neeta is as well known as a media personality in the South Asian community as she is known for her television shows and for her insights into the ethnic markets. She hosts a live show on ITV, a New York/New Jersey channel dedicated to the South Asian Diaspora. She was invited as a guest lecturer at NYU, St. John’s University and many other prestigious public forums to share her insights of the South Asian market in the US. She was also recognized and awarded by the Census Board for her contribution in making Census 2000 a success. Neeta was commended by New York City for her outstanding service to the South Asian community. Complementing her strengths is a group of communications professionals with cumulative experience across a vast array of industries.

 

David Bachner, Director and Scholar-in-Residence, IMI
Session: N/A
Day: N/A

David J. Bachner (Ph.D. in organizational behavior, Case Western Reserve University; B.A. in philosophy, Bates College) is Scholar-in-Residence in the International Communication Program of American University's School of International Service, where he also serves as Director of the Intercultural Management Institute. He is Dean Emeritus of Hartwick College, where he served variously as Dean of Global Studies, Director of the Sondhi Limthongkul Center for Interdependence, and acting Vice President for Academic Affairs. Prior to Hartwick, Bachner was Vice President of Youth For Understanding (YFU) International Exchange in Washington, DC. He is currently Chairman of YFU's International Advisory Council, a Trustee of YFU International Educational Services, and a Trustee of YFU USA. Bachner has been an exchange student in Japan and a Peace Corps Volunteer in Korea. Following his Peace Corps service, he was Training Officer at the University of Hawaii 's Center for Cross-Cultural Training and Research. Bachner is a Consulting Editor of the International Journal of Intercultural Relations and a Fellow of the International Academy for Intercultural Research.

Judee Blohm, Independent Consultant
Session: Coming Soon!
Day: N/A

Judee Blohm is a cross-cultural educator and training consultant in the Washington, DC, area. She specializes in instructional design, writing and editing publications, and delivery of training and educational programs targeted at youth, families, and adults working and living in multi-cultural settings. Judee is the author and editor of numerous training materials, including teaching games and simulations, a pamphlet series, manuals, and study guides. Her book, Where in the World are You Going?, creatively helps children prepare for international moves.

Erran Carmel, Associate Professor and Chair of the Information Technology Department, Kogod School of Business, American University
Session: How Gradations of Time Zones Impact Performance in Global Teams (with Alberto Espinosa)
Day: N/A

Carmel studies globally dispersed software teams, offshore sourcing of IT work, and national policy issues surrounding software. His 1999 book Global Software Teams was the first on this topic. His 2005 book, Offshoring Information Technology, covers the range of topics that managers need to know about offshore work. He has written over 70 articles, reports, and manuscripts. He is the department chair and tenured Associate Professor at the Information Technology department, Kogod School of Business at American University. In the 1990s he co-founded and led the program in Management of Global Information Technology.He received his Ph.D., in Management Information Systems from the University of Arizona; his MBA from the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), and his B.A. from the University of California at Berkeley.

R. Phil Deavel , Deputy General Counsel for Dispute Resolution, U.S. Air Force
Session: Through the Prism of Culture: Interest Based Negotiations and the U.S. Air Force - Panel (with Stefan Eisen, Kenneth Lechter and Gary Weaver)
Day: N/A

R. Philip Deavel is the Deputy General Counsel for Dispute Resolution (SAF/GCD). Mr. Deavel is responsible for promoting efficient and effective dispute resolution processes and developing
systematic Air Forcewide negotiation and dispute resolution capabilities, to include establishing alternative dispute resolution (ADR) policy, guidance and instructions. SAF/GCD is also
designated as the General Counsel’s point of contact for EEO cases, labormanagement disputes, adverse actions and appeals, and Office of Special Counsel complaints.

Mr. Deavel began his career as an Air Force Judge Advocate. After 22 years on active duty, he retired in the grade of colonel. After leaving active duty, Mr. Deavel was employed as an attorney for the Department of Defense Education Activity, where his practice focused on labor and employment law. He joined the Air Force Office of General Counsel in 2003.

Rick Detweiler, President, Great Lakes Colleges Association
Session: Assessing the impact of Study Abroad on Educational Goals (with Derek Vaughan)
Day: N/A

Rick Detweiler is the president of the Great Lakes Colleges Association, Detweiler was a distinguished fellow and interim president of the Council on Library and Information Resources in Washington, DC; president and professor of psychology at Hartwick College in New York; and vice president and professor of psychology at Drew University in New Jersey. Dr. Detweiler is a social psychologist specializing in intercultural relations with advanced degrees from Princeton University (M.A. 1972 and Ph.D. 1973).

Bagher Fardanesh , Faculty Practitioner, Carey Business School, The Johns
Hopkins University
Session: International Business Negotiation and Promotional Strategy: A Cross Cultural Perspective
Day: N/A

Dr. M. Bagher Fardanesh is a professor of business, management, and marketing. He was the founder of Farco International, a management consulting firm in Boulder, Colorado, and served as the chair of a World Affairs Conference at the University of Colorado.He has given seminars and conducted management consulting in the United States, Canada, and overseas, in organizations including international operations of General Motors, Noranda Centre de Technologie in Quebec, The Johns Hopkins University, Maryland Workforce Development Association, Lockheed Martin, and The World Trade Center Institute.

Professor Fardanesh served as the chair of the Self-Study Subcommittee on Faculty, toward the reaffirmation of accreditation by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, 2004-5 at Strayer University; he is the Associate Dean of the Owings Mills Campus, a member of the graduate committee, and the recipient of the Faculty Leadership award, for 2006. Moreover, he is a practitioner faculty for graduate teaching in marketing at the Johns Hopkins University Carey Business School. He is also a member of review panel for marketing textbooks with McGraw-Hill/Irwin. Dr. Fardanesh has been inducted into the United Who’s Who Registry of Executives and Professionals, and The American Society for Training and Development (ASTD), Maryland Chapter. He is currently writing a book on misunderstandings in multi-cultural settings and their significance for global corporations.

Dr. Stefan Eisen Jr., Director , USAF Negotiation Center of Excellence
Session: Through the Prism of Culture: Interest Based Negotiations and the U.S. Air Force - Panel (with R. Phillip Deavel, Kenneth Lechter and Gary Weaver)
Day: N/A

Dr. Stefan Eisen Jr. is the Director of the USAF Negotiation Center of Excellence, Maxwell AFB, AL. He is the past Dean of Academic Affairs for the Air War College and retired from the Air Force in 2006 after 30 years of service.Dr. Eisen is a five-time commander. He has led the 737th Training Group (Air Force Basic Military Training), Lackland AFB, TX., the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps HQ at Maxwell AFB, AL, the 37th Flying Training Squadron, Columbus AFB, MS., and the 3830th Student Squadron at the Air Force’s Squadron Officer School, Maxwell AFB, AL. He also served as commander, Air and Space Basic Course, Maxwell, AFB, AL.

Joe Eldridge, Chaplain, Kay Spiritual Life Center at American University
Session: Managing an NGO in a Multicultural Context - Panel
Day: N/A

As the University Chaplain, Eldridge coordinates activities in Kay Spiritual Life Center. An ordained United Methodist minister, Joe Eldridge arrived at AU having spent more than twenty five years working in the public policy arena as advocate and analyst on international human rights and humanitarian issues. In 1991 he established the Washington office of the Lawyers Committee for Human Rights; during the mid-1980s he worked in Honduras consulting on human rights and development issues; and after a three year sojourn in Chile working with the mission agency of the United Methodist Church, in the early 1970s he co-founded the Washington Office on Latin America and served as its first director.

Dean Foster, President, Dean Foster Associates
Session: "CULTURE'S COMPASS": Revealing the Destiny of Nations in a Global World
Day: N/A

For almost two decades, Dean Foster, President, Dean Foster Associates, has been involved in researching, writing about, and consulting on the nature of culture and its role in society, work and politics in a globalizing world. As founder and former Worldwide Director of Berlitz Cross-Cultural, as well as the founder and President of his own company, Cross-Cultural Consulting Associates, New York, Dean has played a central role in the development of the field of cross-cultural training and consulting.

Fredda Haines, Associate, Booz Allen Hamilton
Session: Intercultural Careers Panel
Day: N/A

Fredda Haines is an Associate with the management consulting firm, Booz Allen Hamilton, focusing on distance learning, and federal – state relations. She works as liaison between the National Guard Bureau and the Joint Force Headquarters of 13 states, facilitating training and education of military and civilian personnel, using distance learning technologies. For more than 12 years Fredda has been involved in training design, development and delivery, presenting technical and soft skills training in federal and private organizations. While earning her Masters degree at American University in International Affairs, she worked for Pew Charitable Trusts, teaching ESL to high-level officials from “economies in transition”. She continued after graduation in 1994, as an independent consultant, training in cross-cultural communication and conflict resolution for the Department of Transportation and also conducting a “Workforce Cultural Audit” for the Coast Guard.

Richard Harris, Ph. D. , Professor, Faculty of Management, Chukyo University, Japan
Session: Managing Space: Cultural Differences in Perception of Space and their Implications for Managers
Day: N/A

Dr Richard Harris, born in London, U.K., is a tenured professor in the Faculty of Management at Chukyo University, Japan, where he has lived for over 25 years. He teaches intercultural communication in Japanese at undergraduate and graduate levels and travels extensively out of personal and professional curiosity. Richard is also on the faculty of the Summer Institute for Intercultural Communication in Oregon, where he has taught workshops on, among other topics, space and culture, intercultural tourism, and working with multicultural groups. He has published articles on the cultural impact of space, on the representation of cultures in museums, and is the author of Paradise: A Cultural Guide, a study of cross-cultural concepts of the ideal.

Kenneth Lechter, Associate General Counsel for Dispute Resolution, U.S. Air Force
Session: Through the Prism of Culture: Interest Based Negotiations and the U.S. Air Force (with R. Phil Deavel, Stefan Eisen, and Gary Weaver)
Day: N/A

Ken Lechter is Associate General Counsel in the Dispute Resolution Division of the Air Force General Counsel’s Office. Ken's principal program responsibilities are the Air Force Negotiation Center of Excellence and ADR in the area of acquisitions. Prior to joining the General Counsel’s Office he was senior procurement counsel for the Department of Commerce with primary responsibility for litigating appeals at the General Services Administration Board of Contract Appeals and bid protests before the General Accountability Office. He also served as the Department of Commerce representative to the Inter-Agency ADR Working Group Steering Committee. During his tenure at Commerce he was detailed to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), where he served as Associate Director of Administration, to the General Counsel, where he served as Chief of Staff, and to the Department of Defense, where he was a principal draftsman of the Iraqi Government Procurement Order (CPA Order No.87).

Ursula Leitzmann, Manager, Training and Development, IOR Global Services
Session: Challenges of a Multi-Cultural Workforce
Day: N/A

Leitzmann serves as manager for Training and Development at IOR Global Services in Northbrook, IL. Ursula specializes in intercultural communication, cross-cultural and diversity training, organization development, conflict resolution and team building. Ursula has conducted intercultural communication seminars and diversity training programs for a wide spectrum of professionals at the National Institutes of Health. She has also served as project manager for ethics training and organization development for the Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics at the National Cancer Institute and developed key material on intercultural competence in public health in collaboration with the Office of Education. Ms. Leitzmann has a master’s degree in Intercultural Relations from the University of the Pacific, CA, through the Intercultural Communications Institute (ICI), and also a master’s in Communication from the Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany. She also has a Graduate Certificate in Administration and Management from Harvard University. She is a former board member of SIETAR USA and the current Executive coordinator of SIETAR DC.

Ray Leki, Director, Transition Center, Foreign Service Institute, Department of State
Session: Coming Soon!
Day: N/A

Ray S. Leki is the director of the United States Department of State Foreign Service Institute's Transition Center. Prior to directing the Center, Mr. Leki was the coordinator of the State Department's Security Overseas Seminar, the government's largest non-military overseas security training program. Mr. Leki's work in government began as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Nepal, where he taught mathematics and science in an extremely remote village high school. He is the author of scores of experiential training designs, and has produced and developed documentary and training videotapes and computer based training programs.

Richard Linowes, Kogod Outstanding Professor of Undergraduate Programs, Kogod School of Business, American University
Session: Managing Your Way in Emerging Markets
Day: N/A

Richard G. Linowes is Kogod Outstanding Professor of Undergraduate Programs at the Kogod School of Business at American University in Washington, D.C. He has a D.B.A. from Harvard University's Graduate School of Business Administration, masters from the University of Michigan in computer and communication sciences, and bachelors from Princeton University where he pursued a self-designed major in cybernetics (combining math, philosophy, electrical engineering and psychology). Dr. Linowes' professional management experience includes several years with Arthur Andersen (now Accenture) and Goldman Sachs in New York City (where he helped plan the firm’s international expansion). He has also edited four USAID casebooks profiling small businesses in emerging markets.

Michael McCarry , Executive Director, Alliance for International Educational and Cultural Exchange
Session(s): 1) Intercultural Careers Panel; 2) The Policy Climate for International and Cultural Exchange Programs
Day: N/A

Michael McCarry joined the Alliance for International Educational and Cultural Exchange as its executive director in October 1994. Prior to joining the Alliance, he spent 18 years with the U.S. Information Agency as a Foreign Service Officer. He served as U.S. Cultural Attaché in Beijing in the years immediately following the Tiananmen Square events of 1989, and in Thailand in Bangkok and Chiang Mai. He speaks Mandarin Chinese and Thai. He also served in Washington as staff director in the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, and as chief of Advising and Student Services. Prior to joining the Foreign Service, McCarry worked as a Congressional aide and as a journalist. He received an M.A. from the University of Texas (Austin), a B.A. from the University of Notre Dame, and studied at Melbourne University in Australia as a Rotary Graduate Fellow.

Derek Vaughan, Vice President, Great Lakes Colleges Association
Session: Assessing the impact of Study Abroad on Educational Goals (with Rick Detweiler)
Day: N/A

Bio Coming Soon!

Anthony Wanis-St. John, Professor, International Peace and Conflict Resolution Division, American University
Session: Coming Soon!
Day: N/A

Anthony Wanis-St. John joined the faculty of American University's School of International Service as Assistant Professor in the International Peace and Conflict Resolution Division in September 2006. Prior to this post, he was a Research Associate at the Center on International Conflict Resolution at Columbia University. He earned his Ph.D. (2001) and M.A.L.D. (1996) from the Fletcher School, Tufts University and was awarded a Doctoral Fellowship at Harvard Law School's Program on Negotiation. He has previously taught at the University of Massachusetts' Dispute Resolution Program, Johns Hopkins/SAIS, Tufts University/Fletcher School and Notre Dame University (Beirut, Lebanon) and Seton Hall University. He is completing a book with Lynne Rienner Publishers entitled: Back Channels: Two Edged Sword of Peacemaking .  He consults with the World Bank, the World Health Organization and civil society organizations on their peacebuilding work. He was born in Cairo, Egypt of Palestinian and Lebanese origins and he speaks fluent Spanish and French as well as basic Arabic.

Gary Weaver, Executive Director, Intercultural Management Institute, American University
Session: Through the Prism of Culture: Interest Based Negotiations and the U.S. Air Force - Panel (with Stefan Eisen and Kenneth Lechter)
Day: N/A

For forty years Dr. Gary Weaver has been a member of the faculty of the School of International Service at American University. In 1999, he founded and now serves as Executive Director of the Intercultural Management Institute. He has created and directed various academic programs at American, including the Seminar on Managing a Multicultural Workforce and has also taught courses on multicultural management for the National Training Laboratory (NTL), American University graduate program. Each year he gives over 100 keynote addresses, lectures, training seminars, and workshops to various universities, nonprofit groups, government agencies, professional organizations and business groups in the U.S. and abroad. His topics range from culture shock and cross-cultural negotiation to conflict resolution and diversity.