Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant (FLTA)
Summer Orientation Facilitators
Mr. Vinson Ballard has served in various capacities over the past 20 years, including Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Compliance Officer, administrator, university counselor, housing personnel, instructor, academic advisor, tutor-counselor, recreation administrator, coach, security specialist, motivational speaker and consultant. He currently serves as the ADA Compliance Officer in the President’s Office for Disability Services at Jackson State University, a position he has held for more than six years. Additionally, he has leadership and speaking experience in the areas of diversity, access profiling, harmony to access issues, multi-cultural development, ADA Compliance Officer training, accommodations leadership and awareness/sensitivity training, sexual harassment, emergency preparation for individuals with disabilities, martial arts synergy, and mastering the self through self-discipline.
Dr. Carrine Bishop, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Educational Leadership in the College of Education and Human Development at Jackson State University. Dr. Bishop has participated in numerous international research projects on Curriculum Development. She has participated in a Fulbright Research-Study Abroad Program in Brazil and has presented and participated in international conferences in Panama, Cuba, Nicaragua, Brazil, South Africa, and Liberia.
Ms. Inessa Korovyakovskaya is a former exchange student from Russia who earned an MBA at Alcorn State University in addition to a Diploma in Translation/Interpreting from Voronezh State University, Russia. She has worked in the capacity of Research Analyst and Translator/Interpreter for various international projects for the past five years and has served as an interpreter and project assistant for several projects hosted by the Division of International Studies and the Mississippi Consortium for International Development.
Dr. Patricia Jernigan is Assistant Dean, Division of International Studies, Jackson State University. She has a Ph.D. in Public Policy and Administrations. As the Assistant Dean, she has developed and managed international programs for over 10 years. She’s traveled extensively in the development of international projects in Africa, Central and South America, China, and Europe.
Dr. Jeton McClinton is a faculty member at Jackson State University where she teaches educational leadership and technology courses in the Department of Educational Leadership. She received a B.A. from Washington State University, an M.Ed. from the George Washington University and a Ph.D. from Mississippi State University. She has presented and authored on technology integration in the curriculum at a variety of local, regional, national and international conferences. Her research interests include faculty professional development, social networking, virtual learning communities, and student learning styles in electronic courses.
Dr. Elizabeth S. Overman is Assistant Professor, Department of History & Philosophy, Jackson State University. She has been awarded two National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowships as well as fellowships from the American Political Science Association, the United States Military Academy at West Point and the East-West Center at the University of Hawaii. She is author of 14 articles including “Ante-Bellum Labor Contracting in Mississippi,” “Mississippi’s War Against Head Start,” “Antecedents of Abolitionism: Protests in the Early Modern Period of British Colonialism,” “The Etiology of Health Security in the Age of Globalization,” “Individual Liberties v. Administrative Power,” and, with Dr. Patsy J. Daniels, “Looking to the East: A New Orientation for the Humanities,” “Chinese and U.S. Futures Linked,” and “Beijing is not about a Green Olympics as Much as it is about Industrial Expansion.”
Dr. Sakinah Abdur-Rashied is Assistant Professor of the Department of English and Modern Foreign Languages at Jackson State University. For the past 25 years, she has taught French and Spanish at Jackson State University, Alcorn State University and Hinds Community College. She has served as an Arabic Instructor for the past five years. Her research interests include achievement of foreign language proficiency, development of methodology for evaluation of the learning process, and language as the means to effective communication skills.
Ms. Kathy Sims has been employed at Jackson State University since July 1983 and is currently the International Student Advisor. She earned both a Bachelor’s degree in Business Management and Master’s degree in Business Administration from Jackson State University. As a member of NAFSA, Association of International Educators, Kathy has represented Mississippi as a State Representative. She has served twice as chair of Mississippi Association of International Educators (MAIE) and since 2007, has served as campus Mentor for the Near East and South Asia Undergraduate Exchange Program (NESA UGRAD Program).
Dr. Ingrad Smith is the Associate Dean of the College of Education and Human Development at Jackson State University. She has served as an Assistant Professor at Mississippi State University; Director of Partners in Progress at Florida International University in Miami, Florida; Assistant Superintendent in the Yazoo City Municipal School District; Principal of Northwest Jackson Middle School; and Assistant Principal at Peeples Middle School in the Jackson Public School District.
Ms. Eleanor Wendell is a Program Officer for the Fulbright FLTA Program in Enrichment and Professional Development at IIE. In addition to overseeing the coordination of eight U.S. based summer orientations, she manages the organization of the annual mid-year conference. Prior to coming to IIE, Eleanor spent two years teaching English as a Foreign Language in Madrid , Spain and Shanghai , China. She received her B.A. in Literary Studies from Middlebury College.