During a luncheon to celebrate International Education Week at University of Houston-Clear Lake, five educational leaders were honored for their work with the Jerry Rhodeback International Education Award. Pictured with the plaque that will contain the winners’ names are (l to r) UH-Clear Lake President William A. Staples; past UH-Clear Lake President Glenn A. Goerke; and keynote speaker Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities Associate Vice President for Programs, Services and International Affairs Alvaro Romo.   .

Five recognized with UH-Clear Lake awards

Local community leaders and university administrators celebrated International Education Week at University of Houston-Clear Lake through a variety of lectures, film screenings, a global expo and an awards luncheon. During the luncheon, five of those leaders received the Jerry Rhodeback International Education Awards.

“These awards are given to UH-Clear Lake faculty, staff and community members in recognition of their involvement in and commitment to international endeavors,” explained Executive Director of UH-Clear Lake’s Office of International Initiatives Judith Pennywell.

At the sixth annual luncheon, those honored with the Jerry Rhodeback International Education Awards included the following:

* Maria Curtis, UH-Clear Lake assistant professor of anthropology and cross-cultural studies, conducts research on the Middle East and North Africa, specifically in the area of public culture. She began a study abroad program in Turkey for UHCL students and serves as a board member of the Institute of Interfaith Dialogue.

* Joseph Giarratano, an associate professor of computer science and computer information systems, received the award in recognition of his international scholarly endeavors. His book, “Expert Systems Principles and Programming,” is used throughout the world and has been translated into Chinese, Spanish and Russian.

* Michele Kahn serves an as assistant professor of multicultural education. In addition to serving as a board member of the International Association of Intercultural Education, Kahn also serves as associate editor of the Intercultural Education journal. Kahn conducts research on world citizenship, the impact of accountability systems around the world and finding common ground in the multicultural classroom.

* Erhan Uskup, a community member and computer science instructor in the Houston Community College System, received the award because of his outstanding commitment to the local Turkish community and his dedication to Houston’s Sister Cities program in which he serves as the president of the Houston-Istanbul Sister City Association.

* Ingeborg Hayes Van Zanten serves as the international and cultural program director for the Office of International Initiatives at UH-Clear Lake. Van Zanten was recognized for her long-term commitment to world citizenship.

During the luncheon event, Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities Associate Vice President for Programs, Services and International Affairs Alvaro Romo spoke about “Educational Ties to Latin America: the Unmet Challenge.”

For more information about the awards or other UH-Clear Lake Office of International Initiatives, call 281-283-2531 or visit http://www.uhlc.edu/OII.