Kate coordinates programs in Asia, Scandinavia, Central and Eastern Europe (Arctic, Bangladesh, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Hungary, India, Norway, Russia, and Taiwan.) She is also responsible for advising students who participate in programs outside of MSU and for the Spring Break programs. She is originally from Des Moines, Iowa and graduated with a BS in Anthropology from Iowa State University, a MA in Anthropology from Michigan State University, and is currently working on her PhD in Anthropology at Michigan State University where she focuses on how study abroad students negotiate understandings of culture(s) while participating on programs abroad. Her research examines how students experience issues of identity, authenticity, and power. She has begun to publish her research and continues to develop her passion for international education.
Kate has traveled, worked, and/or lived in four global regions including Asia, Africa, Central America, and Europe. Kate began her work in Asia when she lived in Taiwan where she taught ESL. Her first abroad experience was to Ghana when she was in high school and it was there that she discovered her love for anthropology. During her undergraduate years, she participated and led groups of students around the globe working on volunteer service-learning projects. She most recently taught and co-led MSU’s Agriculture, Development, Environment, and Gender: NGO Internships in Ghana/Malawi through the Center for Gender in Global Context (GenCen).
She believes as students become global citizens, it is increasingly important for everyone to have the opportunity to study abroad. Studying, volunteering, and traveling abroad illuminates how important it is for students to not only learn about another culture, but to learn that they themselves have their own culture.
*Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to read PDF documents.
