Delegation Head:

Furton, Kenneth, Ph.D. (bio)
Provost & Executive Vice President
Professor of Forensic Chemistry
Founder, International Forensic Research Institute (IFRI)

Delegation Members – Faculty:

Iyengar, S.S., Ph.D. (bio)
Director, School of Computing & Information Sciences
Ryder Professor of Computer Science
Founding Director of the FIU Discovery Lab

Jung, Ranu, Ph.D. (bio)
Chair, Department of Biomedical Engineering
Professor and Wallace Coulter Eminent Scholar

Kundu, Sumit, Ph.D. (bio)
Eminent Scholar, Management & International Business
James K. Batten Eminent Scholar Chair in International Business
Director, Master of International Business Program
Associate Dean, International Programs

Li, Joanne, Ph.D. (bio)
Dean, College of Business
Ryder Eminent Scholar Chair in Business
Eminent Scholar Department of Finance

Mills, DeEtta (Dee), Ph.D. (bio)
Director, International Forensic Research Institute (IFRI)
Associate Professor, Biological Sciences

Newman, Meredith, Ph.D. (bio)
Vice Provost, Faculty & Global Affairs
Professor of Public Administration

Delegation Members – Administration:

Noppen, Sarah (bio)
Director, International Admissions

Rausch-Montoto, Birgitta (Gitta) (bio)
Director, Faculty & Global Affairs
Fulbright Scholar Program Campus Liaison

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Delegation Biographies:

Kenneth G. Furton – Dr. Furton was appointed Provost and Executive Vice President of  FIU on July 2014. He is a leading scholar in forensic chemistry, specializing in scent detection. He served as the dean of the College of Arts and Sciences from 2007 to 2014, where he transformed the university’s largest college into three mission-based interdisciplinary schools to explore and address some of the biggest issues facing society today.

Having started at FIU in 1988 as an assistant professor in chemistry, Dr. Furton in 1997 founded FIU’s International Forensic Research Institute (IFRI), which is globally recognized as one of the premier research and teaching institutes on forensic science. He subsequently served as associate dean of budget, facilities and research and remains director emeritus at IFRI, where he continues to be active, directing the research of graduate and undergraduate students and publishing papers and filing patents. Dr. Furton earned a B.S. in Forensic Science at the University of Central Florida in 1983, a Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry at Wayne State University in 1986 and completed post-doctoral studies in Nuclear Chemistry at the University of Wales, Swansea, and U.K in 1988. His expertise has led him to serve in numerous local, national and international professional organizations, including the National Academy of Sciences, the National Nuclear Security Administration and the Scientific Working Group on Dog and Orthogonal Detector Guidelines, which he chaired since its inception in 2004. He is currently chair of the Organization for Scientific Area Committees Dog and Sensor working group of the National Commission on Forensic Science.

Deeply committed to the academy, Dr. Furton is the author or co-author of more than 800 publications and presentations. His research projects have been continuously funded for more than two decades, totaling more than $13 million in external funding. He has shared his expertise in forensic science through hundreds of invited talks nationally and internationally and has testified as an expert witness in dozens of state and federal trials.

 

S.S. Iyengar – Dr. “Ram” Iyengar is currently the Ryder Professor of Computer Science and Director of the School of Computing and Information Sciences. He is also the founding director of the Discovery Lab. His research interests include High-Performance Algorithms, Biomedical Computing, Sensor Fusion, and Intelligent Systems for the last four decades. His research has been funded by the National Science Foundation, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Multi-University Research Initiative  Program, Office of Naval Research, Department of Energy / Oak Ridge National Laboratory , Naval Research Laboratory, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, US Army Research Office, and various state agencies and companies. He has served on the US National Science Foundation and National Institute of Health Panels to review proposals in various aspects of Computational Science and has been involved as an external evaluator (ABET-accreditation) for several Computer Science and Engineering Departments across the country and the world.

Dr. Iyengar has also served as a research proposal evaluator for the National Academy of Engineering. Dr. Iyengar is developing computational measures for predicting DNA mutations during cancer evolution, using wavelet analysis in cancer genome research, and designing smart biomarkers for bioremediation. His inventions have significantly impacted biomedical engineering and medicine. He recently patented a simple, low-cost device for early intervention in glaucoma, and was involved in early detection of lung cancer by developing a 4D motion model jointly with Southwestern Medical School.

Dr. Iyengar is a Member of the European Academy of Sciences, a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), a Fellow of the Association of Computing Machinery (ACM), a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), a Fellow of the Society for Design and Process Science (SDPS), a Fellow of National Academy of Inventors (NAI) and Fellow of the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE). Dr. Iyengar has been the Chair for many IEEE conferences in the area of Sensor Networks, Computational Biology, Image processing, etc. He is also the founding editor of the International Journal of Distributed Sensor Networks, and he has been on the editorial Board of many IEEE Journals.

He was awarded Satish Dhawan Chaired Professorship at IISc, then Roy Paul Daniel Professorship at LSU. He has received the Distinguished Alumnus Award of the Indian Institute of Science. In 1998, he was awarded the IEEE Computer Society’s Technical Achievement award and is an IEEE Golden Core Member. He also received a Lifetime Achievement award conferred by International Conference on Agile manufacturing at IIT-BHU. Professor Iyengar is an IEEE Distinguished Visitor, SIAM Distinguished Lecturer, and ACM National Lecturer and has won many other awards like Distinguished Research Master’s award, Hub Cotton award of Faculty Excellence (LSU), Rain Maker awards (LSU), Florida Information Technology award (IT2), Distinguished Research award from Tunisian Mathematical Society etc.

During the last four decades, he has supervised over 55 Ph.D. students, 100 Master’s students, and many undergraduate students who are now faculty at Major Universities worldwide or Scientists or Engineers at National Labs/Industries around the world. He has published more than 500 research papers, has authored/co-authored and edited 22 books. His books are published by MIT Press, John Wiley and Sons, CRC Press, Prentice Hall, Springer Verlag, IEEE Computer Society Press, etc. One of his books titled “Introduction to Parallel Algorithms” has been translated to Chinese. During the last thirty years Dr. Iyengar has brought in over 65 million dollars for research and education. He has been providing the students and faculty with a vision for active learning and collaboration at Louisiana State University, Florida International University, and across many Universities in China and India. He has received many outstanding Journal and Conference Paper awards with his students.

 

Ranu Jung – Dr. Jung holds the Wallace H Coulter Eminent Scholar endowed Chair in Biomedical Engineering where she is Professor and Head of the Department of Biomedical Engineering since 2011. She served as Interim Dean of the College of Engineering and Computing from 2015 to 2017. Jung is at the cutting edge between engineering and neuroscience, developing devices that lead to scientific advances with clear pathways to clinical application. Of special interest to her are biohybrid systems that merge biologically inspired technologies with humans for recovery and restoration of lost function.

A champion for innovation and entrepreneurship her team developed the first wireless, implantable, neuralinterface system for restoring sensations to amputees and received FDA approval to conduct a first-in-human trial. Her honors include the FIU 2016 Outstanding Faculty Torch Award, 2012 Top Scholar award, 2011 New Florida Scholar’s Boost Award, 2002 Kentucky Science and Engineering Award, Whitaker Foundation Young Investigator Award, NIH National Research Service Award, AHA NE Ohio Research Fellow and appointment as commissioner, Arizona Biomedical Research Commission. Holder of 7 U.S. patents, 5 pending, founder of one R&D Company, past-President of the “Organization for Computational Neurosciences, Inc”, her publications include an edited book – Biohybrid-systems:Nerves, Interfaces and Machines, and over 130 research articles and book chapters. She serves as Co-Editor-in-Chief of the Springer Encyclopedia of Computational Neuroscience, Associate Editor of Annals of Biomedical Engineering and on the Editorial board of Bioelectronics in Medicine. Jung is a Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors, Senior Member of IEEE and Society of Women Engineers, and elected to the International Women’s Forum. She received her Doctoral degree and Masters in Biomedical Engineering from Case Western Reserve University, USA and her Bachelors with Distinction in Electronics & Communication Engineering from National Institute of Technology, Warangal, India.

 

Sumit Kundu – Dr. Kundu is the James K. Batten Eminent Scholar Chair in International Business in the College of Business. Dr. Kundu is the Academic Director of the Masters of International Business program and served as the Faculty Director of the Executive MBA program  and Ph.D. Coordinator. Dr. Kundu has taught several international business courses at both the graduate and undergraduate levels at FIU, Saint Louis University, State University of New York, Northeastern University, and Rutgers University. His extensive international experience includes teaching at Chulalongkorn University (Thailand), City University of Hong Kong (China), Saint Louis University Madrid Campus (Spain), and the Indian Institute of Management.

Dr. Kundu has been the recipient of several teaching awards namely, Best Professor in Professional MBA program (2010), Best Professor in International MBA program (2007), Best Professor award in Masters in International Business program (August 2016, 2015, December 2012, May 2012, 2011, 2006), Outstanding Teacher in Executive MBA program (2004), and Best Course award in Masters in International Business program (2012). Dr. Kundu was named Outstanding Graduate Teacher of the Year (2003), Teacher of the Year for Executive Masters in International Business program (2003), and Teacher of the Year for the full-time MBA program (2003) at Saint Louis University.

Dr. Kundu was appointed in March 2017 as the Associate Editor for Journal of Business Research, as a Board Member for the European International Business Academy (2017-2019) and served as Vice-President (Administration) for the Academy of International Business (2014-2017). On the research front, Dr. Kundu sits on the editorial board of several premier journals, Journal of International Business Studies, Management International Review, Global Strategy Journal, Journal of World Business, International Business Review, Journal of International Management, Thunderbird International Business Review, and Journal of Teaching in International Business. Dr. Kundu has published several articles in prestigious journals, namely, Journal of International Business Studies, Journal of Management Studies, Management International Review, Journal of World Business, Journal of International Management, Journal of International Marketing, Journal of Business Research, Journal of Business Ethics, Journal of World Business, Journal of International Management, International Business Review, Leadership Quarterly, Journal of Small Business Economics, Cross-Cultural & Strategic Management: An International Journal and International Journal of Emerging Markets.

He has served as a Chair and member on many dissertation committees. Dr. Kundu has presented numerous papers in the Academy of International Business Academy of Management, and Strategic Management Society conferences. He served as the track chair for its annual conference in Stockholm, Sweden in July 2004; Milan, Italy in June 2008; San Diego, California, USA in June 2009 and Nagoya, Japan in June 2011. Dr. Kundu organized the Junior Faculty Consortium at the annual Academy of International Business 2006 conference in Beijing, China and the Doctoral Consortium at the annual Academy of International Business 2012 conference in Washington DC. He has also served as the president and program chair for the Midwest Academy of International Business Conference in 2003 and 2002.

 

Joanne Li – Dr. Li, CFA is Dean, Professor of Finance and Ryder Eminent Scholar Chair at FIU’s College of Business, an AACSB-accredited college. As dean, she leads the college’s Landon Undergraduate School and Chapman Graduate School, as well as its executive education, global learning and small business development programs at the Pino Global Entrepreneurship Center).

Dr. Li is a retainer/selected speaker for the CFA Institute and CFA Institute Asia-Pacific.  She has presented on the value of corporate governance at many international and national CFA societies including the Thailand Stock Exchange (TSE). She established the CFA mentoring program in numerous institutions and coordinated a Global Investment Research Challenge for the D.C. and Baltimore Societies. She has published in top ranked finance journals, including the Journal of Banking and Finance, Journal of Financial Research, and The Financial Review.  She was the recipient of the Outstanding Article recognition in the Journal of Financial Research in 2005. She served as Associated Editor for Financial Analysts Journal in 2011 and 2012 and also served on the Editorial Board of the journal. In 2008, she took on the role of Editor in Chief of the Stalla Review for the CFA Exams.

Dr. Li graduated with a Ph.D. in Business Administration with a concentration in Finance and a support area in Econometrics from Florida State University.  She was awarded the Chartered Financial Analyst designation in 2001.

 

DeEtta (Dee) Mills – Dr. Mills is Associate Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences and is the current Director of the International Forensic Research Institute (IFRI) and Director of the Forensic DNA Profiling Facility within IFRI at Florida International University.  Dr. Mills has been the Graduate Program Director for the MS in Forensic Sciences, a FEPAC accredited program.  Dr. Mills received her BS in (Cell) Biology from the University of Kansas, Lawrence, KA in 1988, her MS in Biology from Texas Christian University, Ft. Worth, TX. Her PhD in Environmental Sciences and Public Policy was awarded in 2001 from George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, where she developed microbial DNA profiling methods to monitor soil communities.

Dr. Mills’ research areas of expertise are in DNA separation methods, non-human DNA profiling, development of novel methods for DNA profiling as well as expertise in the soil microbiome for soil provenance and forensic applications.  Funding sources have included NSF (microbial communities and novel separation methods), NIJ (work force training grant; trace evidence collection), USDA-FS (equine DNA profiling), FBI (trace epithelial cell collection), National Geo-spatial Intelligence Agency (soil forensics), and Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (fungal pathogen detection).  Dr. Mills and her students have filed two patents (vacuum collection device for trace evidence; pathogen gold nanoparticle biosensor).  Dr. Mills has been awarded ≈ $1.8M in grants/contracts either as PI, co-PI or a subcontractor.

 

Meredith A. Newman – Dr. Newman is Vice Provost for Faculty and Global Affairs at FIU. In this role she works directly with the Provost to oversee all initiatives that support faculty, including recruitment, promotion and retention of faculty and other areas that relate to a professionalized faculty and career progression. Dr. Newman also oversees FIU Global Affairs, which centralizes the university’s global initiatives in regards to planning, facilitating, coordinating and initiating partnerships with international institutions and organizations. She serves as Chair of an FIU Global Council, made up of multidisciplinary representatives, whose mission includes facilitating the expansion of global learning programs and strategic global initiatives for FIU.

Dr. Newman joined the faculty as Director of the School of Public Administration and Professor in Public Administration in 2006. She subsequently served as Chair of the Department of Public Administration before joining the Dean’s office at the College of Arts & Sciences in January 2013 as Senior Associate Dean and subsequently as Vice Dean. Her successful academic career includes appointments at the University of Illinois Springfield and at Washington State University Vancouver. Prior to her career in academia, Newman served with the Australian Foreign Service, the U.S. Department of State, and the World Bank, including tours of duty in France, Viet Nam, Senegal, Malaysia, and Republic of Singapore. Dr. Newman is recognized as one of the leading experts in the field of public management and the emotive aspects of work. Dr. Newman’s books have won numerous awards. Her contributions to the profession have been recognized by a series of awards, such as the Lifetime Achievement in Public Human Resources Scholarship Award of the American Society for Public Administration. Dr. Newman is past Chair of the Commission on Peer Review and Accreditation of the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs and Administration; former Vice-President for North America, the International Association of Schools and Institutes of Administration; and Past President of the American Society for Public Administration. She is a Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration.

 

Sarah Noppen – Ms. Noppen serves as Director, International Admissions. She has nearly 15 years of experience in the field international education and student mobility. Sarah joined FIU in 2014 with the charge to overhaul international recruitment and admissions practices at the undergraduate level. She has worked to build relationships and implement best practices for increasing international student numbers at FIU. She is now using the successes achieved at the undergraduate level to develop strategies for international graduate student recruitment. Prior to FIU, she was at the University of South Carolina as the Director of International Recruitment overseeing international student recruitment, collaborative partnerships and articulation agreements, and strategic planning for activities of the Department of International Programs. She also has experience managing a 1,000+ J-1 intern and trainee program and developing documentation for the J-1 summer work & travel visa designation while at the German-American Chamber of Commerce.

Sarah holds a Master of Business Administration with a concentration in International Business from the University of South Carolina and a Bachelor of Business Administration in Business Economics and Bachelor of Arts in German from Ohio University. Presently she is pursuing her Ph.D. in Public Affairs at FIU where her research interests are international student mobility trends and policies, and representative bureaucracy in higher education leadership.

Birgitta “Gitta” Rausch-Montoto serves as Director of Faculty and Global Affairs. Her primary focus is on facilitating the development of international and intercultural bridges between internal and external partners, developing and implementing operational policies, procedures and processes institution-wide, and synergizing the university’s strategic global efforts. She serves on the International Travel Committee to recommend and operationalize safety and security measures for faculty and staff, and serves as Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program Campus Liaison to boost FIU’s overall participation in the program. Since 2014, she has been chairing the university-wide Textbook Affordability Task Force which implements initiatives to ensure college affordability and meet the State’s compliance requirements. Gitta joined FIU in 2004 as Executive Assistant to the 4th President, Dr. Modesto Maidique. In 2006 she was appointed Chief of Staff in the Office of the Provost, leading the office staff, coordinating the Provost’s standing Deans and Chairs Advisory Councils and Operations Committee meetings, and managing Board of Trustees Academic Policy & Student Affairs committee agendas as well as senior level appointment searches. Between 2009-2015 she assumed the role of Chair of the Commencement Committee and successfully conducted over 80 grand graduation ceremonies. FIU is Gitta’s two-time alma mater: she earned a Bachelor of Administration with a focus on International Business and a Master of Science in International and Intercultural Education, both from FIU. Before permanently moving to the United States, she was a banker (Bankkauffrau) by training in her native Germany. She is fluent in German, English and Spanish.