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Lee Frankel
Director of Programs
Lee@academicstudies.com
Lee Frankel is the Director of Programs for ASA and oversees both
the Boston office and all sites that ASA offers. Lee grew up in New York City and Amherst,
Massachusetts and has long been exposed to study abroad. At the age of 6 he spent the summer in Mexico with
his mother, who was finishing her PhD and wanted to learn Spanish. Since then he has spent time living,
traveling, and learning about the cultures in over 20 countries. While at Ithaca College as an undergraduate, Lee
spent a semester in Salamanca, Spain where he decided that studying abroad was the single most important part
of his college experience. When he returned, he began recruiting other students to go abroad and managed to turn
it into a career. Lee's favorite part of his job is watching each student grow and mature in such a short
time while abroad. In between his constant travel to Europe, Lee plays drums in a band in Boston and
boogie boards wherever there are waves. Lee and his wife Jessica are also the proud parents of
Zachary, who is 3, and Amelia, who was born on Dec. 30, 2007. |
Lee, his wife Jessica, his son Zachary, and daughter Amelia
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Chelsea Kaloupek
Programs Manager
Chelsea@academicstudies.com Chelsea
is the Programs Manager for ASA and works in our Boston
office. She grew up in Nebraska but moved to the East Coast to
attend college. She is a graduate of Mount Holyoke College,
where she majored in Spanish. Chelsea spent her junior year
abroad, living and studying in Madrid at the Universidad
Complutense, where she learned Spanish language and culture
first-hand. While living in Spain, she traveled the country
extensively and took full advantage of the cultural offerings
in Madrid, such as the art museums, theatre productions, film
festivals, and live music. While studying at Mount Holyoke,
Chelsea was involved in two Spanish play productions, for
which she served as the Assistant Director and as an actor.
She especially enjoyed playing Doña Inés in a cutting of the
famous Don Juan Tenorio. Chelsea is the main point of contact
for ASA students, as she guides them through the application
and pre-departure processes. She feels that it is extremely
rewarding to get to know the students and to be a part of
their study abroad experience. Chelsea normally travels to
Spain at the beginning of each program to spend the first few
days with the group, to help get them settled. She says that
the best part of these trips is having the chance to meet the
students and spend time with them when they arrive in Spain or
London. She frequently stays in contact with students after
they have completed their study abroad. While residing in
Cambridge, Massachusetts, Chelsea enjoys music, dancing, Red
Sox baseball, seeing foreign films, and practicing Spanish
whenever she can. She has even been known to grab the mic when
she and her friends go out for karaoke.
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Chelsea |
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Emily Hardy
Programs Advisor - Midwest Region
Emily@academicstudies.com
Emily grew up in Southern California and moved to Massachusetts to attend Boston College. During her junior year, she spent a semester studying in Rome, Italy and absolutely loved the entire experience. Her weekdays were spent learning about the art and culture of Rome, and many of her weekends were spent traveling to other countries, including: Spain, England, France, Austria, Germany, Greece, and Hungary. After graduation Emily spent three months in South Africa participating in a volunteer program. During her time there she traveled to Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe. In the spring of 2007 Emily took a trip with her sister to Ecuador. She hopes that the two of them can keep up their sister bonding time by traveling together to other foreign destinations. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with friends, going for runs along the Charles River, taking pictures of nature, and taking trips back home to California. Emily is excited to have the opportunity to help students gain their own life changing experiences by studying abroad. She has seen first hand how one semester can give you a whole new outlook on the world and loves the idea of being able to be a part of making that happen for others. As the Programs Advisor for ASA in the Midwest her area includes Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan and Ohio.
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Emily |
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Mary Meadows
Programs Advisor - Southeast Region
Mary@academicstudies.com
After earning her M.S. in Higher Education Administration at Florida State, Mary went to Germany for a year. She interned in the International Programs Office in Karlsruhe and taught in-company Business English. Besides traveling, she enjoys creative writing and photography. Her professional interest is in student development theory as related to international experiences. She has also worked in recruitment and career services and can tell you how studying and interning abroad will boost your resume ahead of others at job search time. (Ja, Si, Jo, Da, Oui!) Mary grew up in a military family, which she claims has fueled her desire to travel the world and explore new cultures. She tries to add a new country every year to her passport! Mary says, "Venturing out on my own to new places has been the best challenge I ever gave myself." As the Programs Advisor for ASA in the Southeast her area includes Tennessee, North and South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama and Florida.
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Mary |
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Erin Olsen
Programs Advisor - Western Region
Erin@academicstudies.com
Erin is the Programs Advisor for ASA in the Western Region and currently lives in Salt Lake City, Utah. She represents the company at study abroad fairs and provides support and advice to students at schools in California, Utah, Colorado, Arizona, Nevada, and New Mexico. Erin was born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah and graduated from Westminster College in Utah with a B.A. in Marketing and a minor in French. In the fall of 2004, she studied abroad in Siracusa, Sicily. This was a huge step in a very different direction, as Erin already had eight years of French study under her belt. However, after picking up the Italian language and spending five months in a new culture, Erin fell in love with study abroad and travel itself. She has been to England, Costa Rica, France, Spain, Italy, Sicily, Morocco, Egypt, Malta, Canada, and Holland, and she plans to keep the list going!
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Erin |
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Elena Rodriguez
Barcelona Site Director for UB and UAB
Elena@academicstudies.com
Elena is a native of Barcelona and speaks Spanish, Catalan and English fluently. She did doctoral work in Political Science and has a Bachelor's degree in Journalism from the Universidad Autonoma de Barcelona. As part of her doctoral studies, she spent a year in Mexico at the Instituto Tecnologico de Monterrey, and she volunteered in a Peace Camp in the indigenous communities in the south of Mexico. She moved to the US in 1999 and earned her Master's in Teaching Spanish at Portland State University. She spent seven years teaching at American universities and she led a group of her students on a study abroad program to Spain. She decided to move back to Barcelona in 2006.
She loves to travel and has visited dozens of countries in Europe, the Americas, Asia and Africa. Elena has volunteered in many nations, including Mexico, Cuba, Thailand, the Palestinian Territories, Turkey and Germany. She truly believes that studying abroad and knowing other cultures can bring people together.
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Elena |
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Laura Burkett
Barcelona Program Director for BCEA
Laura@academicstudies.com
Laura holds a B.S. in Mathematics from Center College of Kentucky and an MBA in Marketing from Indiana University. Prior to entering the field of study abroad, she worked for seven years in corporate marketing in both the U.S. and Europe. Before coming to BCEA in 2005, Ms. Burkett also worked for a sister study abroad program in Italy for more than three years, specializing in program development, extracurricular activities, institutional relations, and student services. Since moving permanently to Europe in 2000, she traveled extensively in Nepal, Eastern and Southern Africa, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, and Europe. |
Laura |
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Marta Nieves Gómez
Barcelona Site Director for BCEA
Marta@academicstudies.com
Marta is a native of Barcelona and has a deep knowledge of the city. She adds to the diverse academic background of the BCEA staff, having earned a degree in Tourism at the Universitat de Girona. She has also studied Law at the Universitat de Barcelona. In 2003, the University of Cambridge granted Marta a Travel and Tourism Career Award, an internationally recognized Tourism diploma.
Marta is a seasoned traveller, having worked and studied in France, Belgium, and The Netherlands, and travelled to Italy, Switzerland, Austria, Turkey, Tunisia, USA, and many other countries. In addition to her travels, she also has 5 years of experience working in the study abroad field.
Marta is fluent in Spanish, Catalan, English, French, and Italian. Her interests include language study, travelling, eating and movies. One of her favorite aspects of working with study abroad students is sharing with them the history of Barcelona and Spain; she loves being the students' tour guide.
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Marta |
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Paco Frisuelos
Madrid Site Director
Paco@academicstudies.com
Paco Frisuelos was born in the Spanish territories in the Sahara. He moved to Sevilla at the age
of three, which is where he ultimately grew up. He earned his undergraduate degree in Art History
at the Universidad de Sevilla and soon after came to the United States to study Communications
at McDaniel College in Maryland. Paco is currently completing two PhD programs in Art History and
Film Studies at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid. He has worked as a professor for several
American universities and for several study abroad programs, teaching Art History and Spanish
culture courses. He has extensive experience working with study abroad students as their Resident
Director, and he takes great pride in being able to make the students' time in Madrid enjoyable. In
his spare time, Paco enjoys music, film, languages, photography, art, traveling, reading, and
going to the theater. He is fluent in Spanish, English, French, and Italian. Paco believes that
studying abroad is the best experience any student can have, because it is always challenging,
rewarding, and fun to learn a new language and culture, while exposing oneself to exciting places
and new situations. Moreover, Paco knows that studying abroad is a great opportunity to meet
lifelong friends. Past ASA students have said that Paco's vast knowledge of art history, Spanish
history and culture has helped them to continue to learn, even outside of the classroom, and has
allowed them to gain even more from their time in Madrid. |
Paco |
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Ana González Expósito
Salamanca Site Director
Ana@academicstudies.com
Ana grew up in Salamanca and her family has hosted study abroad students since she was
young, so she has a lifetime of experience in study abroad! In addition, Ana worked for the
Colby College program in Salamanca, so she has a wealth of experience. She has studied in
England in Worthing and Lancaster, as well as in Canada. She also received her degree in
Business Administration from the Universidad de Salamanca. Ana loves languages and in addition
to speaking Spanish and English, she is also learning French and Japanese. An enthusiastic and
energentic person, Ana is a great asset to our Salamanca program. |
Ana |
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Isidoro Janeiro, PhD
Sevilla Site Director
Isidoro@academicstudies.com
Dr. Isidoro Janeiro has an excellent understanding of Spanish and North American cultures, having
grown up in both Spain and the U.S. Isidoro was born in Galicia and lived there until he was
15, when he moved to Delaware. He earned both his Bachelor and Masters of Arts in Spanish Literature from the University of Delaware, with a concentration in
Peninsular Literature and Spanish Studies and a PhD from UMass Amherst in Spanish Literature. Isidoro has extensive experience teaching Spanish, as he
began teaching in 1997 at the University of Delaware. He went on to serve as a Teaching Associate
at UMass Amherst in 1999, and in the 2002-2003 school year became the Language Coordinator for
Intermediate Levels at the UMass Spanish & Portuguese Department, where he was responsible for
both teaching and curriculum planning. While teaching at UMass, Isidoro was awarded two
Outstanding Teaching Awards. He also has previous experience working with study abroad programs, as
he was a Teaching Assistant with the UMass Salamanca summer program in 2001. Isidoro's
sensitivity to cultural differences and to students' needs make him an important part the ASA
team. His main hobbies are reading, traveling, and meeting new people. He loves to cook for his
friends and family. Isidoro resides in Sevilla with his wife, Ana. |
Isidoro and his wife Ana |
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Ariadna Moreira
Italy Faculty-led Program Site Director
Ariadna@academicstudies.com
Ariadna was born and raised in Brazil, but left in 1990 to do graduate work in Vocal Performance in the U.S. After earning her Masters from the New England Conservatory in Boston and her Doctorate from the University of Miami, Ariadna moved to Italy to study the Baroque technique. She is fluent in Portuguese, English, Spanish, Italian, and French and is currently learning German as well. She has taught both singing and languages in both the U.S. and Italy and continues to teach English to Italians in Florence. While she assists ASA students with all their needs, she still sings opera professionally throughout Europe and if she has her way, soon it will be throughout the world! |
Ariadna |
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Meredith Denton
Viña del Mar Site Director
Meredith@academicstudies.com
Meredith grew up in South Carolina where she attended Wofford College and earned a B.A. in Business Economics and Spanish. After graduation, she worked for a year with an International corporation before moving to Chile to volunteer in 2002. Six months before moving back to the United States, she met her future husband and has been in Chile ever since. Meredith and Juan currently live in Viña del Mar.
Meredith has been working with international students since 2003 and one of her favorite things about the study abroad experience is seeing the changes in students after a semester abroad. Besides working with international students in Chile, she has had experience in leading study abroad trips to the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica and China. When not busy with students, Meredith enjoys reading, snow skiing, hiking and any other outdoor activity.
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Meredith |
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Heidi Finn
Design Director
Heidi@academicstudies.com
Heidi was born and raised in Augsburg, Germany, but moved to the U.S. when she was 15. She has traveled extensively throughout Europe and has lived in 8 different states in the U.S. Heidi has always had a love of art and got her B.A. from UMass Amherst in computer animation and painting. In addition to her love of art, Heidi is a huge music fan who loves trying to find the cheesiest songs she can to play for her friends. Heidi has been working with ASA for over 5 years and broke hearts recently when she got married to her longtime boyfriend Jeff.
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Heidi |
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