Announcing the 2025 Texas International Education Fund Winners
The Texas International Education Consortium (TIEC) is pleased to announce the 15 awardees of the 2025 Texas International Education Fund (TIEF), a grant program designed to seed new projects and opportunities that bring innovative global experiences to the campuses of TIEC’s member institutions in Texas and abroad.
The fund is divided into three separate grants.
- Virtual Exchange — supports new international online collaborations for undergraduate or graduate students
- Study Abroad Program Development — seeds new immersive international education opportunities
- Strategic Internationalization — supports initiatives at the university-wide or institutional level to advance internationalization capacity
Our awards this year span 11 Texas member HEIs, including public and private universities as well as community colleges.
Virtual Exchange Grant Recipients: Embracing Global Collaboration
The TIEF Virtual Exchange (formally COIL) grant provides direct support for faculty/staff at TIEC member institutions to design and facilitate new virtual, international collaborations for undergraduate/graduate students. In collaboration with partner institutions abroad, awardees use best practices in COIL design and student engagement to connect students from each institution through technology.
Alamo Colleges District
Institutional Contact: Melinda Zepeda
Course: Composition
Partner Institution: Hansraj Jivandas College of Education (Autonomous), Affiliated to University of Mumbai, India
Dallas College
Institutional Contact: Maria Boccalandro
Course: Federal Government
Partner Institution: Universidad de Guanajuato, México
Baylor University
Institutional Contact: Cindy Wu
Course: Human Resource Management
Partner Institution: National Chung-Cheng University, Taiwan
Riga Business School
Institutional Contact: Zanda Vipule
Course: International Business Environment
Partner Institution: TBD
Austin Community College
Institutional Contact: Courtney Ahrenholtz
Course: Principles of Marketing
Partner Institution: Universidad Veritas, Costa Rica
University of North Texas at Dallas
Institutional Contact: Courtney Rogers
Course: International Trade and Logistics
Partner Institution: American University of Cairo, Egypt
Study Abroad Development Grant Recipients: Empowering Global Learners
The TIEF SADG award supports the development of new faculty-led multi-year study abroad programs. During year one of the award, the grants will support faculty and staff members in their program development costs. During year two, funds are used to lower the student cost during its first year of operation.
University of North Texas
Institutional Contact: Nancy Stockdale
College: Liberal Arts and Social Sciences
Department: Integrative Studies
Focus: Integrative Studies and Internship
Texas Women’s University
Institutional Contact: Jerry Burkett
College: Education
Department: Professional Education
Focus: Leadership Development for Master’s Students
Dallas College
Institutional Contact: Douglas Vail
College: Dallas College
Department: Architecture
Focus: Studio of Traditional and Contemporary Architecture in Thailand
Lone Star College
Institutional Contact: Carla Pimentel
College: Lone Star College
Department: English
Focus: Literature, Technology, and Sustainable Development in Anguilla
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley
Institutional Contact: Upal Roy
College: College of Health Profession
Department: Health and Biomedical Science
Focus: Medical Immunology
Austin Community College
Institutional Contact: Heather Miller
College: Austin Community College
Department: Earth & Environmental Sciences
Focus: Environmental Oceanography
Strategic Internationalization Grant Recipients: Building Global Programs
The Strategic Internationalization Grant competition is intended to support new institutional efforts that will build greater campus internationalization over time.
St. Edwards University
Lowering Costs by Building Bridges: Launching a New Model of Faculty-Led Study Abroad
The purpose of this project is to launch a new model of summer, faculty-led study abroad at St. Edward’s University. While the current structure has offered amazing experiences for students, it is too costly for a broad range of the student body. The new model proposed allows St. Edwards to cut the cost of summer, faculty-led programs in half.
Institutional Contact: Emma Woelk, Senior Director of Academic Initiatives, Associate Professor of German
Tarleton State University
Resilient Communities for Learning Initiative: Cultivating Global Partnerships for Community Wellbeing and Agricultural Resilience
This initiative expands global learning opportunities for students in agricultural sciences, an area historically underserved in international education, by building a partnership between Tarleton State University’s Center for Rural Resilience, Harper Adams University in the United Kingdom, and the Worshipful Company of Farmers. The partnership will consist of elements such as study abroad, case studies with local farmers, and an inclusive summit co-hosted by both universities.
Institutional Contact: Jean Lonie Dudley, Co-Director for the Center of Rural Resilience, Assistant Professor of Agricultural Industries
Many congratulations to this year's awardees — we can't wait to see the impact of your continuing international education efforts!
