Dr. Sam Heikinen
Associate Vice President for Global Engagement
724.738.2527
samuel.heikinen@sru.edu
Dr. Sam Heikinen is the Associate Vice President for Global Engagement at Slippery Rock University. Sam's years of working in global education began when he started as a faculty member teaching English at a small university in northeast China. What originally was a ten-month assignment quickly turned into five years, full of growth, discovery, travel, language-learning, and falling in love with another country and culture. Nearly 20 years later, the trajectory set through those experiences guides his passion for study abroad, faculty-led programming, language training programs, international enrollment management, and engaging international students with U.S. students in ways that promote diversity and inclusion at SRU.
http://www.sru.edu/news/090518a
Fun Facts:
Sam enjoys getting together with people and enjoying food from around the world, including our SRU eateries. He also loves fishing, hiking, basketball and skiing--especially with his family, including his wife, Yang, and their two children, Waylon and Sammi.
Sierra Bell
Assistant Director for International Admissions and Recruitment
724.738.4084
sierra.bell@sru.edu
Sierra is responsible for managing undergraduate international admissions and is fortunate enough to meet with many students abroad. She graduated from Westminster College with her BSc in International Business and Spanish. At California University, she earned her M.Ed. in Educational Leadership and a Certificate in Student Affairs Practice.
She has had amazing experiences studying abroad in Costa Rica and living in Belgium and Rwanda, prior to returning to the Pittsburgh region.
Fun Facts:
Her hometown is known as the “Fireworks Capital of America” and the “Hot Dog Capital of the World.” She enjoys horseback riding, traveling, cooking, and painting.
Noora A. Alie
Associate Director for International Student Services
724.738.4687
noora.alie@sru.edu
Noora is responsible for international student advising and programming.
She graduated with a Bachelors of Art in Communication from Hiram College and a Master of Science in Global Leadership from Duquesne University.
Fun Facts:
She is an Arab-American and speaks Arabic. She loves traveling to new places, binge watching TV series on Netflix and spending quality cuddle time with her kitty, Hamoud!
JENNY KAWATA
Director for Global Engagement
724.738.2605
jenny.kawata@sru.edu
Jenny is responsible for developing and maintaining global exchanges and partnerships. She received her Bachelors of Science in Business Administration from Slippery Rock University and her Masters of Art in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages from Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
Fun Facts:
Her first experience abroad was studying Japanese at Kansai Gaidai University, one of Slippery Rock's partner institutions. From there, her global journey began. She became involved in the field of international education and has traveled to over 23 different countries for both work and fun. Loves learning new languages, exploring new cultures and trying new foods.
