International Students and Scholars: Powerful Stimulus for a Dynamic Economy

Gokhan Alkanat is the Associate Provost for International Education at Rowan University. As the chief international officer, Dr. Alkanat oversees International Student and Scholar Services, Education Abroad, international partnerships, and English Language Program. Before joining Rowan, Dr. Alkanat served as Assistant Provost for Global Initiatives at Auburn University at Montgomery

Originally from Turkey, Dr. Alkanat received his undergraduate degree in English Language Teaching from Anadolu University in 2000, his Master’s degree in TESOL from Troy University in 2004, and his PhD in Administration of Higher Education from Auburn University in 2011. Linguistics and Management were his favorite subjects.

Dr. Alkanat cares about equal opportunities for all children, human rights, gender equality, and cultural appreciation.

Stuart Anderson is Executive Director of the National Foundation for American Policy, a non-partisan public policy research organization focusing on trade, immigration and related issues based in Arlington, Virginia (www.nfap.com). From August 2001 to January 2003, Stuart served as Executive Associate Commissioner for Policy and Planning and Counselor to the Commissioner at the Immigration and Naturalization Service. Before that Stuart spent four and a half years on Capitol Hill on the Senate Immigration Subcommittee, first for Senator Spencer Abraham and then as Staff Director of the subcommittee for Senator Sam Brownback. He has an M.A. from Georgetown University and a B.A. in Political Science from Drew University. Stuart has published articles in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times and other publications. He is a senior contributor to Forbes. He is the author of the book Immigration (Greenwood, 2010).

Eric Garfunkel is the vice president for global affairs at Rutgers. He is responsible for the university’s internationalization efforts, including study abroad and global education, crosscultural and global programming, development and support of international relations and partnerships, and services for visiting students and scholars. He is also a distinguished professor of chemistry and physics.

During his 30 years at Rutgers, Garfunkel played a leading role in the formation of the multidisciplinary Laboratory for Surface Modification and later the Institute for Advanced Materials, Devices and Nanotechnology — interdisciplinary centers that focus on atomic scale design and manipulation of materials and devices. He also served as Chair of the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology.  His recent research has focused on the synthesis and characterization of materials that can be used for alternative energy (solar and battery) and nanoelectronics. He has received funding from the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Energy, and the Semiconductor Research Corporation.

Garfunkel has held visiting professorships in Germany, China, Italy, and France. He is currently deeply involved in developing global partnerships and research collaborations with African universities, and he has helped lead the international activities of the Materials Research Society for over a decade.

Garfunkel earned his Ph.D. in chemistry from Berkeley in 1983 and his bachelor’s from Haverford College in 1978. Before coming to Rutgers, he was a postdoctoral fellow at University of Paris-Sud in Orsay, France, and at Fudan University in Shanghai, China.

Elizabeth Gill is Director of International Employment and Immigration for the Office of University Counsel, where she manages and assists international faculty and staff and DACA/Dreamer students on immigration and cultural adjustment issues, and is the University’s point of contact on immigration matters affecting the University community. Elizabeth has served Montclair State University’s DACA/Dreamer students and international employees, students, and scholars since 2016 and has 17 years of experience in the field of international higher education. She is a regular contributor to NAFSA: Association of International Educators and One to World. Elizabeth holds a B.S. in English from Troy University and an M.A. in Humanities and Social Thought from New York University.

Miriam Feldblum is the co-founder and executive director of the Presidents’ Alliance. Miriam has over 25 years of experience in higher education administration, student support, and in teaching and research of immigration policy, politics and higher education. She previously served as vice president for student affairs/dean of students and professor of politics at Pomona College, as special assistant to the president at Caltech and senior director for academic support and planning, and is a non-resident fellow at the Migration Policy Institute.

Kyle Sullender is Director of Economic Policy Research for the New Jersey Business & Industry Association (NJBIA), the nation’s largest state-level business association whose member companies collectively employ 1 million people.

Sullender also serves as the Executive Director of Focus NJ, an independent research nonprofit conducting timely, innovative, nonpartisan economic and workforce research to support sound public policy in New Jersey.

Prior to joining NJBIA, Sullender supported the Camden County Board of Commissioners, coordinating external affairs and media relations. Sullender earned his Master of Public Policy in 2019 from the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University – New Brunswick. He also graduated summa cum laude from Rowan University in 2017 with bachelor’s degrees in journalism and philosophy.

Sullender was a Class of 2019 Graduate Fellow at the Eagleton Institute of Politics, and is an active member of the Eagleton Alumni Committee.