Program Faculty and Staff
Fulbright Summer Program 2023
The ELLI faculty and staff have a long history of ESL, EFL and U.S. culture instruction with experience teaching abroad in countries such as Brazil, China, France, Italy, and Taiwan.
The ELLI faculty and staff have a long history of ESL, EFL and U.S. culture instruction with experience teaching abroad in countries such as Brazil, China, France, Italy, and Taiwan.
Our program leaders have a combined 100+ years of experience.
amy.thompson@mail.wvu.edu
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for Amy Thompson
Dr. Amy S. Thompson (Ph.D., Second Language Studies, Michigan State University) will oversee all aspects of this project and serve as lead program coordinator. She is currently the Department Chair, Woodburn Professor of Applied Linguistics, Director of International Relations and Strategic Planning for Eberly College of Arts and Sciences at WVU, and ELLI co-director, and has experience with international students and programming at multiple universities and modalities.
kristen.williams@mail.wvu.edu
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for Kristen Williams
Ms. Kristen Williams (MA TESOL, WVU) will serve as program co-coordinator and instructor. She will coordinate the guest lectures in the afternoon Life at U.S. Universities course. She is a teaching instructor in ELLI with experience in all levels and core subjects offered in the IEP and academic writing in AMP.
lorena.ballester@mail.wvu.edu
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for Lorena Ballester
Dr. Lorena Ballester (Ph.D., Higher Education, WVU) will serve as an administrative assistant to help with budget and logistics. She serves as the program specialist for the Department of WLLL. She has over 10 years of experience in higher education working with the international student population.
Lindsei.PereiradaSilva@mail.wvu.edu
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for Lindsei Pereira da Silva
Ms. Lindsei Pereira da Silva (MA TESOL, WVU) will serve as the assistant coordinator of curriculum and will teach the Academic Skills and U.S. Academic Culture course and will oversee the curriculum as a whole. She serves as curriculum and assessment coordinator for the IEP and is also in charge of English proficiency waivers for graduate applicants at WVU.
sbraidi@wvu.edu
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for Susan Braidi
Dr. Susan Braidi (Ph.D., Linguistics University of Delaware) will serve as the curriculum co-lead. She is the academic co-director of ELLI and an associate professor of TESOL. She is on the Fulbright U.S. Student Program National Screening Committee for English Teaching Assistantships and was a Fulbright Junior Lecturer in the English Teacher Training Program in Italy.
jdsimpson@mail.wvu.edu
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for Jennifer Simpson Ross
Ms. Jennifer Simpson Ross (MA, TESOL/Linguistics, WVU) will serve as the co-curricular activities lead and will teach the Cross-Cultural Awareness course. She became ELLI events coordinator in 2019 and has taught many courses in the IEP, including American Culture, University Skills, and World Cultures.
tdingess@mail.wvu.edu
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for Tracy Dingess
Mr. Tracy Dingess (MA Linguistics - TESOL, WVU) will serve as the technology and host families lead and will teach the Academic Reading and Writing course. He has taught U.S. culture courses at Wuhan University, China. He teaches writing courses in ELLI and is responsible for electronic communications and the website.
livia.cascao@mail.wvu.edu
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for Livia Cascao
Ms. Livia Cascao (MA TESOL, MA Curriculum and Instruction, WVU) will serve as the housing lead and will teach the Academic Listening and Speaking class. She has extensive experience with teaching and students’ services in the U.S. and abroad. She has planned events for the IEP, co-developed the Accelerated Mountaineer Program, and coordinates special programs for ELLI.
This activity is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs as part of its Fulbright Program, the Fulbright Foreign Student Program, and the Institute of International Education.