Our Staff

The Slutzker Center Staff is an International group of people, dedicated to helping international students during their education in Syracuse University, and represents many cultures: Azerbaijan, China, Ecuador, Indonesia, Iran, Ireland, Israel, Japan, Korea, Netherlands, Peru, Russia, and Ukraine.

tr> Jennifer Gavilondo

	Patricia Burak is the Director of the Slutzker Center for International Services. She has thirty years of experience in this office, and serves both the student and the scholars who come from abroad. As Director, Dr. Burak is responsible for administration of the office, and oversees all immigration advising.
	Elane Granger, Associate Director for Student Services, is strengthening connections between students and faculty across the campus to work on projects that focus on issues of diversity and international education exchange. She invites students and scholars interested in getting involved on the campus and in the Syracuse community to work with her on projects and programs. She is the staff moderator for Medley, a student publication. Fluent in Spanish, she lived many years in Madrid, Spain, directing and developing United States university study abroad programs. She holds a Ph.D. in Hispanic Studies from UCLA.
	Riet DeKleermaeker, a front desk advisor, can be found on the first floor of the Slutzker Center. She coordinates the English Conversation Program, which is in its 19th year of operation. Her language skills include Dutch, French, German and a little Indonesian.
	Lynn Dunyk is the Administrative Specialist for the Slutzker Center. She maintains the administrative support structure of the Center, overseeing selected clerical and secretarial functions, selected scholar and student employment issues, payroll and selected budget functions, and selected programmatic efforts. Since she doesn't travel too often, she enjoys working in an environment where the world comes to her. Lynn is a native Syracusan.
	Connie Edwards, Coordinator of Records & Admissions, was born in Americus, Georgia and raised in Syracuse, New York. She is of African-American and Irish Indian descent. She oversees that the immigration documents are processed, recorded, and maintained. She greets, welcomes, and prepares the international students for their Clearance process upon checking in with the Slutzker Center. Previous to joining the Slutzker Center, she held several positions with the Immigration and Naturalization Service in the State of New Jersey. She has met and worked with people from many nationalities. She enjoys meeting people from other countries and learning about the different cultures and backgrounds. Her goal is to travel abroad in the near future. So far, the Bahamas and Canada are just the beginning.
	Amie Farrell, office assistant, provides a multitude of services. Amie is originally from Ireland. She has lived for many years in the United States. She really enjoys working in the Slutzker Center, where she professes she has a wonderful opportunity to meet and talk with many people from all over the world.
	Jennifer Gavilondo-- Immigration Associate
	Fariba Rahmanzadeh, International Student Advisor, earned her Master's in Fine Arts and enjoys the arts and traveling to experience cultural diversities. Fariba is currently in her second term as a member of the board of the International Center of Syracuse.
	Angie Romano Stroup is the Functional Business Analyst in the Slutzker Center. Originally from Ecuador, she now makes her home in Syracuse. Her responsibilities include the Oracle PASS SEVIS batch process module. She has a B.S. in Computer Science and Accounting from Illinois State University at Normal, Illinois. She worked for Tulane University, New Orleans and Metropolitan Life Insurance Co., IL before coming to Syracuse. Her interests are computers, music, and sports. She enjoys hiking, camping and bicycling. She is fluent in Spanish, some Italian and French. She is also a National certified USA swimming official.
	Tina Turnbull--International Student Advisor
	Kyoung-Mi Choi (Rebecca) ) is a graduate assistant at the Slutzker Center. She is originally from Korea and is currently pursuing a doctoral degree in Counseling and Supervision in the school of Education. She provides support and network programs for international students. She coordinates two support groups: Academic Success for International Students and Global Nomads. She also meets with international students individually regarding issues of adjustment, relationship, and stress management, and other various concerns.
	Hakki Gurhan