NC State Global Welcomes New Staff
Meet NC State University’s fall 2022 Global staff!
Sarah Olson, Office of Global Engagement, Director of Global Partnerships
Sarah holds a bachelor’s degree from Gonzaga University in History and a master’s degree from the University of San Francisco in Organization and Leadership. She joins the Office of Global Engagement as the Director of Global Partnerships, and she provides strategic vision to support existing global partnerships as well as explore new global partnership opportunities to advance NC State’s Think and Do on a global scale. Before joining NC State, Sarah worked at Colorado State University managing International Partnerships and Faculty Global Engagement and previously worked at several other universities in Housing and Residence Life. Sarah started her journey towards a career in international education as a Rotary Youth Exchange Student to Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia her senior year of high school. Sarah also studied abroad in Florence, Italy for her junior year of college and has sailed on two Semester at Sea voyages as a staff member. Sarah recently completed an International Education Administrator Fulbright award in Germany in October.
Shara Cotton, Office of International Services, International Student and Scholar Advisor
Shara has a M.Ed. in Student Personnel Administration in Higher Education from UNC Greensboro. She is certified at a N3 level of Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT). Her hobbies include reading, playing board games and video games, cosplay, and making cards.
Maggie Agnew, Office of Global Engagement, Global Programs Assistant
Maggie joins the Office of Global Engagement part-time as a proud Pack alum. She is a recent graduate of the Master of International Studies program at NC State and holds a bachelor’s degree in Communication from the University of Memphis. Originally from Tennessee, Maggie has studied abroad in London, England, and backpacked through 12 countries across Europe, Southeast Asia, Australia, and New Zealand. She has worked primarily in administrative capacities and is thrilled to be back at State providing similar support for the university’s global initiatives, programs, and services.
Martina Tomanová, NC State European Center in Prague, Student Affairs and Program Coordinator
Martina has a Masters degree in Jewish Studies and Bachelor´s degree in History and Social Work and Humanitarian Aid. Before joining NC State, she worked as a program coordinator and social worker at a local NGO focused on supporting socially excluded families. She also has experience with working in the study abroad field – she was a Resident Director for a study abroad provider in Prague for 4 years before joining NC State staff. Martina loves traveling and exploring new cultures and their cuisine. She´s also a typical Czech in her passion for hiking and being outdoors as much as possible.
Marie Salovaara, European Center in Prague, Student Affairs and Program Coordinator
Before joining the NC State Prague team in August 2022, Marie worked as an International Student Advisor and Coordinator at Charles University, Prague. She has a Bachelor’s degree in English and American Studies and a Master’s degree in Media and Communications Studies from Charles University. Marie grew up partially in Finland and during her university studies, she spent two semesters abroad – in Florida, and also in Germany. Marie enjoys working in an international and multicultural environment and helping students and is excited to be a part of the NC State European Center in Prague as a Student Affairs and Program Coordinator!
Maggie Harney, Office of International Services, International Programs Coordinator
Maggie Harney graduated from the Master of International Studies (MIS) program at NC State in 2021. During graduate school, she interned with 2 refugee resettlement agencies in the Triangle (U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants North Carolina and World Relief Durham) and then transitioned into a full-time role on the Refugee and Immigrant Youth Services team at World Relief. Originally from Atlanta, Maggie’s passion for international education was sparked during her undergraduate experience in Athens, Georgia, where she volunteered as a student leader with REACH International and interned in the department of International Student Life at the University of Georgia. Maggie taught English in 2 public high schools in Atacama, Chile from 2016 to 2017. From 2017 to 2018, she completed a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship grant in Madrid, Spain, leading the Global Classrooms (Model UN) program at her school. She stayed in Madrid to teach for an additional year before moving to Raleigh in Fall 2019 to begin the MIS program. She holds bachelor’s degrees in Journalism and Spanish.
Peyton Carrington, Office of Global Engagement, Communications Specialist
Peyton joins the Office of Global Engagement as the communications specialist. After graduating from High Point University with a degree in communications and event planning, she was selected for the Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange for Young professionals program. She lived with a host in Germany and attended intensive language school, German university and held a German-speaking internship. This taught her the importance of cultural empathy and international cooperation. She is excited to be a part of NC State’s global institution, and she looks forward to the opportunity for growth, both personally and professionally.
Madison Sinclair, Global Training Initiative, Program Assistant
Madison joined GTI during the spring of 2022 as a student intern and was hired as an international programs assistant in the summer. She graduated magna cum laude from the Department of Food, Bioprocessing and Nutrition Sciences at NC State University in May 2022. Her research focused on nutrition-related chronic diseases. Specifically, she explored the influence that family history has on the likelihood of developing hypertension. Madison’s interest in international education was cultivated throughout her time at NC State. She completed GTI’s Developing Cultural Competence Student Certification program and quickly sought other ways to develop her cultural knowledge and skills. After graduating from NC State, she took some time off to explore Europe including Denmark, France, Spain and the United Kingdom.
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