Staff
Jaime Ortiz, Ph.D.
Senior Faculty and Executive Leader
BMAIN 2.540F
Dr. Jaime Ortiz earned degrees from Chile, the Netherlands, and the United States. As a senior faculty holding executive leadership positions, he has provided a successful strategic vision for comprehensive campus globalization efforts. Dr. Ortiz has previously worked for international organizations, private corporations, and non-government entities in economic and business matters in more than thirty-six countries. He has advised, among others, the United Nations Development Program, Inter-American Development Bank, Organization of American States, Pre-investment Organization of Latin America and the Caribbean, and The World Bank. Dr. Ortiz is the author, co-author, or editor of books, book chapters, textbooks, research monographs, technical reports, and refereed journal articles around global economies and markets. He has received several Fulbright Scholar awards and has been an MSI Leadership Fellow with the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. Dr. Ortiz also holds lifetime distinguished professorship appointments from Chinese and Welsh universities which recognize him as an international scholar, award-winning teacher, and accomplished administrator.
Caroline Miles, Ph.D.
Professor of English & Director of Education Abroad
ELABS 204
Dr. Miles received her B.A. from the University of Wales, Swansea, UK, and an M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Southern Mississippi. She is a Professor of English in the Department of Literatures and Cultural Studies at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV). She has published numerous articles and book chapters on William Faulkner, the US and global South, and the US-Mexico border. She currently serves as the Director of Education Abroad within Global Affairs and has co-hosted the multidisciplinary Annual International Conference on Border Studies with Universidad Autónoma de Tamaulipas. She is a recipient of the UT System’s Regents’ Outstanding Teaching Award for teaching and has led several Study Abroad Programs to Florence and London. She is also part of a team of faculty from UTRGV, Texas State University, and George Washington University that received a three-year National Science Foundation Grant, “Geographies of Migration and (in)security at the US-Mexico Border,” to research the global movement of people across the US-Mexico border and the impact of US immigration policies.
Pierre Lu, Ph.D., MED, MPH, MS, MA, MBA
Professor of Educational Research & Director of Global Initiatives
EEDUC 3.202A
Dr. Lu is a professor of Educational Research in the Department of Teaching and Learning at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV). He has authored extensive publications on educational studies and has received several grants. He has extensive experience conducting educational research and evaluating programs. His research interests include international education, educational positive psychology, STEM education, learning sciences, and scholarship of teaching and learning using technology in HSI institutions. Dr. Lu comes to UTRGV with an interdisciplinary educational background. He received his Ph.D. in Educational Psychology/ Cognitive Studies in Education from Columbia University, M.Sc. in Applied Statistics from Columbia University, and M.ED. in Human Development and Psychology from Harvard University. Dr. Lu teaches graduate-level research methodology courses. He is a well-loved instructor, facilitating engaged learning and directed-research experiences for graduate students. Dr. Lu has traveled to over twenty countries. He currently serves as Director of Global Initiatives within Global Affairs.