SLC Advisory Board
The School of Languages and Cultures' Advisory Board was launched in 2023 with the goals of helping to enhance the School's visibility on campus and beyond, increasing networking opportunities for SLC alumni and current students, and contributing knowledge and strategies from varied fields and experience for advancing SLC. We are proud to announce the inaugural SLC Advisory Board members:
Ted Schmitt (Chair of the SLC Advisory Board)
Ted Schmitt is the Senior Director, Conservation at the Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence (AI2) and Director of Skylight, AI2’s technology platform for addressing illegal fishing. Prior to AI2, Ted spent over 15 years leading efforts to bring fit-for-purpose technology for good solutions to a range of terrestrial and marine Conservation issues at Vulcan Inc. He led the EarthRanger program from its inception and has worked extensively in Africa with field organizations applying technology to secure and manage protected areas. Prior to joining AI2, Ted was a Senior Program Officer for the Computer Science and Telecommunications Board at the United States National Academies of Science. He served as Business Development Director at several technology start-ups in Germany, Sweden, and the United States, leading the application of technology for impact on a range of issues. He started his career as a software engineer for IBM, earning patents and several technical achievement awards. Ted holds a Master of Arts in International Science and Technology Policy from George Washington University, a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering, and a Bachelor of Arts in German from Purdue University.
Yasmine Allen
Yasmine Allen is currently serving as a Spanish instructor and program coordinator at Phillips Academy, an independent boarding school in Andover, Massachusetts. She has a diverse range of experience in the education sector and previously served as the Associate Dean of Faculty and co-director of the Teaching Fellowship Program. She oversaw the onboarding process for new faculty, managed course planning and professional development grants, and developed the curriculum for teaching fellow seminars. In addition, Yasmine is an active member of the Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity in Action (IDEA) Committee and contributed to the Systems Committee for the Andover Anti-Racism Task Force. Yasmine has also acted as a faculty chaperone for the Learning in the World Program, accompanying students on trips to Mexico, Peru, and Puerto Rico. Yasmine holds a bachelor’s degree in Spanish from DePauw University and a master’s in Spanish Language and Literature from Purdue University. In her free time, Yasmine enjoys traveling with her family, exploring museums, and attending concerts.
Nathalie Duval-Couetil
Nathalie Duval-Couetil is the Director of the Certificate in Entrepreneurship and Innovation Program, Associate Director of the Burton D. Morgan Center, and a Professor in the Department of Technology Leadership and Innovation at Purdue University. Her administrative and research activities focus on entrepreneurship education; program evaluation; academic entrepreneurship; and gender and entrepreneurship. Prior to academia, Nathalie worked in the field of market research and strategy consulting in Europe and the U.S. with Booz Allen and Hamilton and Data and Strategies Group. She received a BA from UMass Amherst, an MBA from Babson College, and MS and Ph.D. degrees from Purdue University.
Gladys Francis
Gladys M. Francis is a professor of Africana, French, and Francophone Studies at Howard University, where she serves as Associate Dean for Academic Student Affairs in the College of Arts and Sciences. Her scholarship explores issues of identity formation, (rural/urban) resilience, race, gender-based violence, and social cohesion. Her transdisciplinary research involves Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies; Theory and Cultural Studies; Africana Studies; Postcolonial Studies; and Visual and Media Studies. Dr. Francis is a prominent figure in the public humanities having been invited to deliver keynotes, lectures, and high-level consulting engagements across the globe – inclusive of interviews with various media outlets (magazines, newspapers, radio, and TV). She has directed over 1,300 significant international collaborative projects, exchange programs, and experiential learning projects in Africa, the Caribbean, Europe, and North and South America. Her international humanitarian engagement sums to $5 million fundraised and $18 million awarded in grants to advance issues pertaining to social justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion; digital education; Second Language Acquisition; global career preparedness; and research opportunities geared to students, faculty, and staff. She has published four books and over forty peer-reviewed articles on her research interests.
Brady Spangenberg
Brady Spangenberg is the Marketing Director, Crop Protection for BASF US Agricultural Solutions. His primary areas of responsibility include go-to-market strategy, portfolio management, financial forecasting, demand planning, and positioning. In his 12 years at BASF, he has held various roles in strategic marketing, business systems/CRM, market intelligence, and global communications. Brady has also held various academic appointments, including Affiliate Staff in the College of Agriculture at Purdue University and Visiting Scholar of Interdisciplinary Studies at Simpson College in Iowa.
Brady holds a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from Purdue University and has also served as a Research Fellow at the University of Freiburg. He has been published on a wide variety of topics including trends in global agriculture, literature, and writing. His dissertation, “Civil Death in Early Modern Europe from Jack Cade to Luther, Raleigh, and Hamlet” explores the practical and metaphoric consequences of the legal designation of civil death.
He resides in Raleigh, NC, and enjoys sports, yoga, and travel. His two most memorable moments in the agriculture industry are selling John Deere t-shirts at the Iowa State Fair and picking peppercorns in rural Vietnam.