I first stepped onto the campus of Peking University in 1988, aged seventeen, accompanying my father, Dr. H. Keith Spears (communications professor at Marshall University), on his first short-term academic exchange. That first trip abroad opened my eyes to how China viewed the West, and nearly forty years later, I still remain fascinated with the country's history, geography, and political economy. I also recognize the formative role that first trip played in shaping me as an international educator. 

I am the Mildred Miller Fort Foundation Eminent Scholar and Chair of International Education at Columbus State University. I also serve the roles of Executive Director of the Center for Global Engagement and Professor of Geography. In 2019, I successfully led a university-wide effort to win the Excellence and Innovation Award for Internationalization with the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU). This followed CSU's 2014 NAFSA Paul Simon Award.  For the past three years, I have served as the University System of Georgia's chair for its System Council for International Education (SCIE), which is a shared-governance group among 25 colleges and universities with the vice-chancellor's office in Atlanta. This is an elected position. I rotate off in August 2026. 

Within the University System of Georgia, CSU's Center for Global Engagement is recognized as one of the most endowed international education programs, awarding approximately $100,000 in education abroad scholarships/grants and international student service scholarships. I negotiated a $1.3 million endowment for scholarships at Oxford University. 

CSU is the only American regional public university to have a brick-and-mortar presence in Oxford, England. All others in Oxford are public/private R1 or highly selective universities. CSU's predominate first generation students succeed in their studies at Oxford's colleges with the help of endowments and their own intellect. I am fortunate to work with such a wonderful team at CSU, both within international education and externally with different academic departments and Advancement. 

I am grateful to be part of a team that brings global learning to Columbus State's students, and I have come to see student success, both domestic and international, as work that depends on a wide community of people working together, not the effort of any one office alone. 

With a three decade career in international education, I have led every major function of a comprehensive international program, from F-1 and J-1 student and scholar services to education abroad, international enrollment management, international partnerships, and institutional risk and crisis response. 

I am the product of international education. I earned my master's degree in England, was later awarded a Fulbright to South Korea, and have extensive research and language training in Brazil, where I am fluent in Portuguese. I am married to a Brazilian professor at Middle Georgia State University (Professor Marina Spears, English) and have two children who are bicultural and bilingual. 

I lead in a-style rooted in service: clearing the way for faculty and staff to succeed, keeping student outcomes at the center of every decision, and using a growth-mindset approach to all I do.

Areas of Responsibility & Leadership

• Campus internationalization 

• Education Abroad

• International Students & Scholars Services 

• International Admissions & Recruitment

• Global Risk & Safety

• Scholarship/Grant Fundraising