Meet Our Staff

Email: gabriel@louisiana.edu
Phone: 337.482.6819

Responsibilities:
• Lead efforts to globalize education, research and community initiatives
• Enhance the global presence of the University
• Oversee the offices of International Affairs and Study Abroad

Dr. Gabriel A. Carranza leads initiatives to enhance UL Lafayette's international reputation. He is responsible for centralizing programs the University offers to its domestic and international students and scholars, as well as, creating and developing new international programs. From 2009 to 2016, Dr. Carranza served as the Assistant Vice Provost for Global Engagement and Adjunct Research Professor in Biological Sciences at the University of North Texas. He also served as Director of the Office for Latin American Programs at Texas A&M University from 1992 to 2009. During that period, he was the Executive Director of the Texas A&M Center in Mexico and was Interim Director of the University's Institute for Pacific Asia. Dr. Carranza is also a visiting professor of Environmental and Sanitary Engineering at the State University of Ponta Grossa in Parana, Brazil.

Responsibilities:
• Administer process of bringing international researchers
• Foster international engagement to promote global interests
• Facilitate the implementation of UL Lafayette partnerships

Dr. Rose Honegger has overseen the Office of International Affairs and the Intensive English Program at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette since 2004. Prior to joining UL Lafayette, Dr. Honegger taught at the Intensive English Institute at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and at the Linguistics Department at the National University of Malaysia. She works closely with all international students to facilitate graduation and a successful transition to graduate programs or pursuit of careers.

Responsibilities:
• Intensive English Program administration
• F-1 and J-1 immigration advising
• Sponsored students/advisors

Megan Miller is a 2002 graduate of UL Lafayette's College of Education with a B.S. in Secondary Education (English) and a 2011 graduate of the M.S. Communication program. Her thesis research was dedicated to post-secondary recruitment of international students. She has also taught English, French, and ESL in Louisiana, Texas, and Massachusetts and worked as a recruiter and international admissions specialist.  She has been employed at the University since 2008 and enjoys assisting Ragin' Cajuns from all over the world.

Responsibilities:
• F-1 and J-1 immigration advising
• OPT & CPT processing
• SEVIS I-20 and DS-2019 document management

Vinca Rampen-Duhon is a 2003 graduate of UL Lafayette's College of Liberal Arts with a B.A in Communication (Public Relations). Originally from Indonesia, she came to Louisiana as an International Student-Athlete and proudly represented UL Lafayette as a member of the Ragin' Cajuns Women's Tennis Team. She also served as a committee with the International Student Council. She has been employed with the University since 2004 and enjoys working closely with local and international students. 

Zayira Quiroz Parraga
Global Programs Coordinator

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Originally from Ecuador, Zayira came to Louisiana as an exchange student and fell in love with the culture and food. After studying at LSU-Alexandria for a year, she transferred to UL Lafayette and studied political science with a concentration in International Relations and earned her MBA in 2023. She chose UL because of the opportunities and scholarships for international students that the University offers.

Email: aaron.gyarfas1@louisiana.edu
Phone: 337.482.9028

Responsibilities:
• Conversation Hour
• Calendar & Registration
• Facilities & Safety
• Curriculum Development (Reading & LSP)

Aaron Gyarfas completed his Master's degree in TESOL from UL Lafayette in 2017. He previously spent four years teaching English in Vietnam. While a graduate student, he worked as a tutor in the UL Writing Center and taught ESOL 102: Writing and Research About Culture for Non-Native Speakers of English. He recently worked as a Composition & Rhetoric Instructor at the South Louisiana Community College campuses in Lafayette and Crowley. His interests include cinema, literature, history, language, and travel. He has visited Cambodia, Hungary, the Netherlands, Germany, and Jamaica. He delights in helping each student reach his or her personal and professional goals.

Brandt Snook
ESL Specialist

Email: brandt.snook@louisiana.edu
Phone: 337.482.9028

Responsibilities:
• Technology
• Weekly newsletter
• Curriculum Development (Grammar & Writing)