The Graduate School and International Education recognized three U of A employees with the 2024 Hoyt H. Purvis Awards for Service in International Education during an event in celebration of International Education Week.
The awards recognize a university faculty member, a university staff member and a staff member of the Graduate School and International Education for their outstanding service to the field of international education. The award is named in honor of Hoyt Purvis, a university professor who transformed international education at the U of A who passed away in 2023.
This year’s winners were:
- GSIE staff member: Audra Johnston, associate director of international students and scholars
- University faculty member: Raj Rao, professor of biomedical engineering
- University staff member: Paul Calleja, associate dean for administration and teaching professor of physical education
Audra Johnston
Johnston has nearly 25 years of service to international students at the university, beginning in 2000 as the assistant director of international students and scholars. She has been an associate director since 2007, where she advises J-1 status holders on immigration regulations, supervises F-1 student advising staff and oversees compliance functions related to international education.
“Audra has served in our Office of International Students and Scholars for over 20 years and is a critical part of helping create a space where international students can be at home, as well as an irreplaceable ‘immigration regulation geek’ for decades now,” said Ed Pohl, dean of GSIE, during remarks at the event. “Audra regularly goes above and beyond to support our international students, the office staff, the leadership team and the broader campus.”
Johnston also launched the International in NWA Podcast, which provides information to help international students thrive at the U of A, covering topics including job hunting, food resources and campus safety, in addition to information about maintaining immigration status in the United States.
“Audra always encourages others to support the whole student – not just their immigration status – and as a result, we have countless stories of international students whose lives she has changed for the better through her work,” Pohl said. “Although she prefers to not be centerstage, her dedication to international student success deserves tremendous celebration and recognition.”
Raj Rao
Rao has taught at the U of A since 2016 as a professor of biomedical engineering and served as the department head of biomedical engineering and as the George M. and Boyce W. Billingsley Endowed Chair in Engineering from 2016-2022. During his time at the university, Rao has championed international education and a commitment to promoting understanding between peoples of different nations and cultures.
He has increased study abroad opportunities and international partnerships for his students, with more than 50 biomedical engineering students participating in programs since 2016. As part of the Biomedical Innovations for Global Impact course that he developed in 2020, he has engaged with more than 150 students from Arkansas, Panama and India.
Additionally, Rao has a demonstrated track record of championing a culture of diverse faculty, staff and students and promoting community and belonging for the engineering community.
“Equally important is the engagement of a cohort of mentors that Dr. Rao assembled from different countries who bring together expertise in entrepreneurship, social innovation, non-profit organizations, healthcare and engineering to guide the students during the course,” Pohl said. “Dr. Rao has also established a partnership with Physicians for Peace, which has led to students addressing healthcare challenges in low-resource settings in Malawi. The course has thus nicely evolved into a collaborative venture that promotes cultural understanding, social entrepreneurship and understanding of health disparities within Arkansas and the global community, and is one of the few engineering courses that has a ‘service-learning’ designation.”
Paul Calleja
Calleja has served as a “seminal leader” of international education in the College of Education and Health Professions for over a decade. The study abroad program he developed, Education in Ireland, launched in the summer of 2015 and has provided eight cohorts of participants opportunities to experience schools and teaching careers in three major population centers in Ireland: Dublin, Galway and Limerick.
Calleja was also instrumental in helping his departmental colleague create a concurrent study abroad program, Health Care and Social Services in Ireland. Since launching in 2019, the program has facilitated 48 students studying abroad.
Additionally, he has served as a faculty representative on the International Educational Advisory Council since 2022, consistently attending monthly meetings and providing his input on important topics. Additionally, he led a delegation of three faculty leaders in COEHP to Ireland to consider opportunities to expand the college’s international education reach and involvement in Ireland this past summer.
“In his current role, Dr. Calleja also advances international education and cultural exchange by leading his college’s human resources,” Pohl said. “This means he is regularly a point person for our international faculty and staff and their interactions with human resources and International Students and Scholars. Taken together, Paul embodies a commitment to promoting the mission of mutual understanding between peoples of all nations at the University of Arkansas.”
