Nicola Zollinger

February 15, 2023

Nicola Zollinger

Bio:

Nicola serves as the study abroad advisor for Oceania, the UK, and Ireland. She received her B.A. in Psychology from Lafayette College and her M.S. in Clinical Rehabilitation and Mental Health Counseling from UNC-Chapel Hill. During her time as an undergraduate student, she studied abroad at DIS in Copenhagen, Denmark. Prior to joining the UNC Study Abroad Office, Nicola participated in numerous international endeavors, including time spent on a farm in Birkerød, Denmark through WWOOF. She has additional experience working with adolescents and young adults in outpatient, residential treatment, and university settings. Nicola is inspired by the positive impact of international education and, as a Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor, is passionate about optimizing student wellbeing during cultural transitions. In her free time, Nicola enjoys solo travel, studying Danish, reading too many books at once, gardening, and practicing ballet & yoga.

Christine Trinidad

February 15, 2023

Christine Trinidad

Senior Director for Programs and Advising
christjt@unc.edu

Bio:

Christine J. Trinidad is a strong proponent of education abroad with over fifteen years of experience in higher education and the profession of international education. She has served in multiple capacities on the student services side of education abroad and has held multiple positions, first at UC San Diego as peer advisor, office manager, and study abroad advisor, then to provider education abroad advisor at St. Edwards University, and finally at Michigan State University as Assistant Director for Education Abroad Support services. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of California, San Diego in Political Science and Ethnic Studies and received her Master’s degree in Education with a focus on Postsecondary Leadership from San Diego State University. She spent a year at the University of London, School of Oriental and African Studies in the United Kingdom that inspired her to enter the profession of international education.Since 2006, Christine has made it her professional goal to improve the student experience (from first point of contact to return) and has made it her personal mission to reach out to diverse and underrepresented populations.

Robert Noffsinger

December 7, 2022

Robert Noffsinger

Program Director
rpnoff@email.unc.edu

Bio:

Robert serves as the Program Director for Latin America, Portugal, Spain, France, and the Caribbean. After spending a semester abroad in Spain as an undergraduate at the University of Virginia, he went on to pursue graduate degrees from Virginia Tech and UNC-Chapel Hill, working as a Graduate Teaching Fellow of Spanish here in the United States and as a Visiting Lecturer at the Universidad de Sevilla. Before joining the Study Abroad Office he worked in the Office of Undergraduate Admissions at Carolina, collaborating as part of the global evaluation team and helping to coordinate first-year abroad programs. In his free time, you can find him bouldering, reading speculative fiction, playing embarrassingly old video games, and exploring mountains with his wife and their dog.

N. Nicole Cobb

November 16, 2022

N. Nicole Cobb

Exchange Student Advisor
nncobb@unc.edu

Bio:

Nicole is the Exchange Student Advisor for both the Study Abroad and International Student & Scholar Offices. In this position, she serves all incoming exchange students from all over the world. She has been at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill since 2010 as a lecturer in the English Department and School of Education. Prior to serving in this role, she was an Academic Advisor in the College of Arts & Sciences working with STEM and pre-health students. Nicole holds an M.A. in Teaching English as a Second Language and a B.S. in Business Administration with an emphasis in Human Resource Management. In her free time, you will find Nicole on the tennis courts or being active somewhere in the world.

Ken Nesbett

October 28, 2022

Ken Nesbett

Program Director for Africa, Asia, Canada, and domestic programs
knesbett@unc.edu

Bio:

Ken Nesbett serves as the Program Director for Africa, Asia, Canada, and domestic programs. He has a strong track record in study abroad project management and building partnerships focused on internationalizing the campus. Originally from Northeast Ohio, Ken obtained his B.A. in History and Integrated Social Studies Education from the University of Toledo. During his time at UT, he completed several global experiences in Asia, Europe, and North America. These opportunities remain some of most transformative experiences in his life. Ken went on to obtain an M.A.E. in Higher Education Administration from the University of Northern Iowa. Prior to joining the team at UNC, Ken served as the Study Abroad Advisor at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa for 12 years. Under his guidance, Kirkwood Study Abroad was nationally recognized as a Top Ten Provider of education abroad programming by Open Doors for Associates Degree institutions every year of his tenure, and was also recognized as a Top Producer for the Benjamin A. Gilman Scholarship. Ken is excited to join the Study Abroad Office at UNC where he hopes to continue to expand access and equity to global opportunities for all. In his spare time, he enjoys biking, hiking, traveling, and getting out into nature.

Nina Fisher

September 27, 2022

Nina Fisher

Vice President of Study Abroad Peer Ambassadors
ninan@email.unc.edu

Bio:

Nina Fisher is the Vice President of Marketing and Communications for the Study Abroad Peer Ambassadors, a student organization that facilitates connections between past and upcoming study abroad students, while encouraging more UNC students to study abroad. After spending her semester studying French in Paris, France, Nina is passionate about making the study abroad experience one that every student considers. She is excited about connecting students with their peers before program departure and hopes this will enhance their experience abroad. Nina is in her third year at UNC, majoring in Psychology with minors in Entrepreneurship and French. Nina is an avid traveler and backpacker, and her favorite trip was during her time in Tanzania, when she climbed Mount Kilimanjaro. She would love to incorporate travel into her future career and is interested in becoming an Industrial/ Organizational Psychologist. In her free time, Nina loves going for hikes and running with her friends!

Kira Ranieri

September 21, 2022

Kira Ranieri

President of the Study Abroad Peer Ambassadors & Marketing Assistant

Bio:

Kira Ranieri is the President and Marketing Assistant of the Study Abroad Peer Ambassadors, which is a student organization that allows students who have already studied abroad to connect with students who are interested in going abroad. Kira is currently in her last year of education here at UNC, working towards her degree in Advertising and Public Relations at the Hussman School of Journalism and Media. In the summer of 2022, she studied abroad in Paris France at Parsons: School of Design. Here she made friends from all around the world. She hopes to help other students study abroad and make connections with their peers. When she’s not working with SAPA, Kira enjoys cooking and baking and going on sunset drives.

August Armbrister

August 25, 2022

August Armbrister

Study Abroad Advisor
august@unc.edu

Bio:

August Armbrister serves as the study abroad advisor for programs in Africa, Asia, Canada, and domestic programs. August is a UNC alumnus, graduating in 2012 with a B.A. in Global Studies. As a junior, he received the Phillips Ambassador Scholarship to study abroad for the academic year in Japan at Waseda University. For his last semester in college, August studied abroad in Taipei at the National Taiwan University. After graduation, he then moved to Taiwan for an additional four years, where he worked for several non-profit humanitarian organizations, served as a translator for a Buddhist monastery, and taught English as a Second Language. Prior to joining our office, August was the study abroad advisor at Mercer University, where he helped eliminate financial barriers to education abroad by managing the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program for undergraduate students. August is fluent in Traditional Mandarin Chinese.

Erin Villeneuve

August 24, 2022

Erin Villeneuve

Program Director
ekeeler@email.unc.edu

Bio:

Erin Villeneuve is the Program Director for Scandinavia, Continental Europe (except France, Spain and Portugal) and the Middle East. She has over a decade of experience working in international and U.S. higher education. Prior to joining UNC, Erin worked in the Cultural Missions in the Embassies of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia in Washington, DC. She earned her Master’s degree in Global Affairs from George Mason University and her international experiences abroad range from a semester abroad in Prague and a graduate seminar in Tbilisi, Georgia, to a student ambassador in Australia and a service project in Cote d’Ivoire. In addition to being a travel enthusiast, Erin is an avid horseback rider, baker, wife and mother of a baby boy and two rescue dogs.

Sofia Mouritsen

August 23, 2022

Sofia Mouritsen

Study Abroad Advisor
sofiae@unc.edu

Bio:

Sofia Mouritsen serves as the study abroad advisor for programs in Continental Europe (except France, Portugal, and Spain), Scandinavia, and the Middle East. During her time studying Political Science and International Relations at Gettysburg College, Sofia studied abroad in the fall of her Junior year in Geneva, Switzerland and in the spring in Amman, Jordan. Some of her favorite travels were across Europe and the Middle East, and she is excited to work with students of all backgrounds to figure out which experiences abroad might be right for them. As an advisor, Sofia is committed to helping make study abroad accessible for all students, particularly first-generation students and those from low-income or non-traditional family backgrounds. When she is not in the office, Sofia enjoys reading historical mysteries, biking around town, playing the trumpet, and trying to keep her dog from chewing up her frisbees in disc golf.

SAO Staff entries