Our Team

Our program operates under the leadership of a diverse and innovative faculty and student team, representing a variety of experiences and backgrounds in international programs. Interested in partnering with us? Are you an international scholar or student who would like to conduct research at NC State? Are you a NC State student interested in international opportunities? Whatever the reason, feel free to contact us. We’re happy to connect with you.

Team
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Team

Jose Cisneros, Director, CALS International Programs
Jose Cisneros has extensive experience in international agriculture and business, and entrepreneurial development and solutions. He has participated in numerous international agricultural projects and has trained farmers, NGO trainers, and government officers from Africa, Asia, Latin America, Eastern Europe. At NC State, Cisneros founded CALS Global Academy, an initiative to train international professionals in agriculture and life sciences. He also developed the most comprehensive database of international activities among peer colleges of agriculture. Cisneros is the founder of AgriFoodGateway and the Global Agribusiness Program at the University of Missouri. As an entrepreneur, he has started six businesses in the horticulture, poultry, consumer retail, and mobile electronics industries. Contact: jose_cisneros@ncsu.edu.

Adrienne LaBranche Tucker, Ph.D., Assistant Director
Adrienne has a background in agriculture and environmental science and holds a Ph.D. in environmental planning, M.S. degree in turfgrass science, and a B.S. degree in ornamental horticulture. Dr. Tucker’s research experiences include investigating plant drought stress tolerance in response to exogenous applications of plant growth stimulants, and alternative water source planning to meet non-potable irrigation needs. Dr. Tucker has worked as a sustainability director in higher education to provide customized training and program development. Prior to joining the CALS International Programs Office, Dr. Tucker lived in France. As the assistant director, Dr. Tucker oversees and manages the CALS International Programs’ initiatives including Research Pack Abroad, USDA Fellows, and additional programs to increase CALS global engagement.
Contact: adrienne_tucker@ncsu.edu

Mirza Farzana Halim, CREdO Program Coordinator
Farzana holds MS in Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management and Masters in International Studies, both from North Carolina State University. Originally from Bangladesh, her research and project implementation experience encompasses agricultural settings in both developed and developing countries. She examined women’s entrepreneurial challenges and opportunities in diversified farm households across North Carolina as part of her thesis research. With an undergraduate degree in Business Administration she also has experience of conducting value chain analysis in addressing market inefficiencies in agricultural sectors in her home country. Her educational and professional experience combined lends a unique lens to analyze agricultural challenges and tailor systemic solutions in various parts of the globe. Contact: mfhalim@ncsu.edu

Andrew Ofstehage, Ph.D., Global Academy Program Coordinator
Andrew grew up on a small South Dakota farm and has been interested in agriculture since he was a child. While studying agronomy and agricultural business at South Dakota State, study abroad experiences in Peru and Ghana sparked his curiosity in the diverse ways farmers make their livelihoods on the soil. As a master’s student at Wageningen University he studied social science methods and conducted research on how Bolivian quinoa farmers made the global quinoa boom work for them. He went on to earn his PhD in Anthropology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a dissertation on transnational soybean farmers in Brazil and carried our further research at Cornell University as a postdoctoral associate. At NC State, Andrew coordinates Cochran programs, private trainings, and online-facing educational programs for Global Academy. Contact: alofsteh@ncsu.edu

Matthew Burkhart, Student Communications Intern
Matthew is a junior studying political science and English at NC State. He is an assistant news editor for Technician, NC State’s student newspaper, and plays the clarinet in the marching band. His articles focus primarily on local political issues and student life. As a communications intern, Matthew writes articles on CALS IP developments and assists with Cochran Fellowship Program visits. He hopes to pursue a career in public policy.
Contact: mkburkha@ncsu.edu

Rick Brandenburg, Ph.D.
Wm. Neal Reynolds Distinguished Professor
Departmental Extension Leader
Commercial Turf and Peanuts
Associate Director of Global Extension
Contact: rick_brandenburg@ncsu.edu

Lina Quesada-Ocampo, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Management, diagnostics, population genetics, and genomics of vegetable pathogens
Program Director of WolfPack Colombia
Contact: lmquesad@ncsu.edu

Peter Ojiambo, Ph.D.,
Professor
Epidemiology and integrated management of plant diseases
Program Director of CREdO Kenya
Contact: pojiamb@ncsu.edu