Institute Staffing
Texas Tech’s Public Management Leadership Institute will be led by International Affairs and the Davis College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources. The Institute leadership team will consist of Dr. Darren Hudson, Dr. Conrad Lyford, and Dr. Amy Boren-Alpizar as Co-Academic Directors, Dr. Ian Lertora as part of the Academic team.
Mrs. Elizabeth Espino as Administrative Director and Co-Leadership Manager and Mr. Michael Johnson as the Leadership Manager for the Common Leadership Curriculum. Ms. Stephanie Lara, Ms. Reagan Ribordy, and Mr. Calan Welder will serve on the Administrative team. The team will also welcome their TTU international student assistants.
Darren Hudson- Academic Director
Darren Hudson is Professor and the Larry Combest Endowed Chair for Agricultural Competitiveness and Director of the International Center for Agricultural Competitiveness. Dr. Hudson has been a Professor at Mississippi State University and a Farm Foundation Fellow. He participates in the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute consortium producing annual baseline projections for cotton for the group. Hudson is a past-President of the Southern Agricultural Economics Association. He earned his B.S. In Agribusiness from West Texas A&M University, and his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Agricultural and Applied Economics from Texas Tech University.
Elizabeth Espino Roberts - Administrative Director & Co-Leadership Manager
Elizabeth Espino is a Senior Grant Administrator for International Grant and Partnerships within the International Affairs office. Elizabeth assists Texas Tech Faculty with grant administration and is responsible for administrating the Mandela Washington Fellowship. Elizabeth is inspired by her parents, husband and her cat, Merlin. In her free time, Elizabeth likes to spend time with her family, listen to music, crafts and learn new languages.
Michael Johnson – Leadership Manager
Michael Johnson has over 20 years of experience working in higher education, with the last 11 years focusing on international higher education. Michael has experience teaching in secondary and tertiary education systems and maintains his Texas state teaching certifications. He received his bachelor’s degree from Texas Tech in Russian Language and Area Studies and a minor in International Studies and History. Michael also received his master’s degree in History, with a minor in Russian studies. He is currently working towards his doctorate in higher education administration, with a focus toward greater internationalization and international collaboration. Michael will serve as the Administrative Co-Director and the Leadership Manager for the Mandela Washington Fellowship, ensuring the incorporation of supplemental leadership approaches, tools, and activities throughout the TTU Institute to build on and reinforce the Fellowship’s focus on broad-based leadership development
The Mandela Washington Fellowship is a program of the U.S. Department of State with funding provided by the U.S. Government and administered by IREX. Texas Tech University is a sub-grantee of IREX and is implementing a Leadership Institute as a part of the Fellowship. For more information about the Mandela Washington Fellowship, please visit the Fellowship’s website at www.mandelawashingtonfellowship.org.
Mandela Washington Fellowship Program
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Address
601 Indiana Avenue, Lubbock, TX 79409-5004 -
Phone
806.742.3667 -
Email
michael.johnson@ttu.edu