Academic Affairs Board
This is the Academic Affairs Board of the International Affairs Association.
Director of Academic Affairs
Hi! My name is Melanie Bavaria and I am super excited to be the Academic Affairs Director for the 2012-2013 academic year! I am a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences here at Penn. I joined the IAA freshmen year and it was the best decision I have ever made. I am majoring in International Relations and minoring in French Studies and Journalistic Writing. I am a Philly native, born and raised, so If you need any info about Philly from what bars are good to SEPTA, I am your girl. I am a politics geek (international and domestic) and a history nerd. I studied abroad in Paris last semester and it was the most rewarding experience that I could ever hope for. I am so excited to be back at Penn and please contact me if you have any questions or concerns regarding anything! I will do my best to help out however I can!
Deputy Directors of Academic Affairs
Bianca Faccio is a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences majoring in Health and Societies with a concentration in Health, Policy and Law. Coming from Puerto Rico, Bianca has always loved international relations, ethics and policy. She has also fostered a love of Model United Nations and Western Business Attire (WBA) since her freshman year in high school and has continued competing in conferences all over the States since being at Penn. Bianca has been very involved with the International Affairs Association since her freshman year, working with ILMUNC, PIRC, Special Events and now Academic Affairs! In her spare time, Bianca loves to salsa dance, work on her NGO, do community service and sleep. She is thrilled to be this year’s Vice-Director for Academic Affairs and can’t wait to plan the best Academic-based events the IAA has seen yet!
Hailing from St. Louis, Missouri, Phill is a senior in the College of Arts and Science majoring in Communication in Public Service and Political Science. Having served as an Assistant and Deputy Director of Academic Affairs during his sophomore year, an Assistant Secretary-General for ILMUNC XXVI, an Under-Secretary-General of Crisis Simulations and Regional Summits for ILMUNC XXVII, the Secretary-General of ILMUNC XXVIII, and the Secretary-General of ILMUNC–China, he is incredibly excited to return to Academic Affairs as a deputy this year and is looking forward to helping expand the scope of what Academic Affairs does. When not engrossing himself in the IAA or his studies, Phill can be found playing hippie music on his acoustic guitar or perhaps endlessly watching reruns of The West Wing.
Matthew Cheng :
Matthew is a sophomore transfer student who is currently majoring in Economics at the School of Arts and Sciences. He was born in the U.S. but was raised in Beijing. Along the way, he’s traveled the world with his three passports. Joining the IAA was without a doubt one of the best decisions he’s made so far. As a second year Deputy Director of Academic Affairs, he seeks to make the Academic Affairs a prominent and influential part of the Penn community. While he does enjoy long walks on the beach, he prefers to spend his time sipping on his tea collection as well as exploring the details that life has to offer with his camera.
Hello! My name is Denzel Cummings, and I am a sophomore studying Politics, Philosophy, and Economics, with a minor in Legal Studies and History. I am originally of Canadian descent, but I attended middle school and high school in Fayetteville, North Carolina. I am a newcomer to the Model UN experience, but I have extremely enjoyed my time as a member of the club. I am also involved in Society of Pre-Law students of Color and Skulls on campus, as well as working for Community Legal Services for my work-study job.
Colleen Zorc :
Colleen Zorc is a sophomore at Penn majoring in Diplomatic History. Originally from Washington, DC, she has participated in Model UN since she was a freshman in high school. Last year she joined the IAA as an Assistant Secretary General for ILMUNC and this year also works on PIRC. Outside of the IAA, she is an active member of the Alpha Chi Omega sorority and mentors high school students with the Dana How Scholars program. She spent the past summer studying Spanish in Argentina and meandering through Peru and Ecuador. She hopes to spend the spring studying French in Senegal.
Veena Krish:
Hailing from Connecticut, Veena is a sophomore majoring in Bioengineering. Veena is thrilled to be a part of not only the IAA, having participated in Model UN through high school, but also of Academic Affairs. She is proud to be part of such a fabulous and committed team, and she is incredibly excited for all of AA's events this year.
Assistant Directors of Academic Affairs
New Assistant Directors of Academic Affairs to be announced Fall 2012.