Fulbright Houston/Southeast Chapter
2024-2025
Board Leadership
Anthony Potoczniak, Ph.D., President
Anthony Potoczniak is an Assistant Dean in the Office of the Dean of Undergraduates at Rice University. Anthony’s Fulbright journey, which took place in 2005-2006, encompassed a year of conducting fieldwork and research in Ukraine. His research was focused on exploring the impact on institutional and societal changes that followed the fall of the Soviet Union on cultural heritage collections, specifically ethnographic sound archives. In addition to his administrative and research roles, Anthony is an Adjunct Instructor of Anthropology at Houston Community College. He is passionate about meeting new Fulbrighters and establishing connections with academic and international exchange communities.
Kathleen Sison, Vice President
Kathleen Hanviriyapunt Sison was born in Cebu City, the Philippines, to Thai and Filipino parents. She grew up in Chicago and has lived in Humble since 2015 with husband Vince and sons Augustus and Ignatius. As a volunteer, she serves the homeless, the infirm and children. She graduated cum laude from The University of Chicago and taught German at New York University. She was a Fulbright Teaching Assistant in Bad Oldesloe, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, 1992-93. She serves Houston’s Rotary Youth Exchange program. Kathleen is a life insurance agent. She was an editor at The Wall Street Journal and Community Impact Newspaper.
Javed Iqbal, Ph.D, Secretary
Dr. Javed Iqbal served for 15 years as an Assistant Professor in Sustainable Development and headed a public policy centre within a university in Pakistan (2008-2023). During this while he led large scale public policy research and capacity building projects in governance, institutional strengthening, education, health, local government, municipal services, and refugees’ issues. He remained General Secretary of Fulbright Association KP chapter for 3 years. He recently moved to the US to begin working with an Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment company as Director Sustainability. He is serving as a board member with Fulbright Houston Southeast Chapter since Jan 2024.
Board of Directors
Abdullah Adeal
Abdullah Adeal, a native of Afghanistan, completed his Master of Science degree in Transportation Planning and Management at Texas Southern University through the Fulbright program. Currently, Abdullah works as a transportation consultant with Parametrix, a company focused on creating sustainable communities.
Gregory Maddox, Ph.D.
Gregory H. Maddox is a professor of history at Texas Southern University, a historically black institution in Houston, Texas. He holds degrees from the University of Virginia and Northwestern University. He has published works on environmental change in Africa and has taught at the University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania.
Howard Bossen, Ph.D.
Howard Bossen is a lifelong contributor to the arts, bringing extensive professional and academic experience in photography. Since 2008, he has been actively involved in FotoFest, Houston’s world-renowned international photography biennial. Howard served as a professor of photography and visual communication at Michigan State University for 43 years and was also appointed as the adjunct curator of photography at the university’s two museums. He founded and ran a photography study abroad program in Europe for over 30 years and was a Fulbright-Garcia Robles Senior Scholar at the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana—Azcapotzalco, Mexico City, in 1994. Howard remains an active scholar, publishing articles about photography and photographers in in journals and books.
Isabelle Ganz
Mezzo-soprano and composer Isabelle Ganz holds a D.M.A. from the Eastman School of Music and was a student of Jan De Gaetani. She received a Fulbright Grant to teach at the Rubin Academy in Jerusalem and a Solo Recitalist grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. Ganz has conducted vocal improvisation workshops internationally and performed with orchestras like the Brooklyn Philharmonic and Seattle Symphony. She has recorded over 30 CDs, including premieres of works by John Cage. Notable students include Nathaniel Peake, Barbara Padilla, and numerous high school students who later attended prestigious music schools like Juilliard and Eastman. As a composer, Ms. Ganz has been commissioned by many prominent artists and groups, and several of her works have been recognized and have won prestigious awards.
Jonathan Freeman, Ph.D
Dr. Jonathan Freeman is a Senior Associate at the Centre for Public Impact, a Boston Consulting Group Foundation. Currently, he works on the Washington Equity Program where he leads initiatives to drive equitable practices into the fabric of Washington State government. His work involves developing systems that address the needs of residents affected by past injustices and unfair treatment. In 2016, he was awarded a Fulbright to South Africa where he conducted research and advanced scholarship on protest music during the anti-apartheid movement. Since 2018, Jonathan has served as a Fulbright Alumni Ambassador for the Fulbright U.S. Student Program.
Toni Holland, Ph.D
Toni Holland, a US Fulbright Student in 2009-2010, is director of the Honors College at Houston Community College Southeast Campus and serves as the vice president of the recently formed Fulbright Association Community Colleges Chapter. Dr. Holland’s work has been published in Rip Rap, Poetry International (Cinepoetry issue), New Letters, Superpresent, Solstice Literary Magazine, Potomac Review, and is forthcoming in Blue Unicorn. Dr. Holland has served as president of the Fulbright Alumni Association Southeast/Houston Chapter.
Ex Officio Members
Adria Baker, Ph.D.
Dr. Adria L. Baker has enjoyed serving in leadership roles in international education, with her publications and presentations covering public policy and advocacy for internationals, immigration advising, cultural integration, and other global academic themes. In 2013, Adria was awarded a Fulbright grant to South Korea and currently serves as a U.S. Fulbright Scholar Alumni Ambassador. She served as the Associate Vice Provost for International Education and Executive Director of the Office of International Students & Scholars at Rice University, retiring in 2023 after over 20 years of service. Dr. Baker has served on numerous boards, including the Houston Fulbright Alumni Association Chapter and the Advisory Board for the Houston-Guayaquil Sister City Association. As a Rotary Fellow, she studied at the University of Costa Rica (UCR), where she has forged close relationships between Rice and UCR.
Consuelo L Waight, Ph.D.
Consuelo Waight, Ph.D., is a professor of Executive Human Resource Development (HRD). A Fulbright student from Belize, she pursued her studies at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign 28 years ago. In 2016, Dr. Waight was awarded the prestigious Fulbright Scholar Award, enabling her to return to Belize, where she conducted research and e-learning workshops at the University of Belize. During this period, she co-founded Belize’s first Association of HR Professionals, significantly enhancing her global impact. From 2019 to 2022, Dr. Waight served as President of the Fulbright Alumni Association’s Houston Southeast chapter. In April 2024, she was appointed to the Fulbright Specialist Roster, marking her third significant engagement with the Fulbright Program.