General Hours

Monday through Friday:  8:00 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Address

1111 University Capitol Centre
The University of Iowa
Iowa City, Iowa 52242-5500
USA

Phone: +1 (319) 335.0335
Fax: +1 (319) 335.0280
E-mail: isss@uiowa.edu

Walk-in Advising Hours

International students and scholars may see an advisor on a no-appointment, first-come first-served basis. You will meet with the advisor scheduled for walk-in advising rather than a specific advisor. Sign up for a walk-in slot is done in the ISSS reception area beginning at 9:00 a.m. or at 1:00 p.m.

Monday: 9:30-11:30 & 1:30-3:30
Tuesday: 9:30-11:30 & 1:30- 3:30
Wednesday: 1:30-3:30
Thursday: 9:30-11:30 & 1:30-3:30
Friday: 9:30-11:30 & 1:30-3:30

Senior Associate Director of ISSS

Lee Seedorff, Senior Associate Director | lee-seedorff@uiowa.edu

Reporting to the Assistant Provost for International Programs, Lee has day-to-day administrative oversight of ISSS.  She sets advising policies and procedures, interprets and applies federal regulations and other immigration guidelines, oversees the ISSS budget, works closely with University of Iowa administration and other programs regarding international issues, and manages scholarships and financial aid for international students.  She served as Regulatory Ombudsperson for Region IV of NAFSA: Association of International Educators, liaising with schools in the region and the Department of Homeland Security/Department of State.  She was also involved with NAFSA for a number of years providing training for advisors new to the field.  Lee has a B.A. in Anthropology and South Asian Religions, a Master’s in Social Work, has studied in India and St. Lucia, and spent time in Mexico, Canada, Thailand, and Singapore.  She has studied the Spanish, Hindi, Urdu, and Sanskrit languages, and made less successful attempts to learn Chinese (Mandarin) and German.

Advisors

Timothy Barker, Assistant Director | timothy-barker@uiowa.edu

Timothy oversees the J-1 Exchange Programs at the UI, which include both visiting scholars and students.  He is the Responsible Officer for the J-1 programs, managing SEVIS records and reports, and coordinating procedures that pertain to both J-1 students and scholars.  He works closely with University of Iowa departments who host J-1 scholars, and serves as our liaison with Fulbright as well as other programs.  Timothy has a B.A. in Political Science and M.A. in Education, has studied in China, France and Russia , has spent time in Italy, and has studied the Chinese (Mandarin), French, and Russian languages.

Michael Bortscheller, Senior Advisor | michael-bortscheller@uiowa.edu

Michael is the orientation coordinator for ISSS and also oversees the iHawk database program, developing the online Pre-Arrival Checklist for incoming students and E-Form applications, and monitoring daily immigration record alerts.  He works closely with ITS, the Registrar, Admissions, and other offices to ensure student and scholar data flows smoothly and accurately, and is responsible for training and overseeing staff use of iHawk.  He is responsible for international student enrollment data and statistical reports including Open Doors.  Michael has Bachelor’s degrees in Linguistics and Spanish and a Master’s in Linguistics with an emphasis on Teaching English as a Second Language, has studied Spanish in Spain, and has spent time in Canada, England, France, Greece, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, the Netherlands, Singapore, Spain, and Nebraska.

Laura Holtkamp, International Student and Scholar Advisor | laura-holtkamp@uiowa.edu

Laura is the community and organizations outreach liaison, working closely with programs such as the Department of Motor Vehicles, the Social Security Administration, local landlord associations, Friends of International Students, the International Women’s Club, and various victim’s advocacy programs.  Laura also coordinates the non-resident tax program each spring, overseeing the workshops providing tax assistance and the online Windstar tax program.  She handles part-time authorization requests and changes of major processing.  Laura holds a Master’s degree and has completed Doctoral coursework in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, has studied French, Italian and Spanish and traveled throughout Europe and Canada.

Robert Gutwein, International Student and Scholar Advisor | robert-gutwein@uiowa.edu

Robert oversees the formal programs that bring J-1 exchange students here while sending  UI students to study abroad at their schools, managing the applications and communication with incoming exchange program students.  He supervises the Global Buddies program, which provides activities and events for exchange students. He also supervises the Life in Iowa/Peer Assistant program.  Robert serves as liaison for other special programs such as the Study Abroad Foundation, CIMBA, STEAM, and Vocology.  He has a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Iowa and an Ed.M. from SUNY-Buffalo.  He speaks German, has studied French, and has spent time in Austria, Mexico, Dominican Republic, England, Italy, and the former Czechoslovakia.

Rudia Kihura, International Student and Scholar Advisor | rudiawairimu-kimani@uiowa.edu

In additional to standard student advising duties, Rudia's area of specialization deals with J-1 scholars who come to do research or teach at the University of Iowa. She does the immigration check-in for newly arrived scholars and orients them to the UI and Iowa City community. She also coordinates cross-cultural events for the scholars. Rudia sends out the bi-monthly ‘ISSS Update” listserv to students, and a second listserv for scholars.  Rudia is from Kenya and worked as a school teacher and head of a school counseling program there. She has a B.S. in Education, Master’s degrees in Psychology and Special Education, and is currently a student in the Ph.D. program in Special Education.

Support Staff

Michelle Snyder, Secretary | michelle-snyder@uiowa.edu

Michelle, an Alternate Responsible Officer of the J-1 Exchange Visitor Program , assists departments by reviewing requests and producing the form DS-2019 to bring new J-1 scholars to campus, extending their stay, and inviting dependents to join them. Michelle also manages the ISSS accounting processes.  She has enjoyed working for International Programs and values getting to know not only departmental administrators and faculty but also the J-1 scholars, learning their different cultures and beliefs.  She has traveled all over the United States and her dream would be to backpack through her ancestor’s country of Ireland.

Ann Drop, Secretary | ann-drop@uiowa.edu

Ann provides reception services for ISSS, greeting visitors and receiving phone calls on the main ISSS line.  She also processes Notices of Action and Employment Authorization Documents.  Ann is a certified Notary Public.  Ann has B.A.s in English and Elementary Education, and has traveled to Canada, Mexico, and Italy.

Shuhui Lin — Life in Iowa Coordinator/Peer Assistant

Lin coordinates numerous events and excursions for the Life in Iowa program.  She also runs an online peer chat program for international students.  Lin is a Communication Studies major and is planning to attend graduate school concentrating in Student Affairs.  She is from Guangzhou, China, speaks Cantonese and Mandarin, and is now learning Korean.

Molly Nordlocken — Student Clerical Assistant

Molly provides assistance at the reception desk as well as helps with numerous administrative tasks, event set-up, and document scanning.  Molly is majoring in Marketing and Entrepreneurial Management with a minor in Sports Studies and is from Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Brayden Zhao — Student Clerical Assistant

Brayden also provides assistance at the ISSS reception desk, as well as helping with numerous administrative tasks, event set-up, and document scanning.  Brayden is a senior from Jinan, Shandong, China. He studies Marketing and Management Information Systems and is minoring in German.  He has traveled to several different countries including Korea, Canada, and a couple cities in the United States. Except He also works as a writing tutor in the Frank Communication Center of the Tippie College of Business.

Jessica Voigt — Global Buddies Assistant

Jessica coordinates the Global Buddies program, which provides special support for students attending the University of Iowa on formal exchange programs from other universities abroad.  Jess is pursuing a Master’s in Music and is from Australia.