Francine displays an unusual combination of administrative excellence coupled with a capacity for creative, strategic thinking. She believes that growing cross-cultural competence is key to global development, and she’s a huge advocate for facilitating cross-cultural exchange whenever possible. Due in large part to her efforts, we have had overwhelmingly successful interactions with Fellows and addressed the many personality-related and cultural issues that are an intrinsic part of the Program. It is impressive that Francine had the energy and passion to write an engaging book titled “Cultural Intelligence: Passport to Understanding” (recently published), which shares some of her wisdom.
Francine consistently refers to herself as an introvert, but that is not always the case. During discussions she can be outgoing, engaging, and energetic. “There you go again, Francine. Far too introverted!” I sometimes joke at her. But on the more serious side, I believe her ability to tap into different parts of her personality and leadership style is what makes her work so effective. She is just as capable of brainstorming fundamental improvements to our program as facilitating lively, stimulating, and productive interactions with Fellows, program team members, and others.
On her extroverted side, Francine has been vital in creating and expanding professional and social networks for Humphrey Fellows. Her extensive knowledge of Cornell’s faculty and staff, courses, and programs has helped our Fellows to interact with the university community. Moreover, her extensive knowledge of, and connections with, organizations and individuals around Ithaca, this region, and the USA have led to effective collaborations with the Fellows and, on many occasions, long-term professional and personal relationships. Francine founded the Friendship Partners for the Humphrey Fellowship Program in 1994.
But Francine’s administrative and networking abilities have helped far more than just Humphrey Fellows. Over the past 27 years, she has worked with numerous training programs simultaneously with the Humphrey Fellowship Program. Few programs are as close to her heart as the World Food Prize New York Youth Institute (NYYI), which she launched in 2009 and has directed for 12 years. NYYI provides a life-changing experience at Cornell for high school students to engage with local leaders and experts on critical global food security challenges, participate in hands-on activities, and explore exciting ways to make a difference in New York and around the world.
