Our Staff

Meet the staff of the Center for Global Education at Asia Society.

If you have general inquiries, please contact us at education@asiasociety.org.

Neelam Chowdhary
Acting Vice President of Education

Neelam is the Acting Vice President of Education and works to lead curriculum and professional development initiatives that strive to graduate students both college-ready and globally competent.

She supports the development of materials for the International Studies Schools Network and online teacher professional development programs that provide the study and application of global competence to an international audience.

Prior to joining Asia Society, Neelam was the Vice President of Programs at the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) where she designed curriculum and professional development programs in the areas of youth entrepreneurship and innovation. In addition, she had a lead role in NFTE’s research and evaluation initiatives.

She has a BA from the University of Southern California, an MA in Educational Leadership from Pepperdine University, and a doctorate degree from Teachers College, Columbia University, in Curriculum Studies. She is also a National Board Certified Teacher.

Linda Driscoll
Executive Associate

Linda Driscoll is Executive Associate for the Center for Global Education at Asia Society, and her work focuses on fundraising and partnership development; public engagement, including events and communications; and overall administrative support for the Center.

Prior to joining Asia Society, Linda worked on community engagement for the Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator, building partnerships with local schools and universities, workforce development programs, and nonprofits focused on talent development within the cleantech sector, as well as contributing to the organization's Diversity & Inclusion and Women in Cleantech initiatives. Linda's passions are social justice and human rights. Linda holds a BA in Broadcasting & Communications from San Francisco State University.

Yang Guo
Assistant Director, Partner Schools

Yang Guo is the Assistant Director of Partner Schools for China Learning Initiatives at Asia Society's Center for Global Education, where she manages a nationwide school network and executes educational programs to make Mandarin language approachable for all.

Yang is passionate about cross-cultural communication and education exchanges. She has organized dozens of nationwide and international conferences and student exchange programs.

Yang holds an MPA degree from the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University and received her BA in Communication from Beijing Normal University.

Alexis Menten
Managing Director

Alexis Menten is the Managing Director of the Center for Global Education at Asia Society, where she is responsible for strategic and program planning, finance and operations, and partnership development.

Alexis founded Asia Society’s Global Learning Beyond School initiative to advance global competence through non-formal education programs, and helped lead the development of the International Studies Schools Network (ISSN), now part of Community Catalyst Partners. She oversaw the publication of Teaching for Global Competence in a Rapidly Changing World in collaboration with OECD, and directed an international research project and working group of the Global Cities Education Network on the integration of 21st century skills in education systems in the US and Asia.

Prior to Asia Society, Alexis worked on educational technology programs in Central Asia and the Middle East with Relief International. She is a graduate of Bryn Mawr College, and holds a Masters in Public Administration from the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University.

Heather Singmaster
Director of CTE and GCEN

Heather Singmaster is a Director in the Center for Global Education at the Asia Society, where she oversees the Global Cities Education Network and work integrating global competence into Career Technical Education (CTE) programs as well as state and national policy.

She also leads the project, "Mapping the Nation: The Case for Global Competence" and hosted Education Week's Global Learning blog for seven years. Currently, she is working on "Career Readiness in a Global Economy: STEM and CTE"—a set of online professional development modules and resources to support the CTE field, in partnership with ACTE and Advance CTE. She previously worked at the Council on Foreign Relations, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the Office of the United States Trade Representative.

Heather holds a Master's degree focused in Anthropology from New York University and a Bachelor's degree in International Affairs from George Washington University.

Cleopatra Wise
Director, China Learning Initiatives

Cleopatra Wise is the Director for Asia Society's Center for Global Education, China Learning Initiatives (CLI). She is responsible for managing the CLI team and executing programs that promote Chinese language learning among young people in the United States.

Before joining Asia Society, Cleopatra served as an International Program Manager at Peking University for seven years. During her time there, she spearheaded the school's global outreach and special initiatives.

Cleopatra holds a BA in International Relations from the University of Southern California. She also earned an MBA from the Guanghua School of Management at Peking University.

Cleopatra is a Florida native and speaks fluent Mandarin Chinese and Krio.

Jianqing Zhang
Program Associate, China Learning Initiatives

Jianqing Zhang is the Program Associate for China Learning Initiatives at Asia Society's Center for Global Education. Jianqing started her career as a marketing specialist in Shanghai, China. After moving to the U.S., she worked at the Career Development Office of the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth. There, she managed and coordinated recruitment events. She is passionate about promoting education programs that cultivate students into better global citizens. She has also led programs that build student leadership and enhance mutual understanding between different cultures. Jianqing holds a Master’s degree from Dartmouth College, and a Bachelor’s degree from Shanghai International Studies University.

Yiwei Zhu
Assistant Director, Teacher Development Programs

Yiwei is the Assistant Director of Teacher Development Programs for the China Learning Initiatives at Asia Society's Center for Global Education. In this role, she leads the development and execution of the CLI team’s portfolio of teacher development and training programs in the US.

Before coming to America, she was a high school English teacher in a public school in Wuhan, China. Prior to joining the Asia Society, she worked as the global education advisor at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business and as the Chinese language and culture advisor at INTO Oregon State University.

Yiwei graduated with her Master's degree in Educational Studies from the University of Michigan School of Education. She also received two Bachelor's degrees respectively from Wuhan University and Huazhong University of Science and Technology in China.

If you have general inquiries, please contact us at education@asiasociety.org.