History

In the late 1990s, a small group of faculty members at SLU discussed the needs of international faculty (those who came to the U.S. on F-1 or H-1 visas) and consulted with Dean Dowdy of the College of Arts and Sciences and Provost Johnson.  Informal conversations among the international faculty and staff continued, primarily focusing on the lack of assistance from the University with their labor certification and status adjustment.

In 2007, the same group of faculty revisited these needs and decided to organize an association.  During the academic year 2007-2008, several people volunteered to develop an association charter.  The charter was reviewed by Provost Weixlmann and Associate Provost Berg-Weger, and the International Faculty and Staff Association was officially approved. 

Simone Bregni, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Italian in the Department of Modern and Classical Language, served as the first President during the academic year 2008-2009.  Hisako Matsuo, Ph.D., Professor of Research Methodology in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, served as President during the academic year 2009–2010.  Drs. Bregni and Matsuo were the co-founders of IFSA.

Currently, IFSA membership is close to 200 SLU faculty and staff.