OIS Staff Bios
OIS staff are available to assist you with a variety of issues. In many instances you will need to schedule an appointment to speak with your advisor as only quick matters can be handled on a walk-in basis. Whenever possible, you are encouraged to email your questions to your advisor or to schedule an appointment for a more detailed discussion.
If you are unable to make a scheduled appointment, you should call OIS ahead of time to let the advisor know you cannot make it.
Director
Gudrun Kendon is the Director of Office of International Services. She joined OIS in January of 2007 after having worked for five years in the Cultural Division of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in Washington, D.C. She is committed to the field of international education and has worked advising international students since 1989 primarily in the Washington, D.C. area. She holds a Master's degree in Intercultural Management from the School of International Training located in Brattleboro, Vermont. Born in England, she has traveled extensively throughout Europe, visited New Caledonia, Kenya, South Africa, Malawi, Egypt, Israel, Guatemala, Mexico, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Colombia, and has lived in Australia, Spain and The Netherlands. She finds working with international students extremely rewarding and feels honored to be able to meet and learn about people from all over the world!
Associate Director
Porter LyonsInternational Student Advisor
Seydick Ramirez Chaveco is the International Student Advisor of Office of International Services. She joined OIS in October of 2022 and has been working with international students since 2008. She was born and raised in Havana, Cuba and holds a degree in Computer Science. Learning new cultures and languages has always been her passion which has manifested itself in extensive travel across major continents. She loves to help students break frontiers and travel abroad in the pursuit of their dreams. She is excited to serve the international student community at Catholic University and is looking forward to contributing towards the school’s mission and goals!
International Student Advisor
Larry Stewart
stewartlw@cua.edu
Laurence “Larry” Stewart joined the Office of International Services team in the summer of 2024. He was brought on to help manage exchange student DS-2019 issuances and student social programming. Larry originally hails from Los Angeles, CA, where he grew up and attended his undergraduate studies at California State University Long Beach in American Studies. Larry’s professional background is varied as he worked in aviation, healthcare, and autonomous vehicles, just to name a few but most notably he worked as an ESL teacher in South Korea, Vienna, Austria (Fulbright) and locally at the International Language Institute in Washington, DC. Larry has lived in various places throughout the United States – New Jersey, Colorado, Phoenix, Arizona and now Washington, DC.
Administrative Assistant
Ivan Alvarado The OIS staff does not work for the U.S. Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services and are not agents of the U.S. government. They do, however administer the F and J federal visa programs and are responsible for University compliance with federal regulations governing those programs. They are not immigration attorneys and as such are prohibited from legally advising you on matters unrelated to the F or J program, your studies or employment related to your status.