There are approximately 500 international scholars contributing their expertise to CU Anschutz and CU Denver. While these individuals come from different nations, backgrounds and disciplines, they all share two commonalities—the scholars are standouts in their fields, and they have worked through Director of International Students and Scholarship Services (ISSS) Michelle Larson-Krieg and her team to bring their talents to the campus community.

“We’re interested in hiring the most qualified candidates for the positions we have,” said Larson-Krieg. “Our programs are world-class programs that attract world-class applicants. Those applicants are the ones we want to bring to CU Denver and CU Anschutz.”

Larson-Krieg and her team are experts in immigration and assist international students, researchers, faculty and others in navigating what can often be a complicated system. Scholars from certain countries can wait up to 10 years to receive permanent residency if they are not categorized as first preference. The ISSS team helps strong candidates for positions at the university expedite the process of obtaining a visa so that they can begin contributing to campus scholarly activities.

“We try to provide a pathway that makes joining the campus community as seamless as possible,” Larson-Krieg said. “We are helping the institution to hire the people they need, while enabling these scholars to reach their aspirations and goals.”

Larson-Krieg and her team will be processing more than 300 applications this fall for international scholars and students interested in coming to CU Denver and CU Anschutz. Below are just a few of the extraordinary international scholars that have joined the CU Denver and CU Anschutz faculty and staff.

Andres Lema-Hincapie

Associate professor, Modern Languages

Andres Lema-Hincapie, from Colombia, is an internationally recognized teacher and expert in Latin American literature and film. As an associate professor in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Department of Modern Languages, Lema-Hincapie organizes film series on campus that are open to the public, teaches numerous courses in Latin American literature and film, and is invited to speak at national and international conferences and universities. He also writes extensively on Spanish-speaking authors and filmmakers, as well as Western philosophers.

Arunprakash Karunanithi

Associate professor, Civil Engineering

Arunprakash Karunanithi, from India, is an internationally recognized expert in systems engineering and sustainability. As an associate professor in the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Department of Civil Engineering, Karunanithi researches nationally important issues, such as designing new ecofriendly chemicals and developing ways to measure sustainability. He receives funding from U.S. National Science Foundation, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and Gates Foundation.

Kejun Guo

Instructor, Infectious Diseases

Kejun Guo, a citizen of China, is an internationally recognized researcher in the immunogenetics of HIV/AIDS. He is doing basic research that may lead to the development of a vaccination to prevent HIV/AIDS. He is an instructor in the School of Medicine, Department of Infectious Diseases, and is working on grants that bring nearly $1 million to the university. He is also serving as a mentor to Ph.D. students and postdoctoral fellows to help them successfully complete their research.