Our Terms & Conditions | Our Privacy Policy
UGA faculty member recognized for her innovative contributions to global education
Given annually by the Office of Global Engagement, the Richard Reiff Award for Campus Internationalization recognizes full-time faculty members who have made exceptional contributions to global education at the University of Georgia. UGA faculty member Sonia Hernandez is the recipient of the 2025 award for her extensive contributions to international education through instruction and curriculum design and education abroad programming.
Hernandez, Josiah Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professor, is a faculty member in the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources with a dual appointment in the College of Veterinary Medicine.
“Dr. Hernandez is a most deserving recipient of the Richard Reiff Award,” said Martin Kagel, UGA associate provost for global engagement. “She is the kind of innovative and impactful educator the award seeks to recognize. Her outstanding record in global education speaks to the high caliber of faculty involved in study abroad at UGA, and I commend her on both her achievements and this well-deserved distinction.”
She is known for her globalized approach to teaching, committed mentorship of students and innovative instructional design and programmatic curriculum development. Hernandez attended a Tropical Ecology course in Costa Rica as doctoral student at the Odum School of Ecology, where she conducted international field work and mentored undergraduate students in research for the first time.
Hernandez cites the impact of her study abroad experience as her driving motivation to facilitate global education for her students. “That joy, that marvel — it’s priceless for me,” she said, “It’s like reliving that discovery phase that I had all over again.”
Early into her teaching appointment at Warnell, she designed a monthlong study abroad wildlife conservation medicine and biology course in Costa Rica. This nationally reputed course is uniquely characterized by its interdisciplinary collaboration among undergraduate, graduate and veterinary students and has since been offered nine times since 2008.
In the course, students converse with Costa Rican farmers, scientists and citizens about the real-life issues they face in their communities and environment and use that information to develop conservation research projects. Students also provide medical care at wildlife rescue centers.
In these professional settings, Hernandez acts as a guide for students as they learn how to collaborate with peers and experts in a cultural environment that may vary from their own. “The value of these conversations is not something students can easily experience in the traditional classroom setting,” Hernandez said.
In her 16 years at UGA, Hernandez has graduated 23 graduate students and typically advises eight undergraduates and three veterinary students each year. Students of hers often maintain lifelong professional and personal bonds with Hernandez.
Raj Joshi, a veterinary emergency medicine specialist and UGA alumnus recalls his time working with Hernandez as a field technician in Costa Rica. “ It was my first time ever working in the field, doing a homestay, and truly being pushed out of my comfort zone,” he said. “These perspective-shifting experiences are vital to shaping the minds of young people by challenging their world views, clearing ignorance and fostering open-mindedness.”
Hernandez also established a partnership between UGA and the University of Costa Rica, allowing UCR professors to participate in the course. This has opened the door for research opportunities for both universities and has facilitated resources for other UGA study abroad courses.
“UGA has a fantastic record of study abroad,” Hernandez said, “I thank Dr. Yana Cornish and the Office of Global Engagement for the structure provided so that I can run study abroad programs at UGA, and for financially supporting UGA students to pursue these opportunities. Study abroad has the power to impact students’ outlook on their career and on their trajectory in their long-term career.”
In 2021, Hernandez participated as a U.S. Fulbright Scholar researcher and lecturer on teterinary infectious diseases at Universidad Complutense in Madrid, Spain. During her year as a Fulbright Scholar, she oversaw the research projects of three UGA graduate students. She also facilitated a research exchange, inviting two Universidad Complutense doctoral students to conduct research at UGA. “I believe my primary job as a mentor is to facilitate as many opportunities that will get them to their life goal as possible,” she said.
Hernandez also teaches a UGA First-Year Odyssey course that introduces students to the concept of One Health, a scientific framework to describe the interdependence of human and animal health. Drawing on her international network and research, Hernandez calls in global experts to speak with her students about the real-life conservation work happening around the world.
“Dr. Hernandez is a living testament to what following your passions and staying curious about your natural surroundings looks like,” said Alanis Reyes, animal bioscience undergraduate. “Watching her explore tidepools and waking us up early to go birding made me remember why I became passionate about the environment in the first place.”
For more information about the Richard Reiff Award for Campus Internationalization, visit
Images are for reference only.Images and contents gathered automatic from google or 3rd party sources.All rights on the images and contents are with their legal original owners.
Aggregated From –
Comments are closed.