Tavia Mendez has worked for IE3 Global since November, 2011, currently serving as the Incoming Exchange Coordinator. She studied abroad at the University of Warwick in Coventry, England, through UCEAP, returned with a desire to encourage other students to embark on similar journeys abroad, leading to her role as an inaugural Peer Advisor for the Office of International Affairs at the University of California, Merced. Tavia earned her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from UC Merced, with minors in both U.S. History and Writing, and a Master of Fine Arts degree in Creative Writing from Eastern Oregon University. She has a penchant for learning languages and is an avid reader and writer of fiction.