Julie Henderson—University of Florida

Julie Henderson is the International Program Specialist in the College of Pharmacy. In this position Ms. Henderson works closely with distance-learning programs providing online language and culture support for international students. She also serves on UF delegations to China drawing on her fluency in Chinese. In 2006 Ms. Henderson developed a Distance Language Project initiative where she created Survive China! - Essential Language and Culture for the International Business Person and English for Pharmacy – Language Activation and Culture for International Pharmacy Professionals. Prior to her involvement with the University of Florida, Ms. Henderson served as director of the English House, a multimedia self-access learning center for non-native speakers of English. While living in Taiwan, she worked as creative project coordinator for World Family Taiwan, designing and delivering innovative English language and culture education experiences for Taiwanese children and adults.

Ms. Henderson has lived in Australia, Spain, Cyprus, Taiwan and the U.S. and has traveled to twenty-three countries, including China, the Philippines, Israel and the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon, and Egypt. Having taught speakers from a wide range of language backgrounds for more than 15 years, and having attained working fluency in Chinese and Spanish, Ms. Henderson knows firsthand the challenges and frustrations of language learning and the importance of cultural competence. These insights coupled with her current pursuit of a Master’s degree in Higher Education with a focus on eLearning enable her to create innovative language and culture courses for the world’s rapidly changing community of learners.