Professional News

Miko McFarland Named UK Executive Director of Education Abroad, Exchanges

Miko McFarland
Miko McFarland

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Jan. 23, 2017) Miko McFarland, former assistant director and acting director of University of Kentucky’s Education Abroad and Exchanges office, will be the university's new executive director for Education Abroad and Exchanges.

McFarland, a Missouri native, received her bachelor's degree in anthropology and master's degree in international affairs and administration from Missouri State University. She studied abroad in Japan as an undergraduate and returned to Japan to work during her graduate studies.  

Prior to joining the UK Education Abroad team, McFarland served as the Study Away Programs advisor at Missouri State University for over four years, where she advised more than 400 students each year on all phases of the education abroad process. McFarland also worked extensively with international exchange students and exchange student programming.

“As a former first-generation college student who studied abroad, I deeply understand the value of global experience during formative college years,” McFarland said. “The landscape of international education is changing, so I hope to focus on the pursuit of innovative program models, strong partnerships and affordability. I’m both honored and excited to begin working with the International Center, UK faculty and staff to make education abroad opportunities accessible to more students.”

McFarland joined the UK Education Abroad team as assistant director in 2014 and led the Education Abroad team through transformational change as student enrollment in education abroad continued to grow rapidly.

Last year, about 1,200 UK students participated in education abroad programs.

“Miko McFarland is a talented and dedicated education abroad professional,” said Associate Provost for Internationalization Sue Roberts, who leads UK’s International Center, where Education Abroad and Exchanges is located. “She has tremendous leadership skills and she is definitely the right person to build on the momentum of the past few years.”

McFarland, who has been an active member of the Association of International Educators (NAFSA) since 2010, presents sessions regularly and has received numerous professional recognitions throughout her international education career.

In 2011, McFarland was awarded the NAFSA Region IV Outstanding New Professional in International Education, and in 2012, she received the Missouri State University Division of Student Affairs Award for Outstanding Collaboration as a Team for her cross-departmental efforts to create an online transfer credit pre-approval database on the Transfer Credit Pre-Approval Task Force.

Nationally, she is completing her second three-year term on the International Exchange Student Program (ISEP) Council of Advisors, a member-elected board of institutional representatives, and also serves on the International Studies Abroad (ISA) Advisory Council.

“In the field of education abroad, Miko McFarland is increasingly recognized as someone to watch. We are proud to have her representing UK in key professional organizations,” Roberts said.  

Education Abroad and Exchanges is part of UK’s International Center which also houses Partnerships and Research, International Student and Scholar Services, Confucius Institute, Office of China Initiatives, Global Health Initiatives and International Health, Safety and Security.

The International Center supports UK's global vision by providing leadership, raising awareness, facilitating the pursuit of international education and encouraging global collaborations for the university community and the Commonwealth.