Adria Baker was leaving her Portuguese language class at Rice University’s Center for Languages and Intercultural Communication (CLIC) a few weeks ago when a student driving by her slammed on the brakes of his car, jumped out and gave her a big hug right there in the road.
Despite four years of struggles and uncertainties, the bright, promising undergraduate student from Africa was finally about to graduate thanks in part to the help of Baker, the staff at the Office of International Students and Scholars (OISS) and a constellation of other supportive offices across campus, Baker said. The student’s mother in the passenger seat had just crossed an ocean to see him walk across the stage in Rice Stadium.
“So many people at Rice came through for him,” Baker said.
The young man, who plans to stay at Rice for graduate school, is one of countless students, scholars and their families whom Baker, as well as the OISS team, influenced during her 27 years at Rice and 40 years in international education.
In recognition of her career achievements, NAFSA: Association of International Educators recently honored Baker with its Life Membership Award. Individuals become eligible for the award upon their retirement. Baker retired as Rice’s associate vice provost for international education and executive director of OISS in July 2023. NAFSA is the world’s largest nonprofit association dedicated to international education and exchange.
“It would be difficult to overstate the impact that Adria has had on international students and scholars at Rice and around the world,” said C. Fred Higgs III, vice provost for academic affairs. “Her positive impact on Rice’s community of international students, faculty, staff and visiting scholars will be felt for decades to come.”
In announcing the award, NAFSA cited Baker’s multiple leadership roles within the organization and her leadership of Rice teams that won numerous global education awards, including a NAFSA Senator Paul Simon Spotlight Award and two IIE Heiskells . The teams also supported two 100,000 Strong in the Americas grants and others.
NAFSA also noted Baker’s passionate advocacy for balanced laws supporting international exchange. Her advocacy came amid the challenging times after the 9/11 terrorist attacks and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Baker’s leadership resulted in two Texas Legislature resolutions supporting international education, according to NAFSA.
Baker said she was excited to learn about other cultures from an early age, recalling the time she brought back a coloring book in Spanish from a family trip from the Texas Panhandle to Mexico, and when in high school, she made her first international friend, an exchange student from Ecuador. She was an international student herself when she completed a third of her master’s degree at the University of Costa Rica before earning a Doctor of Education focusing on sociolinguistic competence from the University of Houston.
“Barriers break down when people from different countries get to meet each other,” Baker said. At Rice, “there are so many opportunities for people to come together.”
OISS, now led by Associate Vice Provost for International Education and Director Kelia Hubbard , creates a network of support for international students and scholars, advocates for immigration laws that balance the needs of international students and national security and creates international exchange between scholars from Rice and scholars from other nations.
Baker received two Fulbright awards to France in 2021 and South Korea in 2013 and is a Fulbright Scholar Alumni Ambassador. She serves on the advisory board for the Brazil-Texas Chamber of Commerce and the board of directors for Educational Credential Evaluators, Inc.
Since retiring, Baker launched a global education consultancy and maintains a connection to Rice. In the fall, she plans to co-teach a First-Year Writing Intensive Seminar on international education with Jennifer Shade Wilson, director of the Program in Writing and Communication.