Team

Dr. Pedro Hallal

Dr. Pedro Hallal works at the University of Illinois in Champaign, Illinois. He is the system representative in Brasil for the Brasillinois initiative spearheaded by the University of Illinois system. From 2017 to 2020, Dr. Hallal was the President of the Federal University of Pelotas in Brazil. Public health and physical activity are his main areas of study. Leading the 2012 Lancet Physical Activity Series and serving on the steering committees for the 2016 and 2021 series, Dr. Hallal's work contributes to the understanding of the worldwide impact of physical inactivity. He served as president of the Brazilian Society of Physical Activity.

Jerry Dávila

At the University of Illinois Jerry Dávila is the director of the Brasillinois initiative spearheaded by the University of Illinois system. He is the Executive Director of the Illinois Global Institute, which was founded in 2019 with the goal of advancing UIUC's work with global themes and international area studies centers. Dávila's studies center on the state, social movements, and the impact of race theory on Brazilian public policy during the 20th century. He is the author of many books, including Diploma of Whiteness: Race and Social Policy in Brazil, 1917-1945 (Duke, 2003) and Hotel Trópico: Brazil and the Challenge of African Decolonization (Duke, 2010), which was awarded the Latin Studies Association Brazil Section Book Prize. Additionally, he studied at the University of São Paulo as a Fulbright Senior Scholar (2000). In addition, he has been awarded a Fulbright-Hays Research Fellowship and a National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship. Regarding the dictatorships in South America, he has written about the experiences of military dictatorship and redemocratization in Brazil, Argentina, and Chile for journals including the New York Times and the Cairo Review (Wiley, 2013). Additionally, A History of World Societies (Macmillan, 2021) is co-authored by Dávila. He served as president of the Conference on Latin American History in the past, which is an American Historical Association affiliate devoted to the study of Latin America.

Angelina Sandora

Angelina Sandora is the Visiting Coordinator of Brasillinois for the University of Illinois system, where she spearheads communications and facilitates partnerships between key stakeholders. In her capacity as coordinator, Angelina orchestrates communication channels, ensuring that dialogue flows between diverse entities. She is a graduate of Michigan State University in a bachelor’s in international relations. Then is also a graduate of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign with a master’s in European Union Studies. Angelina is dedicated to advancing the mission of Brasillinois and shaping a future of collaboration and mutual enrichment.

Steven Russell

Steven Russell is a Program Services Aide with several years of experience working at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. He specializes in all aspects of administrative assistance, including program and event coordination. Before joining the Brasillinois team, he worked for the Big Ten Academic Alliance and previous to that, for the university system’s SHIELD Illinois program. He approaches all aspects of a job with a positive, hard-working mindset, is detail-oriented while still focused on the big picture and is passionate about helping find solutions to any challenges. Steven is an Urbana native, and he brings with him an extensive background in customer service and event coordination.

Ben Taylor

Ben Taylor works for the Vice President for Economic Development and Innovation (VPEDI) office as an Associate Director, where he creates and implements strategic initiatives. In addition to serving as the office's liaison between Illinois-based corporate, government, community, and university stakeholders to strengthen ties, promote economic development, and encourage entrepreneurship, he oversees a comprehensive, strategic communications plan that tells the story of the University of Illinois System's innovation pipeline and economic development initiatives. Ben used to work at the College of Applied Health Sciences as an Advanced Media Specialist. There, he implemented social media and digital strategies that improved the college's visibility and recruitment efforts. Ben worked at the College of Engineering as a Media Communications Specialist prior to that. There, he created and implemented marketing plans for the college's online and graduate programs in addition to coming up with original methods to present the college's narrative to print and digital media. Ben worked as an assistant director of athletics communication, handling publicity for several Fighting Illini teams, prior to his time at the College of Engineering. Ben is a University of Illinois alumnus who holds a master's degree in recreation, sport, and tourism in addition to a bachelor's degree in journalism.

Kyle Harfst

In his capacity as Associate Vice President, Kyle Harfst collaborates closely with important personnel from VPEDI's departments, such as Illinois Ventures and the Offices of Technology Management at the campuses in Chicago and Urbana-Champaign. He keeps tabs on office-wide initiatives related to economic development, education, and research. Kyle serves as head of staff and is in charge of operations. The creation of the Illinois Innovation Network (IIN) is one of VPEDI's main duties. All 12 public university campuses in the state, along with a number of other significant partners, are among the 15 hubs that make up IIN. Kyle was the Executive Director of Southern Illinois University Carbondale's Office of Innovation and Economic Development before he joined VPEDI. He was also the Executive Director of the university-affiliated SIU Research Park during that time. Kyle began his working life in banking. Kyle graduated from the University of Northern Iowa with a bachelor's degree in business, Southern Illinois University Carbondale with a master's degree in business administration, and Southern Illinois University Carbondale with a doctorate in workforce education and development. Assessing the Impact of Small Business Training of Nascent Entrepreneurs in the State of Illinois was the title of his dissertation.