Thomas Buntru

Thomas Buntru is the Dean of International Programs at University of Monterrey (UDEM), where he has worked since 1988. Before taking over his current position in 2004, he served as Coordinator of Student Exchange from 1997 to 2003. Before that, he was an Associate Professor in the Department of Modern Languages at UDEM, where he taught English and German. In 1996 he received the Premio Pro-Magistro Roberto Garza Sada, UDEM's annual award for excellence in teaching. Under his leadership, UDEM has become the Mexican university with the highest student participation rate in study abroad programs. His strategic plan for the internationalisation of UDEM received the 2009 Andrew Heiskell Award for Innovation in International Education from the Institute of International Education. He has been an active member of AMPEI, the Mexican Association for International Education, since 1997 and served as its president from 2009–­2011. In 2015 he received the Premio AMPEI in recognition of his contributions to the internationalisation of higher education in Mexico.

Thomas was recognised with the Transatlantic Leadership Award in 2018 for his notable work as an international bridge-builder between Mexico and Europe.