- Phone:
- 812-855-9086
- Email:
- cviers@iu.edu
- Website:
- https://ois.iu.edu
- Department:
- Executive Leadership
- International Student & Scholar Services
- Recruitment & Admissions
- Office:
- Office of International Services
- Campus:
- IU
Biography
Dr. Christopher Viers serves as associate vice president for international services at Indiana University (IU). He is responsible for strategic planning, organizational assessment, and major strategic projects within the Office of the Vice President for International Affairs.
Dr. Viers also provides executive leadership of a dynamic organization responsible for meeting the comprehensive needs of approximately 9,000 international students and 1,500 visiting scholars on Indiana University’s eight campuses. In this capacity he oversees university-wide regulatory policy, practice, and service issues affecting international students, visiting scholars, and employees; international student recruitment and admissions; international student and scholar visa and immigration advising; international student life; the use, security, and retention of sensitive and critical international data; and the ongoing planning, development, testing, and implementation of the SUNAPSIS software solution.
Prior to joining Indiana University in July 2002, Dr. Viers served as director of the Office of International Students and Scholars at Wayne State University, director of the Office of International Education at Central Michigan University, and as a foreign student advisor/program coordinator at The Ohio State University.
Dr. Viers completed a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology with a concentration in family studies at Wheaton College; a Master of Arts in Higher Education and Student Affairs at The Ohio State University; and a Doctor of Philosophy in Higher, Adult, and Lifelong Education with a concentration in international higher education administration at Michigan State University.
In addition to his administrative responsibilities, Dr. Viers teaches graduate coursework in international higher education administration as an assistant adjunct professor in the Department of Higher Education and Student Affairs at Indiana University and in the Master of Arts in Higher Education program at Taylor University. His research interests include international higher education administration, global issues in higher education, and global student flows.
Dr. Viers has held numerous national leadership positions in the field of international education, and currently serves on the Governance Committee of the Board of Directors of NAFSA: Association of International Educators. He recently completed a four-year term on the board of directors of Educational Credential Evaluators, Inc., and is past president and chair of the board of directors of NAFSA: Association of International Educators. In 2017, Dr. Viers was recognized by NAFSA for his Distinguished Service to the field of International Education.
