The International Student Services team includes dedicated faculty and staff who have studied or lived abroad at some point in their lives and understand some of the challenges individuals may face while adjusting to life in a new country.
We are here to help you on your journey because we want to see you succeed. We are located in different areas around TMCC, so look for the building and room number next to our names.
Grecia Anaya-Arevalo, MA
Academic Advisor
Grecia Anaya-Arevalo was born in Mexico but moved to the US at an early age. Her desire to help others started when she became a mentor for the Dean’s Future Scholars (DFS) program at the University of Nevada, Reno. In the program, she had the opportunity to work with students one-on-one and foster rapport with many individuals. In academic advising, Grecia is the liaison to the Technical Sciences division, international student advisor, coordinator for major exploration, and works with DACA and Undocumented students. In her free time, Grecia enjoys reading, cooking, staying active, and spending time with family and friends.
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Tara Connolly, MA
Athletics Academic Advisor
Tara rejoined the advising team at TMCC in 2012 but has been advising students since 2003. As a first-generation college student, she changed her major seven times searching for her path, but it turned out she had already found it as an advisor. After completing an associate's degree at TMCC, Tara went on to earn a bachelor’s and master’s degree from the University of Nevada, Reno. Tara tries to create a welcoming and encouraging environment for all students to explore and pursue their educational goals, especially those dealing with uncertainty who is perhaps taking the scenic route through college as she once did. Tara happily serves as the International Student and Athletics Advising Coordinator and is the liaison to the Math and Physical Sciences Division. In her spare time, she enjoys yoga, time in nature with her friends and dog, meditation, reading, and exploring foods of the world.
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Kiara-Naseem Larkins
Communications Support
Kiara-Naseem Larkins, an international student from Germany, is in the role of Communications Support for International Student Services. She came to Reno to study Psychology and Criminal Justice and is planning to start a career in Forensic Psychology after finishing her studies. Kiara loves to get to know new cultures, their foods, and languages and enjoys traveling. She also plays the guitar and is always up to play basketball with her friends.
Virag Nikolics
International Student Advisor
Virag serves as our International Student Advisor, so if you have any questions related to your F-1 immigration status, she’s here to help. Virag was born and raised in Budapest, Hungary and moved to the U.S. to begin her college education. Virag has earned a BA in English, Creative Writing and an MA in Education, Special Emphasis in International/Intercultural Education. Based on her own journey as an international student, Virag has devoted her interest to international education and has worked with international students for over 15 years. Prior to her recent move to Reno, Virag was an International Student/Scholar Advisor at the University of California, Davis and lived in the San Francisco Bay Area before then, teaching ESL. In her free time, Virag enjoys spending time with her family, traveling, writing poetry, reading and discovering new hikes in the Reno-Tahoe Area. Virag is excited to meet and work with new international students and helping them adjust to their new home, Reno. She speaks Hungarian and Spanish.
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Alaine Marie Robles Obra
International Peer Mentor
Alaine Marie Robles Obra is an international student from the Philippines working as an International Peer Mentor at the International Student Services. She is currently studying for an Associate’s Degree in Computer Science. Back home, Alaine completed a year in undergraduate studies for Computer Engineering, and she aims to transfer to the University of Nevada, Reno completing a Bachelor’s Degree of the same program. In her spare time, Alaine loves learning about different languages and cultures, basking in nature, and traveling. Tennis is her passion though; she’s been playing since she was five and participated in several tournaments.
Amanda Stibick
Program Manager
Amanda got her start in international education more than 17 years ago. She began working with domestic students interested in studying overseas. Her experience started in Germany where she worked with American study abroad students, then for a non-profit organization based in New York City assisting college-aged individuals with overseas internship opportunities. She has worked in higher education with incoming international students for the past 10 years and enjoys getting to know students from all over the world. In her free time, Amanda enjoys cooking, spending time with her family and catching up on the latest movies and tv shows. Amanda obtained her bachelor’s degree in German and master's degree in educational psychology from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.