ILAC Staff

Andrea Montoya

Director
Email: andreamontoya@creighton.edu
US Office: 402-280-1894
US Cell: 402-730-5419
DR Cell: 829-467-5995
As director of ILAC, Andrea coordinates, along with other ILAC staff, all professional and student immersion-service trips to the Dominican Republic. Andrea is an Omaha native who graduated from Creighton with a bachelor's degree in International Relations and a Spanish minor in 2000.

She earned a Juris Doctor from Creighton's School of Law in May 2008.  She also served as a health volunteer with the Peace Corps in rural Honduras from September 2000 to December 2002.

Katie Kaufman

ILAC Specialist
Email: katherinekaufman@creighton.edu
US Office: 402-280-3179

Katie serves as the primary point of contact for ILAC participants turning in paperwork, managing fundraising, and air travel.  With a background in ministry and justice, Katie contributes to the formation and missioning of our ILAC participants.  Katie knows ILAC and the Dominican Republic well as a former Summer Program leader and semester student in the Encuentro Dominicano program. 

Katie is a graduate of Creighton University where she studied Justice & Society and Spanish. While at Creighton, she was involved with the SCSJ, Campus Ministry and Greek Life. She was also a member of Comunidad Trece with the Encuentro Program in the Dominican Republic. After graduation, she worked as an intern and coordinator with the summer programs in the Dominican Repulic through ILAC.

She spent a year post-grad working with AmeriCorps in Miami at a women's education and empowerment nonprofit. Afterwards, she returned to Omaha and began working at a local nonprofit, Heartland Family Service, in various program and community relations roles. She is very thankful to return to the Creighton and ILAC communities in this new role.  In her free time, she likes to run, play soccer and dream about fresh chinola juice.

Jacquie Marte

ILAC Program Coordinator
Email: jacquiemarte@creighton.edu
US Office: 402-280-3356 
DR Cell: 809-490-7994

Jacquie Marte graduated with a dual M.A. in Diplomacy & International Relations and Strategic Relations from Seton Hall University and holds undergraduate degrees in Spanish and Psychology from the University of Central Florida.  She was born in La Romana, Dominican Republic but her family moved to the United States when she was twelve years old. Jacquie kept her ties to the DR by visiting the country yearly but also by focusing most of her scholarly research in Dominican issues, especially the relationship with Haiti.

Jacquie has worked with university students in different capacities, most recently in her role as instructor and academic advisor for first and second year students at Seton Hall University. Jacquie is really excited to join the ILAC staff and is looking forward to working with the Creighton students and staff members both prior to their departure to Dominican Republic and on the grounds.

Emily O'Donnell

Graduate Assistant
Email: emilyodonnell@creighton.edu
US Office: 402-669-4041

Emily O’Donnell is currently studying at Creighton for her master’s in Ministry.  Emily will be working with ILAC to provide greater ministry presence and programming for our ILAC groups.  She graduated from the University of Nebraska Omaha and majored in History and Biology. During her undergraduate career, she worked as the senior research assistant at a local infertility/OBGYN clinic, where she was also certified as a Creighton Model FertilityCare Practitioner. This training allowed her to spend several years empowering women with family planning education, as well as infertility diagnoses and treatments.

She has also done public health research at Justice for Our Neighbors Nebraska, which is a law firm that specializes in advocacy and litigation for undocumented immigrants. She has been involved with ILAC over the years through both Duchesne Academy and the Water Quality Program at Creighton. Emily has a deep admiration for Minerva Mirabal, and actually wrote her undergraduate thesis about the United States’ political and economic culpability in her martyrdom. Emily’s primary professional interest is the integration of women’s healthcare and education, and she is thrilled to have this opportunity to work with ILAC’s outreach in such a special capacity.

"It is truly a dream come true for me to be living in the Dominican Republic and I’m so excited to work with our programs!!"