Business Manager, Global Projects Centers
About
Nataša Gruden-Alajbegović is the Business Manager of Global Projects Group at the University of Michigan's International Institute. As a manager, she provides the overall administration of programs and initiatives, working closely with faculty and program coordinators in the Donia Human Rights Center (DHRC) and the Wallenberg Medal and Lecture program, Center for Middle Eastern and North African Studies (CMENAS), Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies (LACS), and Global Islamic Studies Program (GISC). She is responsible for the overall management and to ensure that programs fulfill their academic and educational mission that supports excellence and innovation, and global experiences for students and faculty. Major areas of responsibilities: human resources, budgets, academic programs and outreach coordination, and development. During her tenure at the University of Michigan, she was an assistant director of the Center for European Studies and European Union Center, where she provided extensive program and grant management of the U-M's European Union Center of Excellence. For over a decade, Gruden-Alajbegović was a manager of the Program in International and Comparative Studies (PICS), where she, together with former directors, professors Ken Kollman and Robert (Rob) Franzese, was privileged to lead the way to create the Program as it is today, including student advising, PICS Fellowships, Honors Plan, and various student programming events. She is also one of the founding members of the Donia Human Rights Center. She was the business manager of the Center for Emerging Democracies (CED), Africa Studies Center (ASC), and Digital Islamic Studies Curriculum (DISC) at the University of Michigan.
Nataša holds an MA in Political Science with a concentration in International Law and International Organizations from the University of Belgrade, and a BA in International Studies from Webster University - Vienna. Her MA thesis examined the prevention and control of proliferation of nuclear weapons and the regime created by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) during the Cold War. She has been with the U-M International Institute for 25 years.
