Q&A
with
Carlos Langoni, Panama program rector
Where did you grow up? Are you a U.S. citizen, a citizen of Panama, or both? I grew up in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where I was born. I got my undergraduate degree in electrical engineering at Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Rio de Janeiro and then my master’s degree in industrial engineering, also from Pontificia Universidad Catolica. While working on my master’s, I met my wife, Lilibeth, who also received a master’s degree in the same program. We became good friends, and after a very short dating period, we decided to get married. She is from Panama, so my first international experience was a trip to Panama. So, what was initially planned to be a simple visit to get to know her family and her country later became our wedding trip. We married in Panama and then went back to Rio to complete our degrees. From there, lots of things happened. Our first son was born, I applied and was accepted to a doctoral program in industrial engineering at Texas A&M University, both of us completed our master’s program [at Pontifica Universidad], and in the fall of 1981, we moved to Texas. While working on my doctoral degree, my second son was born. We left the U.S. in the spring of 1987. While in Brazil, a change was still taking place, from a military dictatorship to a newly restored democracy, and the economic conditions were not the most favorable. A highly depreciated currency and very limited opportunities drove us to deciding to go to Panama. This explains how we ended up in Panama. How did you get to where you are today? From industrial engineering to professor to
Panama interim rector to permanent rector, how would you explain this shift? So here we are, beginning of 1987, trying to build our future as a family in Panama. Immediately after my arrival, I learned of possible teaching opportunities in American institutions that had a presence in Panama. One of them was Florida State University, which had had a presence in Panama since 1957, offering educational opportunities to U.S. military personnel, civilians, and local Panamanians. After a couple of semesters trying with different institutions, I realized that my future was with FSU. So I quit my teaching with other institutions and started teaching full time for FSU. At the beginning, most of my teaching was in mathematics. In 1989, with the implementation of a new degree program in computer science, I was offered a full-time position to support the new program. From then on, I taught several courses in the areas of mathematics, computer science, and statistics. At the same time, I became involved in the administrative aspects of the program, assisting with everything from student advising and registration, to curriculum development and course scheduling. In 1996 I was appointed associate director for academics. After the transition from being an institution supported by a contract with the U.S. Army to a self-supporting institution, new leadership was chosen and the title of the highest authority changed from “director” to “rector.” So, at that time my title changed to “vice rector for academic affairs.” At the beginning of 2003, the newly appointed rector resigned, and we went through a difficult transition period. That’s when I became
All photos courtesy of Carlos Langoni
Carlos Langoni, during a trip to Paestum, Italy, with his wife, Lilibeth. interim rector, and a search for a new rector began. At the end of a nine-month search, my name surfaced among the top three candidates and, soon after, I was offered the position of rector of FSU Panama. I still remember my conversation with Dr. [James] Pitts when I told him I was still having second thoughts about accepting the position. He asked me to give it a try and if, after a few years I did not feel comfortable, it was OK. Well, I believe it worked—I’ve been the rector since then. How do you use your background in engineering and the STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) fields to connect to your position at the Panama campus? Did you ever consider staying in the private sector? I believe until I decided to go to graduate school, I had no plans for a career in academia. I started acquiring a taste for academia while working on my master’s, when I was given an opportunity to become a teaching assistant and eventually an instructor. After that, I really never had any thoughts about leaving academia. When you first began at the Panama campus, did you foresee yourself becoming rector? What made you decide to pursue your position? No, not at all. When I began, I was 100% focused on the teaching. Everything came naturally and gradually, little by little getting involved in the planning, and then the decision-making. For quite some time, I was able to balance between academics and administration. It was not until about five years ago when I became a full-time administrator.
Carlos Langoni with students from the Panama campus Environmental Club.
34 Nomadic Noles // Summer 2018
Your campus has students attending from over 30 different countries. How do you ensure student success in mingling with each other from such different backgrounds? Most of our students come from Latin America. Of course, there are cultural differences,
