Allied Health Staff

IERF works closely with nursing and physical therapy education specialists for evaluations for licensure in these fields.

Terri L. Ares

Nursing Evaluation Specialist

Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing, Villanova University

Dr. Terri L. Ares (RN, CSN, PhD, MSN) presently serves as the Clinical Nurse Specialist Advisor as well as the Graduate Coordinator for the School of Nursing at California State University, Dominguez Hills. In addition to her teaching duties, Dr. Ares is responsible for the admission and placement of students for CSUDH’s post-baccalaureate nursing programs, which include the review of files from applicants educated domestically and internationally. Dr. Ares has also assisted with the development of curricula for their BSN and MSN programs. Additionally, she has published in such journals as the Journal of Nursing Education and Clinical Nurse Specialist: The International Journal for Advanced Nursing Practice. In 2015, Dr. Ares was named Clinical Nurse Specialist Educator of the Year by the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists. In 2014, she was bestowed the Judith Lewis Outstanding Educator Award by the School of Nursing at CSU Dominguez Hills.

Andrea Ben Zion

Allied Health Case Specialist and Senior Evaluator

Zweites Juristisches Staatsexamen (Second Legal State Exam) (Germany)

Prior to joining IERF in 2006, Andrea worked at the Survivors of the Shoah Visual History Foundation in Los Angeles, working on translations and contributing to the Foundation’s searchable thesaurus. Andrea is a native of Germany and grew up there. She is fluent in German and has a working knowledge of Spanish and Hebrew. She has traveled in Europe and the Middle East and has lived in Japan. Andrea specializes in the educational systems of Central Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East. Andrea contributed to IERF’s publication, the Index of Educational Terms (2012), a handy reference used for evaluating academic records from around the world. It provides a guide on the most commonly found educational terms in ten major languages. Andrea’s main focus at IERF is currently as case specialist in our Allied Health Department.

Carole Khoury

Allied Health Department Supervisor

Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, Loyola Marymount University
Master of Arts in Psychology, Pepperdine University

Prior to joining IERF in 2001, Carole worked as a counseling aide at the International Education Counseling Center at Santa Monica College and as a graduate assistant at the Graduate School of Education and Psychology at Pepperdine University. Carole is a native of Lebanon and lived in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, for fifteen years. She is fluent in Arabic and French, conversant in Spanish, and has a working knowledge of Portuguese. She has traveled extensively, spending time in the Middle East, Europe, Africa and Latin America. She has co-presented a poster session on Peru at a NAFSA – Association of International Educators national conference. Carole contributed to IERF’s publication, The New Country Index (2004). This is a reference frequently used for interpreting the educational backgrounds of those who have studied outside the United States and who need statements of educational equivalencies in order to enter the U.S. educational environment and work force. Carole has, for many years, supervised IERF’s nursing and physical therapy licensure evaluation services. 

Miyo Minato

Nursing Evaluation Specialist

Bachelor of Science in Nursing, University of California, Los Angeles
Master in Nursing, University of California, Los Angeles

Miyo Minato (MN, RN) is currently a member of Faculty for the MSN program at Mount Saint Mary’s University in Los Angeles. She also serves on the Admissions, Curriculum and Evaluation Committee for the MSN program. Previously, for nearly two decades, she worked at the California Board of Registered Nursing as Nursing Education Consultant and as Supervising Nursing Education Consultant. In these roles, she advised directors of nursing programs and served as a resource to the public on the Nursing Practice Act. Miyo’s expertise also led her to serve as an expert witness in legal cases. Prior to her service on the Board, Miyo worked as a Registered Nurse in the Oncology Unit at UCLA’s Medical Center as well as the Diabetes Unit at USC’s Medical Center.

Liz Nguyen

Physical Therapy Evaluation Specialist

Doctor of Physical Therapy, Mount St. Mary’s College 

Liz Nguyen (PT, DPT, FAAOMPT) received her Doctor of Physical Therapy Degree from Mount St. Mary’s College in Los Angeles and completed the Orthopedic Residency and Orthopedic Fellowship Program in Sports Rehabilitation at Kaiser Permanente. She currently works at University of California, Berkeley and is adjunct faculty at Samuel Merritt University in the physical therapy program. She is also a member of the American Physical Therapy Association and Fellow of the American Academy of Orthopedic Manual Physical Therapists.

Amy Takazaki

Physical Therapy Evaluation Specialist

Doctor of Physical Therapy, University of Southern California

Amy Takazaki (PT, DPT, OCS) received her Doctor of Physical Therapy Degree from the University of Southern California and has completed the Orthopaedic Manual Physical Therapy Residency Program in 2009 and the Movement Science Fellowship Program in 2010 at Kaiser Permanente. She currently works at Kaiser Permanente in Downey, California and specializes in orthopaedics. She is also a member of the American Physical Therapy Association.