Damian Fernandez is the Chairperson of the International Relations Department at Florida International University. He specializes in the Caribbean, Central Americas and Cuban regions. He attended the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University, and received his master's degree in Latin American Studies from the University of Florida. He received his Ph.D at the University of Miami from the Graduate School of International Studies. Prof. Fernandez' publications include Cuba and the Politics of Passion (University of Texas Press, October 2000), Cuban's Foreign Policy in the Middle East (Boulder: Westview Press, 1988). He has edited and co-edited several other books, and published many articles concerning Cuba and Latin America. He received both the Teaching Incentive Program Award and the Excellence in Teaching Award in 1994 as well as the Faculty Merit Award from Florida International University in 1990.