2006 Press Releases
Fulbright Foundation Honors Greek and American Scholars and Donors
June 28, 2006
On Tuesday, June 27, United States Ambassador to Greece Charles P. Ries and Fulbright Executive Director Artemis Zenetou hosted the annual reception for Greek and American Fulbright donors and the fifty Greek and American students, professors and artists who are receiving awards this year. Approximately 250 guests attended the event at the Ambassador's residence, including rectors from several Greek Universities, Greek and American Fulbright grantees, grantees’ family members, professors, friends of the Foundation, the Fulbright Board of directors and staff members, alumni, donors, and leaders from the business and cultural worlds.
"The Fulbright Scholarship Program is one of the most recognized educational exchange programs in the world. Over 250,000 individuals have participated in Fulbright exchanges, including heads of state, Nobel prize winners, leading scientists and artists," Ambassador Ries noted.
"We are delighted that 50 scholarships will be awarded for academic year 2006-2007 with the generous support of the Greek and U.S. Governments, foundations, corporations and private donors. Higher education is a field where the U.S. excels." said Ms. Zenetou.
This year’s Fulbright scholars came from various Greek universities and the American College of Greece. Their academic interests are diverse – from medical physics and music composition to international relations, civil engineering, law and architecture - and they will study at some of the best U.S. universities, such as Columbia, Harvard, MIT, University of California at Berkeley, etc.
Ambassador Ries and Ms. Zenetou expressed sincere appreciation to the donors for supporting the Foundations scholarship program. This year’s donors included Onassis Foundation, J. F. Costopoulos Foundation, L. Voudouris Foundation, Stavros Niarchos Foundation, Thessaloniki International Fair, Ceres Hellenic Shipping, S&B Industrial Minerals, Proctor & Gamble Hellas, Intralot S.A., Coca Cola Hellas, Elias Paraskevas Attorneys at Law, and other corporations and individuals. Donors received appreciation gifts designed by Dora Economou, who received a Fulbright grant to pursue graduate studies at Pratt Institute in New York, 2001-2002.
Today, the Fulbright Foundation operates in 140 countries. The Fulbright Program in Greece was founded in 1948 and is the second oldest Fulbright program in the world and the oldest in Europe. Hundreds of scholars from both the United States and Greece have received Fulbright grants to study, teach, or conduct research in the opposite country.
For more information please visit the Foundation's web site.