2009 Press Releases
Fulbright Foundation in Greece Presents 61st Annual Awards
Athens (June 26, 2009) -- U.S. Ambassador Daniel V. Speckhard hosted the 61st annual awards ceremony for Greek and American students, professors and artists supported by the Fulbright Foundation on Tuesday, June 23, along with the Executive Director of the Fulbright Foundation in Greece, Ms. Artemis Zenetou. Some 250 guests attended the event at the Ambassador's residence, including Minister of Foreign Affairs Dora Bakoyiannis. A congratulatory message from Minister of Culture Antonis Samaras was also read during the event, in the presence of Mr. Ioannis Kofinis, President of the Greek National Tourism Organization, and a representative of the Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs.
“Since its establishment, the Fulbright Foundation has given the opportunity to numerous Greek and American students to enrich their academic credentials, thus promoting the arts and sciences. What is more, through its outstanding work, the program has contributed to the strong foundation of Hellenic-American friendship and partnership,” said Minister Bakoyiannis, agreeing with Ambassador Speckhard’s observations.
For the academic year 2009-2010, fifty two scholarships will be awarded thanks to the generous support of the Greek and U.S. governments, foundations, corporations and private donors. This year’s Fulbright scholars came from various Greek universities. Their academic interests are diverse, ranging from nutrition and fine arts to earthquake engineering, education, stage design, law and architecture. They will study at some of the best U.S. universities, such as Harvard, Columbia, MIT, Stanford, and the University of California at Berkeley.
Ambassador Speckhard and Ms. Zenetou expressed sincere appreciation to the donors represented at the event for their support of the Foundation’s scholarship program. This year’s donors included the Constantine Mitsotakis Foundation, the Leventis Foundation, the J.F. Costopoulos Foundation, the George Livanos Foundation, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, Thessaloniki International Trade Fair, S&B Industrial Minerals, Proctor & Gamble Hellas, Intralot S.A. and Intracom Holdings, Coca Cola Hellas, Elias Paraskevas Attorneys at Law, as well as other corporations and individuals.
Also at Tuesday’s event, the 2009 Fulbright Art Series was presented. Artist Vangelis Ploiaridis, who received a Fulbright Artist grant in 2000-2001 to conduct research in New York City, created a limited edition print especially for the Foundation. This print will be made available for sale to raise funds for the Fulbright artist scholarship program.
For more information on this event, visit the U.S. Embassy Athens website: http://athens.usembassy.gov. For more information about the Fulbright Foundation in Greece, please visit: http://www.fulbright.gr.