Last summer, Hellenic American University had the pleasure of hosting the Middlesex Community College International Fellowship Program. For two weeks, 16 students and four advisors from Middlesex Community College in Athens (MCC) attended lectures and visited landmarks and archeological sites to learn more about Greek culture and civilization. Topics included “Ancient Greek Athletics and Sanctuaries,” “A Panorama of Greek Music,” and “Industrial Past and Graffiti Explosion.” In addition, the group was fortunate enough to take part in a variety of extra-curricular activities on Greek customs. Events ranged from cooking classic Greek meals to a traditional Greek dance class and performance at the Dora Stratou Dance Theater. They walked in the footsteps of the ancient and contemporary Greeks through the cities of Delphi, Nemea, Mycenae, Naflion, and Spetses. Finally, in an effort to give back to the local Greek community, the group spent a day volunteering at Shedia, an NGO that works with the homeless. It was a wonderful two-week experience for both the MCC and HAU communities, but the fun did not stop there…!

After such a memorable experience in Greece, the MCC group was compelled to organize their own traditional Greek Festival at their Lowell, Massachusetts campus. The event took place on November 6th and was incredibly well received by the MCC community. Dr. Karachaliou was invited to attend the event and had the opportunity to kick off the festivities with opening remarks, a short “documentary” about their days in Greece, as well as some great stories from the trip. In addition, she was able to answer questions from attendees and spread the word about the MCC International Fellowship program for summer 2020. MCC advisors and students also shared their experiences and their lasting take-aways from their two weeks in Greece. Once the speeches had concluded, it was time to dance! Led by a group of eight-year-olds from the Hellenic American Academy in Lowell, MA, the guests participated in traditional Greek dancing and finished with a hearty Greek meal.

Hellenic American University looks forward to welcoming the Middlesex Community College International Fellowship Program for the second straight year come summer 2020.

Image: Students from Middlesex Community College International Fellowship Program

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The eminent nutrition researcher and Hellenic American University Trustee Dr. Artemis Simopoulos gave a public lecture in the Hunter College Great Thinkers series.

In her presentation at the Lewis Burke Frumkes Center for Writing and Culture at Hunter College on October 15, 2019, the endocrinologist, physician and public health policy advisor spoke of the evolutionary aspects of diet, pointing out similarities between the traditional Cretan diet and the diets with which human beings evolved. In contrast to contemporary Western and particularly American diets, with their dependence on ultra-processed food high in omega-6 fatty acids, the traditional Cretan diet, Dr. Simopoulos noted, resembled that of early humans in its balance of omega-6 and heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids.

Dr. Simopoulos’s talk drew in part from her own decades-long investigation into Omega-3 fatty acids and the traditional diet of Crete prior to 1960, the findings of which she had brought to broader public awareness in her 2008 Aristeon Award-winning best-seller The Omega Diet and her book The Omega Plan.

These publications complement a much larger body of research publications, including over 360 scientific papers and the editing of dozens of books and journal supplements. The books also reflect her record of public health advocacy, including her tenure as Chair of the Nutrition Coordinating Committee at the National Institutes of Health and her service as consultant to the Office of Consumer Affairs at the White House. Prior to that, she was the Executive Secretary of the Division of Medical Sciences at the National Academy of Sciences. Dr. Simopoulos was the first recipient of the Presidential Award for Studies in the Field of Obesity and Weight Control.

In 1990 she founded the Center for Genetics, Nutrition and Health, a nonprofit educational organization in Washington, DC, of which she continues to serve as president. The Center is now co-organizing, together with Hellenic American University, the upcoming “International Conference on Food Classification Systems and the Omega-6/Omega-3 Ratio”. Dr. Simopoulos notes, “as a member of the Board of Trustees I am very pleased that such an important international conference is being held in the auditorium of Hellenic American University. I cannot imagine a better place for such an important international gathering.”

The Hellenic American University Board of Trustees is saddened to announce the passing on October 18, 2019 of fellow University Trustee and President of the American Community Schools of Athens, Dr. Stefanos Gialamas. A gifted researcher and innovative thinker, Dr. Gialamas shared generously with his fellow Trustees the insights and wisdom he gained from his life-long record of achievement in educational leadership. In addition to his duties as a Trustee, Dr. Gialamas had also been working closely with University President Leonidas Phoebus Koskos on developing several joint projects between their two institutions.

In President Koskos’ words, Dr. Gialamas was a visionary educator who embodied Hellenic and American virtues of inventiveness, moderation and the pursuit of excellence. “He was not only a good friend of the University,” President Koskos noted, “but a close and dear friend of mine as well, and I will miss him.”

On behalf of the entire University community, the Board of Trustees expresses its heartfelt condolences to Dr. Gialamas’ family, friends and colleagues at ACS.

Dr. Lia Siachou, Associate Professor in Hellenic American University’s Business programs, received an Emerald Literati Award for Excellence for her article on “Empowering leadership and organizational ambidexterity: a moderated mediation model”. The paper, which she co-authored with Dr. Panagiotis Gkorezis (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki), was published in Evidence-based HRM: a Global Forum for Empirical Scholarship.

The prestigious award recognizes “outstanding and impactful contributions to scholarly research”. It is the second time Dr. Siachou has been honored by the Emerald Literati Network. Her earlier research on knowledge sharing and employee ignorance was selected as a highly commended paper in the 2016 awards for excellence.

Dr. Siachou’s research is particularly timely in today’s highly dynamic business environment. As she explains, in this kind of environment, organizational knowledge must be effectively shared among employees; otherwise, it can quickly become obsolete. Business leaders are thus confronted with the difficult balancing act of organizational ambidexterity, that is, exploiting what is within the company to keep its competitive advantage and at the same time exploring what’s happening outside the firm to keep with these changes and grow. Her paper, which drew on field research with over 200 employees in SMEs in IT, looked at how leaders can be empowered to overcome the ambiguity in this role and promote ambidexterity within the organization.

Empowering leadership achieves these outcomes, Dr. Siachou says, since employees are then more willing to share their knowledge within the organization. This, in turn, generates organizational knowledge which becomes part of the firm’s activities instead of remaining isolated in employees’ minds.

In addition to advancing knowledge in the field, Dr. Siachou’s research plays an important role in her teaching. “The research I’ve done over the last decade has certainly informed my teaching and helped me help my students better understand the real business world,” she says, and adds, “and teach them the value of good research in the career they will have after graduating.” It’s not surprising that research assignments are part of every course she teaches.

Dr. Siachou received her award during a ceremony held at the 12th annual Euromed Academy of Business Conference in Thessaloniki in September 2019. Following the ceremony, Dr. Siachou presented her current research project, which investigates the role of leader humility in employee voice.

An unusual topic, perhaps, but not for this researcher. “On the plane on my way back to Athens,” she says, “I thought about what draws me to explore certain topics and not others. You know, for example, that various types of leadership are described in the literature. Despotic leadership, for one. I couldn’t possibly imagine doing research on that. I think, in the end, I study the types of leaders I like to be around myself.”

Hellenic American University has announced the launch of a new addition to its graduate business programs: the M.S. in Sales Management (MSSM). The program will be offered in Greece at Hellenic American College.

Approved in May 2019 by the New Hampshire Higher Education Commission, the MSSM is one of the few graduate programs internationally—and the first in Greece—with such a clear and dedicated focus on sales management.

The 18-month, 10-course program is geared primarily to sales professionals who are eager to assume greater challenges at the management level. In the words of Dr. Ioannis Chalikias, the University’s Director of Business Programs who coordinated efforts to create the program, the MSSM provides “an in-depth understanding of strategic sales management as found in successful businesses worldwide—and the competencies and tools that students need to put these principles into practice.”

The MSSM was designed by Assistant Professor Dr. Damian Giannakis and Dr. George Avlonitis, Visiting Professor at Hellenic American University, Professor emeritus of Marketing at Athens University of Economics and Business, and President of the Greek Marketing Academy. As Dr. Avlonitis points out, the MSSM was designed in response to need “to create the sales leaders of tomorrow”, using an approach that integrates both academic and professional learning to help students master sales management strategies and practices in B2B and B2C environments.

This focus on real-world learning is reflected in the course material, which is enriched with case studies developed with actual companies in local and global markets as well as in guest sessions and talks led by experienced professionals in the field. The program is also heavily practice-based: courses include hands-on assignments that give students experience in applying concepts, methods and tools to solve challenges commonly encountered in local and international sales management.

The response from the market has been highly positive. The Hellenic Sales Institute (ΙΠΕ) has officially placed the program under its auspices, as has the Panhellenic Exporters Association.

For more information, contact the Office of Admissions at 210 3680950 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Image: New M.S. in Sales Management Degree Program Launched

Hellenic American University faculty member Dr. Vassiliki Kourbani presented her research findings on synchronous online feedback at the Eighth International Conference on Writing Analytics, which was held September 5-7, 2019 in Winterthur, Switzerland. This year’s conference focused on “Academic Writing in Digital Contexts: Analytics, Tools, Mediality”.

During her presentation, entitled Establishing a ‘culture of collaboration’; from Writing Center to virtual education hub, Dr. Kourbani looked at the interaction between the tutor and the tutee as they communicated synchronously during revision process. She showed how features of this interaction illustrate the ways in which the tutor and tutee co-construct their roles within a Writing Center tutorial.

Her findings indicated that online tutoring had a substantial positive effect on students’ writing. Overall, tutees’ response to tutor feedback was predictive of effective draft revisions, suggesting the need, as Dr. Kourbani’s argued, to improve the quality of e-feedback and to promote student engagement during tutorial sessions.

President Leonidas Koskos and Provost Triant Flouris visited the University of New Hampshire on May 13th, where they met with UNH President James W. Dean Jr. and Provost Wayne Jones. During the meeting, the leaders of the two universities identified ways to expand their current partnership to other areas, such as promoting student success. The new initiatives building on the strong relationship that already exists between the two institutions, which has led to the development of Study Abroad programs and a 2+2 partnership in Engineering.

Image: From left to right: President Dean (UNH), President Koskos (HAU), Provost Flouris (HAU) and Provost Jones (UNH)

The Office for Language Assessment is pleased to announce the first administrations of the Hellenic American University Assessment Board for Language Examinations: Level B2 (ABLE B2) in the United States. The administrations will take place in Massachusetts on October 26 and in New Hampshire on October 27, 2018.

For further information and to register, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

ABLE B2 Fall Administrations

Christine Irvine-Niakaris and Jenny Zimianitou, faculty in the Applied Linguistics TESOL program Hellenic American University, presented at a peer-reviewed conference in Brighton (UK), organized by the International Association for Teaching English as a Foreign Language April 10 – 13.

Christine Irvine-Niakaris, coordinator of the MAAL TESOL program at Hellenic American University explained that the presentation, entitled Professional Development for English Language Teachers: A competency-based approach, was based on a long-term project which examined national and international teaching standards and input from teachers to develop an organic classroom observation checklist.

Dr. Irvine-Niakaris points out that assessing teaching competencies is more than a matter of just "ticking boxes". For this reason, she proposes an organic checklist to measure and develop best practices throughout teachers’ careers. The checklist presented at the conference was developed over the last two years with contributions from teachers and observers and used for both formative and summative assessments in a variety of professional development contexts. Dr. Irvine-Niakaris notes that the checklist serves as an important tool in pre-observation and post-observation conversations as a means of fostering self-reflective practices. These reflections have an impact on changes and additions and therefore contributes to the organic nature of the checklist.

The classroom observation checklist is available for download for those wishing to use it for professional development or classroom research.

Hellenic American University Visiting Professor photographer Gary Samson, who has played an important role in advancing the University’s Study Abroad program in the area of photography, has been named New Hampshire’s seventh Artist Laureate. This honorary position was established in 1997 by the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts “to ensure that the role of the arts in the life of our communities will continue to grow and play an ever more significant part in the welfare and educational experience of our citizens.”

Samson’s career in photography began at the University of New Hampshire in 1971. In the decades that followed, he received several awards, grants and fellowships for his work as a fine art photographer and photo educator. Having taught courses and led workshops on traditional and digital photography both in the US and abroad, he currently serves as the Chair of the Photography department at the New Hampshire Institute of Art.

"I am extremely honored and delighted to serve as the next Artist Laureate of New Hampshire,” said Samson in statement for New Hampshire Department of Cultural Resources. “As a native of Manchester, and a lifelong resident of the state, I look forward to working with the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts promoting the importance and value of art in the lives of our citizens."

Photo: Prof. Gary Samson with Study Abroad students at the Temple of Delphi