Georgia Tech has been selected by the European Union (EU) out of 120 U.S. leading universities to house a prestigious EU Center, GlobalFax has learned.
Ambassador Hugo Paemen, head of the European Commission’s delegation in the U.S., announced the honor during the 25th anniversary of the European Union Visitors Program, held June 23 in the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.
Georgia Tech’s center, which will be based at the institute’s Sam Nunn School of International Affairs, is one of 10 chosen in the country. Its director at the Sam Nunn school will be Mark Hallerberg, an expert on fiscal and monetary policy in the EU and on the German political economy.
The EU Centers will be an essential, fortifying link in the chain of transatlantic relations by building better understanding and cooperation among our future leaders, Mr. Paemen said. We hope, through the Centers, that more and more American students will gain insight into the European Union and the European integration process, and take that with them into their working lives.
Mr. Paemen added that he hoped the U.S. would reciprocate by supporting similar initiative for American centers of learning in the EU.
The EU Centers will join the twice-yearly exchanges of the European Parliament and the U.S. Congress and the EU Visitors Program in promoting the people-to-people ties outlined in the New Transatlantic Agenda.
The Centers also are to cooperate to form a national network and conduct outreach programs in their regional communities, involving local businesses and chambers of commerce, World Affairs Councils and other groups to promote greater knowledge of the EU.
Although based at the Sam Nunn school, the Center will interact with the totality of the University System, and is expected to cooperate with the Center of International, Business, Education and Research (CIBER) also at Georgia Tech.
For more information, Dr. Hallerberg may be reached by calling (404) 894-3195. His e-mail address is mark.hallerberg@inta.gatech.edu