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December, 2006

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AHI Foundation Board Member Kyriakos Tsakopoulos Elected a Trustee of Columbia University

WASHINGTON, DC-Kyriakos Tsakopoulos, AHIF Board Member and AHI Advisory Committee Member was elected as a Trustee of Columbia University on October 22, 2006. 

"We are very proud of Kyriakos Tsakopoulos.  His election as a trustee of Columbia University, one of the leading universities in the U.S. and in the world, is a great honor for him and for our community.  This very deserved honor exemplifies Kyriakos' untiring support of, commitment to, and belief in higher education," said AHI President Gene Rossides.

        Below please find the Columbia University press release on the election of Kyriakos Tsakopoulos as a Trustee and biographical information.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  

                                                                                                             OCTOBER 22, 2006

 

KYRIAKOS TSAKOPOULOS NEW COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY TRUSTEE

 
At the meeting of the University Trustees in October, Columbia University President Lee Bollinger and Columbia University Trustees Chairman Bill Campbell announced the election of Kyriakos Tsakopoulos as a Trustee of Columbia University.

 
President Bollinger said "Kyriakos Tsakopoulos' service on the Columbia College Board of Visitors as well as his service on the California State University System Board of Trustees has been stellar.  He is a proud son of Columbia who has made meaningful contributions to his Alma Mater.  I am looking forward to working with him to realize an even greater Columbia."

 
Chairman Campbell said "Kyriakos Tsakopoulos is not only a leader in higher education governance in California and New York, but an astute businessman with a keen eye for addressing the complex issues that the trustees and the University face daily.  It is a genuine pleasure to have him as a colleague and friend."

 
Angelo K. Tsakopoulos, Chairman of AKT Development Corporation and of KT Communities said "It is my hope and desire that Kyriakos serve Columbia with honor and distinction.  Like his siblings, he is AXIOS and we are behind his efforts at his beloved Columbia."

 
Kyriakos Tsakopoulos said, "I am humbled and honored by this further call to service for my Alma Mater."
 
Mr. Tsakopoulos has established the Kyriakos Tsakopoulos Chair in Hellenic Studies and under its auspices the Annual Kyriakos Tsakopoulos Lecture on Aristotle and the Moderns.  This series of lectures focuses on the importance and relevance of Aristotle's teachings, particularly with regard to questions of justice, rule of law, and civic responsibility in today's world.  On September 28, the second annual lecture was held at Low Library -- "Wise Crowds: Aristotle, Athens & the Marquis de Condorcet" given by Professor Josiah Ober, the Constantine Mitsotakis Professor of Political Science and Classics at Stanford University.  The lecture was widely attended by academics, scholars and members of the wider Columbia community, including former Greek Prime Minister Constantine Mitsotakis, his Eminence Archbishop Demetrios of North America, and other dignitaries.  A gala dinner was held in honor of Dr. Ober and former Prime Minister Mitsotakis in the private rooms of Low Library after the lecture.

 

Biographical Information:

        Kyriakos Tsakopoulos is President of KT Communities Corporation, a diversified land development company headquartered in Roseville, California, operating real estate, farming, building, and land development projects.  He is also a principal of AKT Development Corporation, headquartered in Sacramento, California.

        A California native, Kyriakos Tsakopoulos is active in regional, state and national civic affairs and educational policy.  He is a member of the Board of Trustees of his beloved Columbia University, where he is also a Member of the Board of Visitors of Columbia College, and he is a Trustee of the California State University system - the largest university system in the world.  He also sits on the board of the University of California at Davis MIND Research Institute, the board of the American Hellenic Institute Foundation, the American Hellenic Institute Advisory Committee, the Crocker Museum of Art and Anatolia College among several other boards and commissions.

        Mr. Tsakopoulos is proud to follow in his family's philanthropic tradition which, led by his father's vision, has in the past several years brought donations of more than $31 million to worthy causes, including the establishment of Hellenic Studies Chairs at several universities including Sacramento State University, Georgetown, Stanford, and Columbia.  He is currently involved in the negotiations for the founding of Hellenic Chairs at several other universities.

        He holds a B.A. from Columbia University, studied and trained as an attorney in California, and is a member of the California and United States Supreme Court Bars.  He is also a Knight of St. Andrew and Archon of the Holy Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, and active in several professional and public service organizations.