Dear ACG Alumni,

As ACG’s 140^th academic year begins, I am pleased to update you on recent College developments, progress and plans.

Celebrating ACG 140

Various events will mark 2014-15 as a milestone in ACG’s institutional history. I hope many alumni will return to campus in this historic year for Class Reunions, Founders Day, special lectures or other events to reconnect with ACG friends, faculty and staff.

New Academic Programs

The ACG board of trustees recently approved the following new PIERCE, DEREE and ALBA academic programs:

PIERCE: International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma program. Pending final program review and approvals, PIERCE’s first IB class is scheduled to begin in fall 2016.

DEREE Undergraduate: Finance, Graphic Design, Health Care Management, Logistics and Supply Chain Management, Shipping Management

DEREE Graduate: Applied Educational Psychology

ALBA Graduate Business: Entrepreneurship, Insurance Risk Management, Risk Management, Shipping Management, Tourism Management 

Fall Enrollment

Total ACG fall 2015 enrollment – PIERCE, DEREE, ALBA – is expected to approximate 4,700, up from 4,394 last fall. In addition to degree-seeking students from 50 countries, DEREE will host this fall 92 study abroad students from 42 universities and will send 15 DEREE students abroad for study in Belo Horizonte (Brazil), Florida, Hamburg (Germany), London, Nantes (France), New York, San Francisco, Tilburg (The Netherlands), and Utah.

New Faculty

Twenty-one new faculty will be introduced at our annual Campus Gathering Day on September 8. ACG continues to attract superbly credentialed, dedicated teachers and scholars who form the core of our unique academic community.

Campus Development

This summer an impressive array of facilities projects were completed on both the Aghia Paraskevi Campus as well as the Downtown Campus:

• At PIERCE, ten classrooms were added to accommodate both significant enrollment growth as well as the new IB program.

• At DEREE, offices for up to 40 faculty were created at the fifth, sixth and seventh levels of the main building and 16 student art studios as well as offices for eight faculty were situated at the ground level, under the PIERCE gym – part of an evolving plan to accommodate the expanding programs of the Frances Rich School of Fine and Performing Arts.

• At ALBA (Downtown Campus), an enhanced community atrium will support the growing enrollment of ACG’s graduate business school.

Value Added Tax (VAT)

On August 13, 2015, the Greek Parliament passed new legislation that included the imposition of 23% VAT on all private tuition and fees from grade school through graduate school. Various individuals and groups are vigorously pursuing the reversal of this extraordinary action (no other EU country charges VAT on private education). As of this writing, it is not clear whether the government will follow through with implementation of the law nor if the upcoming national elections will result in a change to the law.

ACG was the first school in Greece to publish a public statement on this issue: August 17, followed by a more extensive statement on August 24. If the new, inherently unfair law is implemented, we believe the College’s commitment to meet “100% of VAT demonstrated need” is both the fairest approach and the most consistent with ACG’s non-profit character.

Office of Development and Alumni Relations

The Office of Development and Alumni Relations (ODAR) has relocated to new offices across from the Aghia Paraskevi Campus Main Gate – please stop by to see the new environs! Also, ODAR has added two new staff:

• Maria Laina (DEREE 1994) as Executive Director, Development and Alumni Relations

• Natasa Rangou (DEREE 1994) as Director, Development

In the coming year ODAR plans to organize an International Alumni Board to lead our efforts at connecting and mobilizing the 50,000 ACG alumni around the world.

While 2014-15 is ACG’s 140^th year, it will be my eighth year as the College’s president. My previous seven years, coinciding with Greece’s economic crisis, have been filled with challenge and change. Still, the College is moving forward strongly in a period of dynamic opportunity for quality global education. ACG is well positioned to respond to this opportunity and to forge a distinctive identity as an international learning community.

I look forward to continuing to work with all the College’s constituents, especially our alumni, to realize ACG’s enormous potential for service to Greece, the region and the world. Thank you for your support of your alma mater in these times of transition.

David G. Horner
President
The American College of Greece