Hellenic American University has relocated its US campus to the city of Nashua in southern New Hampshire. The move to Nashua is the first step in a broader strategic plan to strengthen our academic programs in New Hampshire and grow student enrollment.
A vibrant city in the economically robust southern tier of the state and in close proximity to the student market of northeastern Massachusetts, Nashua is an ideal location in which to base our development initiatives.
The Hellenic American University Office for Language Assessment (OLA) has announced the publication of two new tests for English-language learners. Called the School Tests for Young Learners of English (STYLE), the new assessment tools are designed for young learners aged 7 – 11 and are available at two levels of language competency, namely, A1 and low A2 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages.
The STYLE suite of tests join the other two University-produced and internationally administered English-language tests, the Basic Communication Certificate in English (BCCE) at the B1 level, and the Advanced Level Certificate in English (ALCE), which is geared for learners at the C1 level.
Nigel Downey, the Director of the Office for Language Assessment, explains the rationale behind the development of the new tests. “There is a growing interest among teachers and school administrators for tests for young learners. But when we looked at what else was available, we found that many of the tests intended for these levels were, in fact, inappropriate for very young learners, since they lacked color and pictures, or involved tasks that children have not yet developed the cognitive skills to do—whatever their degree of language competency. There were also young-learner tests that did not effectively test writing or speaking. So we decided to design a test that would be appealing and motivating for young learners and that would assess all four skills.”
As Downey points out, having an objective measurement of each skill separately is important for teachers, since it helps them see whether they’re devoting enough attention to each area. “Teachers,” he notes, “tend to test what they’ve taught and they may not realize there’s a gap in what they’re covering in their tests.”
The STYLE tests use pictures and graphics as an integral part of age-appropriate tasks that are enjoyable in themselves. As Downey reports, feedback from the young learners who took part in the piloting of the test was enthusiastic. “When we did the speaking test with them, they enjoyed it so much, they asked to take it again!” he says.
Levels 1 and 2 of the STYLE series have already been piloted and pre-tested and are available for the May/June 2017 examination period. The OLA test development team are now at work on Level 3 of the series. For more information, consult the OLA pages of the University website.
Hellenic American University is organizing an open house event at the Penthouse in the Sky (555 Canal St., Manchester) on September 14th. Participants will have the opportunity to learn more about the University’s Executive MBA program and its professional development programs in Teaching English as Second Language. The event will be hosted by Hellenic American University President Leonidas Koskos and Provost Dr. Triant Flouris.
The event will also feature an overview of the NH economy and new Americans by Steve Norton, Executive Director of the New Hampshire Center for Public Policy Studies.
WHEN
Wednesday, September 14, 2016 from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM (EDT)
WHERE
The Penthouse in the Sky - 555 Canal St., Manchester, NH 03103
Hellenic American University Provost Dr. Triant Flouris has been elected to serve on the Board of Trustees of the Aviation Accreditation Board International (AABI), the world’s leading accreditor for aviation programs in higher education. Whereas regional accreditation agencies, such as NEASC and its Commission on Higher Education, accredit colleges and institutions as a whole, specialized accreditors such as AABI accredit programs in a particular discipline.
Dr. Flouris, elected as an International Trustee, brings to AABI extensive experience as a senior officer in university administration as well as his academic and professional expertise in the field of aviation.
A paper co-authored by Dr. Evangelia Siachou, Assistant Professor of Management and Director of the General Education Program, has been selected as a Highly Commended Paper in the 2016 Emerald Literati Network Awards for Excellence.
The paper, entitled “Individual variables with an impact on knowledge sharing: The critical role of employees' ignorance,” was published in the Journal of Knowledge Management and is co-authored by John Israilidis, Louise Cooke and Russell Lock.
Now in their 23rd year, the prestigious Emerald Literati Awards were established by Emerald, a global publisher with a portfolio of more than 290 journals, to commend outstanding contributions to scholarly research. The Editorial Board of each participating journal is invited to choose a winning paper from the previous year’s volume and three others that deserve a highly commended award. The winning authors thus enjoy the prestige of their work being recognized as one of the most impressive articles that the judges have seen in the previous year.
Dr. Siachou’s study investigated the role of employee ignorance in managing an organization’s knowledge. She and her fellow researchers discovered that employees’ ignorance can negatively affect their intention to share knowledge, thus leading to poor decision-making and communication in organizations. Additionally, their findings suggested that ignorant employees could limit the organization’s ability to repel external threats, implement innovation and manage future risks.
To find out more about Emerald and the Emerald Literati Awards, and view this year’s winners visit http://www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com/authors/literati/awards.htm?year=2016.
Hellenic American College and American Community Schools (ACS) are pleased to announce the launch of Robotics Academy. The Academy, which the two institutions have jointly developed, will offer its first course, Introduction to Robotics, June 21st – July 5th for high-school students. The course will be held at ACS.
. You can apply for the course online..Introduction to Robotics is a university-level course that teaches students the fundamentals of creating and programming a robot to interact with its environment and perform basic tasks involving motion, sensor data and decision-making.
After a review of relevant topics in linear algebra and geometry in the context of robotics, students are introduced to mechanical engineering concepts such as motor control, timing sequences and sensor systems. They are taught essential concepts and skills of programming. Both the engineering concepts and programming skills are reinforced as they work in a supervised, hands-on, team-based project.
In this project, students work in teams to build and program a robot. Students develop their project in the framework of the engineering design process—from the analysis of requirements and initial design to implementation and testing. The course concludes with the students’ presentation of their team’s robot.
The course will be led by Dr. George Bravos, Director of Information Technology and Engineering programs at Hellenic American University.
This year’s program features courses with Theodoros Antoniou (Hellenic American University) and Dr. Panos Liaropoulos (Berklee School of Music) in composition, and Dr. Konstantinos Papadakis (Boston University, New England Conservatory) in piano.
“Composition for the String Quartet” is taught by Dr. Panos Liaropoulos and includes a workshop led by internationally acclaimed composer Theodore Antoniou. During the course, which will take place in Athens and on the island of Amorgos, June 27 – July 23, students work on composing an original string quartet, which is performed, videotaped and recorded at the end of the course.
“Piano Seminar”, which will be held July 4 -17 in Athens, is an intensive directed study in piano performance. Taught by Dr. Konstantinos Papadakis, the course features both individual lessons and team workshops, during which students work on specific pieces of the standard piano repertoire and develop their musicianship. Students perform at a public concert at the end of the course.
The Hellenic American University Aviation & Flight Academy is geared to high school students with an interest in science and aviation. The program will be held June 27 - July 15, 2016 and is offered in Greece through Hellenic American College and in cooperation with Athens International Airport.
.June 27 – July 15, 2016
45 hours of instruction, 3 college credits, 6 ECTS credits
Designed for high school students aged 14 – 16, the Aviation and Flight Academy uses in-class instruction and hands-on learning to teach students the principles of aviation and flight.
The material covered in the in-class sessions is reinforced through the University’s Learning Management System and is followed up with first-hand observation and experiential learning at a number of sites. These include:
The program leads up to a day-long session where students learn to fly with a state-of-the-art flight simulator.
Class sessions will be held at Hellenic American College, Massalias 22, Athens. Buses for the on-site sessions at the museum and airports will also leave from the College.
All class sessions include a one-hour lunch break, provided by the Academy. The Academy also provided round-trip transportation to the practicum site and lunch.
The course is taught by Dr. Triant Flouris, Provost and University Professor at Hellenic American University. Dr. Flouris, previously Dean of the School of Aviation Sciences at Daniel Webster College in New Hampshire, USA, is the author of over 200 publications in such areas as aviation strategic and risk management, aviation policy, and aviation project management.
Dr. Flouris is a professional pilot and certified flight and ground instructor with over 6,000 hours of total flight time.
For more information contact us at:
Hellenic American University Aviation and Flight Academy
Massalias 22, Athens
2103680919
Email:
Image: "B757" by Bernal Saborio used under CC BY 2.0
Two CUNY York College Aviation Management students, Dianna Rodriguez and Thinley Wongmo, spent their summer in Athens on an internship with Athens International Airport supervised by Hellenic American University and facilitated by the University Provost Dr. Triant Flouris, who once served as director of the Aviation Institute at York.
For the duration of their stay, the students lived on campus at Hellenic American University, where they both stated they experienced the opportunity of a lifetime. The two students also completed projects at the University for which they earned credits towards their degrees at York. Student Thinley Wongmo referred to the experience as “transformative”.
Dr. Flouris, and Dr. Chun-Pin Hsu, present director of the Aviation institute at York, began the internship project almost a year ago, and hope to deliver more success stories.
Image: Dianna Rodriguez and Thinley Wongmo, CUNY York College Aviation Management students
Hellenic American University received conditional approval from the New Hampshire State Board of Education to offer a Professional Education Preparation Program (PEPP) in English for Speakers of Other languages as part of its Master's in Applied Linguistics (MAAL) degree. The PEPP program enables mainstream teachers in the US to specialize in teaching classes for English Learners in New Hampshire as well as in other states which recognize New Hampshire teaching credentials.
The approval process for the endorsement was conducted by the Council of Teacher Education and the New Hampshire Department of Higher Education Credentialing Division. According to Dr. Christine Irvine-Niakaris, Coordinator of the MAAL program, "the process was rigorous and provided the University with feedback that helped us strengthen our program. The Self-Study we submitted to the Council demonstrated how well the institution used evidence-based decision-making to meet state standards and Department of Education's priorities."
The MAAL program, which has already been offered in Athens for the last 10 years, will be available for teachers in the US starting June 2016.