UNC-Chapel Hill Hosts U.S. Ambassador to Moldova
August 21, 2019
UNC Global Affairs
Secretary Marshall (center, in blue), Ambassador Hogan (at left) and Congressman Price (at right), with attendees at the NC-Moldova Partnership reception hosted by UNC Global. Photo by Chris Pope.
UNC-Chapel Hill hosted the Honorable Dereck J. Hogan, U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Moldova, on August 12. Hogan was accompanied by North Carolina Secretary of State Elaine Marshall and Lora Sinigur, NC-Moldova Partnership Liaison for the Secretary of State’s office.
The ambassador’s visit was a result of a celebration that took place in May for the 20th anniversary of the North Carolina-Moldova State Partnership for Peace in Chisinau, Moldova. The partnership was formalized in 1999 as part of the National Guard State Partnership Program, which connected U.S. states with partner countries to facilitate cooperation across civil-military affairs. While the partnership began to build capacity within military and security affairs in Moldova, it has since expanded into a wide range of areas, from cooperation in health care and civil emergency operations to economic links to cultural, scientific and academic exchanges. Ambassador Hogan’s visit to the Raleigh area was organized by the Secretary of State’s office for him to meet with various groups that have been engaged in the partnership, including UNC-Chapel Hill.
Carolina has been a part of the partnership nearly since its inception. During his visit at Carolina, Ambassador Hogan met with representatives from participating units, including the Adams School of Dentistry, Eshelman School of Pharmacy, UNC Global, University Libraries, World View and the Center for Slavic, Eurasian and East European Studies. Among the collaborations:
- The Adams School of Dentistry has been a campus leader in the partnership. Since 2000, teams of faculty, students and community dentists have made annual visits to Moldova for patient care and education. The school has also welcomed visits from dental students and faculty from Moldova’s State University of Medicine and Pharmacy.
- The Eshelman School of Pharmacy became involved in 2014 and has facilitated exchanges of pharmacy students and faculty with the State University of Medicine and Pharmacy. UNC Eshelman is also identifying areas to provide support in pharmacy education, practice and research. Carolina has developed partnerships outside of the medical field as well.
- UNC Libraries has hosted Moldovan faculty and librarians and is joining forces with Cape Fear Community College, NC State, and UNC Wilmington to provide resources for Moldovan libraries.
- In Summer 2019, UNC’s World View program, which develops global educators, took K–12 North Carolina educators to Moldova in June of this year for a Global Study Visit Program.
- The Center for Slavic, Eurasian and East European Studies has provided area expertise to units involved in the partnership and has hosted events related to Moldova.
- Additionally, the Gillings School of Global Public Health has previously collaborated with Moldovan partner institutions on improved water and sanitation, health management, and disaster awareness in the nation.
Ambassador Dereck J. Hogan (Chris Pope/UNC-Chapel Hill)
“We were delighted to welcome Ambassador Hogan and Secretary Marshall to campus to learn about the many contributions of UNC-Chapel Hill units in this important partnership,” said Raymond B. Farrow III, associate provost for global affairs and interim chief global officer. “We have accomplished a great deal during the past 20 years, and I’m excited to see how UNC will help grow the extensive relationships between NC and Moldova in the years ahead.”
The ambassador’s visit concluded with an evening reception held in the Florence and James Peacock Atrium of the FedEx Global Education Center by UNC Global in partnership with the North Carolina Secretary of State’s office. At the event, remarks were delivered by Raymond Farrow, North Carolina Secretary of State Elaine Marshall, Ambassador Hogan, and U.S. Representative David Price (NC-4th Congressional District). Other guests included former U.S. Ambassador to Moldova Asif Chaudhry and representatives from UNC-Chapel Hill, UNC Greensboro, NC State University, and other organizations and individuals from the region that have been involved in the Moldovan partnership.
The UNC-Chapel Hill visit was organized by the Global Relations team in UNC Global.