The Music of Georges I. Gurdjieff, a project of Turpajian Family Foundation Scholarship recipient Levon Eskenian, recently received the Edison Music Award in the category of World Music.  The prestigious Edison Award, bestowed by the Dutch music industry for albums of outstanding quality, has been awarded since 1960 and is one of the oldest musical prizes in the Netherlands. The award is comparable to the American Grammy Award, the German Preis der Schallplattenkritik and the French Victoire.  Eskenian, a Yerevan State Conservatory graduate, was one of the first recipients of the Turpanjian Family Foundation Scholarship which AUA administers to provide need-based financial assistance to students at both AUA and other Armenian universities.

AUA hosted its first Undergraduate Open House on Saturday, November 10, welcoming 300 prospective students and their parents to campus for college tours, presentations, academic program visits, and faculty and staff introductions.

The day-long event was part of the university’s outreach efforts in support of the fall 2013 launch of AUA’s undergraduate program which will offer majors in Business, Computational Sciences, and English & Communications.

AUA Students and alumni participated in the Open House leading campus tours and answering prospective applicants’ questions.

The university will be offering another open House on Saturday, November 17, for prospective Graduate students, seeking information about AUA’s various Masters Degree programs. For more information, visit the event page on Facebook by clicking here.

YEREVAN–On October 30, the American University of Armenia (AUA) College of Health Sciences, in collaboration with the National Competitiveness Foundation of Armenia, organized a public health seminar on healthcare reform in Armenia featuring Professor Lord Ara Darzi of Denham.

The event, held in AUA’s Manoogian Hall, was attended by a capacity crowd that included officials from the Ministry of Health, physicians, professionals in the field of public health and medicine, as well as AUA students, faculty, researchers, and members of the broader AUA community. Attendees were given an opportunity to ask questions and receive advice from Professor Darzi during an active question and answer session following his presentation. A reception at AUA’s Akian Gallery prior to the seminar provided the opportunity for informal interactions between Professor Darzi and attendees of the seminar.

A distinguished physician in the United Kingdom, shared his wealth of experience in health care reform with the audience, emphasizing the need to prioritize improving the quality of health care in Armenia. During the presentation, Lord Darzi stressed the importance of streamlining patient access to medical care as well as the need to focus more on promoting preventive public health measures to improve overall health outcomes and quality of life.

Professor Darzi, who was in Armenia at the invitation of the National Competitiveness Foundation of Armenia, presented case studies showing how reforms directed towards a more equitable, integrated patient-centered health care system could significantly improve overall health outcomes. In drawing parallels between the United Kingdom and Armenia, he shared the outcome of reforms that were implemented in the UK when he was the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department of Health–a position equivalent to the Minister of Health in Armenia.

Professor Darzi holds the Paul Hamlyn Chair of Surgery at Imperial College London. He is an Honorary Consultant Surgeon at Imperial College Hospital National Health Service (NHS) Trust Hospital and Royal Marsden Hospital and holds the Chair of Surgery at the Institute of Cancer Research. In October 2010 he was appointed as Chairman for the Institute of Global Health Innovation at Imperial College. In 2012 Lord Darzi took up the role of Chair, Imperial College Health Partners.

He was knighted for his services in medicine and surgery in 2002; in 2007 he was introduced to the United Kingdom’s House of Lords as Professor the Lord Darzi of Denham and appointed Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department of Health. As a Minister he successfully set the strategy for the NHS for the decade ahead – one of the greatest policy transformations ever undertaken in the UK. He relinquished this role in July 2009 when he was appointed the United Kingdom’s Global Ambassador for Health and Life Sciences, a role reconfirmed in 2010 by Prime Minister David Cameron. Lord Darzi was appointed as a member of Her Majesty’s Most Honorable Privy Council in June 2009.

The American University of Armenia (AUA) is a private, independent university located in Yerevan, Armenia. Founded in 1991, AUA is affiliated with the University of California. Through teaching, research, and public service, AUA serves Armenia and the region by supplying high-quality, graduate and undergraduate education, encouraging civic engagement, and promoting democratic values.

The American University of Armenia is accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Senior Colleges and Universities of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, 985 Atlantic Avenue, #100, Alameda, CA 94501, 510-748-9001.

BOSTON, MA–AUA’s administrative team was in Boston last week, giving a community update that including a comprehensive overview of the university and its projects, particularly the upcoming undergraduate program set to launch in the fall of 2013 with degrees in English and communication, business and computational sciences.

The presentation, titled “AUA 2013: A Global Education in Armenia,” featured University President Dr. Bruce Boghosian, University Provost Dennis Leavens, the Vice President of Operations Ashot Ghazaryan, Vice President of Finance Gevorg Goyunyan and Vice President of Institutional Advancement Maral Chalian.

The presentation began with a historical background on the university, as well as the various degrees that are offered by AUA’s three colleges, the College of Business and Economics, the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, and the College of Science and Engineering.

The evening also featured extensive discussion about the University’s upcoming undergraduate program. Set to launch in the fall 2013, AUA’s undergraduate program will offer three degrees in English and communication, business, and computational science.

The American University of Armenia (AUA) is a private, independent university located in Yerevan, Armenia. Founded in 1991, AUA is affiliated with the University of California. Through teaching, research, and public service, AUA serves Armenia and the region by supplying high-quality, graduate and undergraduate education, encouraging civic engagement, and promoting democratic values.

The AUA is accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Senior Colleges and Universities of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, 985 Atlantic Avenue, #100, Alameda, CA 94501, 510-748-9001.

YEREVAN–AUA’s College of Science and Engineering organized a seminar on Thursday, November 9, focusing on the environmental impact assessment of Armenia’s new nuclear power plant, featuring Mr. Lief Erickson, the Deputy Chief of the USAID project providing support to Armenia’s energy sector.

More than 60 students, faculty and guests attended the seminar led by Mr. Erickson, who has been working with the Government of Armenia since 2007. Among Mr. Erickson’s tasks have been supporting the development of an Environmental Impact Assessment on the proposed nuclear plant.

During his presentation, Mr. Erickson described the process of building a new nuclear plant required by RoA laws and International conventions and summarized the status of the EIA done by CJSC “METSAMORENRGOATOM”, the joint Russian-Armenian company formed as the project’s developer and eventual operator.

The proposed 1000 MW power plant is estimated to cost USD 5 Billion and would require 10 years for design and construction. The design phase alone is expected to cost USD 400 to 500 million, an amount the Government of Armenia is working to secure.

To download a copy of Mr. Erickson’s presentation click here.

The American University of Armenia (AUA) is a private, independent university located in Yerevan, Armenia. Founded in 1991, AUA is affiliated with the University of California. Through teaching, research, and public service, AUA serves Armenia and the region by supplying high-quality, graduate and undergraduate education, encouraging civic engagement, and promoting democratic values.

The AUA is accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Senior Colleges and Universities of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, 985 Atlantic Avenue, #100, Alameda, CA 94501, 510-748-9001.