KENNESAW, Ga. | Apr 28, 2017

Former prime minister of São Tomé and Principe honored for Global Public Service

Kennesaw State awarded its highest honor for international achievement to the former prime minister and Central Bank governor of the equatorial coastal West African nation of São Tomé and Principe.

Maria do Carmo Trovoada Pires de Carvalho Silveira, an economist and scholar of socioeconomic development, accepted Kennesaw State’s fourth annual Global Public Service award at a ceremony Wednesday at the Marietta Country Club in Kennesaw. She was joined by three others honored for exceptional international service and achievement. A Kennesaw State student also was awarded a scholarship to study abroad in Israel.

In presenting the award to Silveira, Lance Askildson, Kennesaw State’s vice-provost, chief international officer and head of the Division of Global Affairs, noted her service to her country and her stewardship of it through a sociopolitical crisis in 2005. He also praised her more than 20 years in key public administration positions in the country’s banking and finance sector, and as president of a federation of local NGOs promoting the causes of women and gender equity.

“We were so fortunate during our 2015-2016 “Year of the Portuguese Speaking World” to develop a relationship with someone who has had such an impact in her own country and across the Portuguese-speaking world,” Askildson said of Silveira, who was appointed executive secretary of the Lisbon-based Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLC) in 2016. “We are grateful for the invaluable support she provided during our annual country study.”

In her keynote remarks, Silveira described the significance of receiving the honor, especially in light of those who previously received the Global Public Service award.

“The award … represents an international acknowledgement of my actions towards the public service in São Tomé and Principe, my home country, and currently, as [CPLC executive secretary],” she said. “It is not an easy job, especially for an African woman. But I strongly believe in women’s strength and determination, and also that with proper support and attitude, we can reach surprising results. This Prize will be a new source of inspiration for me to keep working towards the public cause.”

Also honored at the ceremony were:

• Catherine Odera, a graduate of Kennesaw State’s Ph.D. program in International Conflict Management and former assistant director of the University’s multicultural student affairs for international student programs, received the Sheth Alumni Award for Exceptional Humanitarian and Service Achievement for her work overseeing the activities of KSU’s Global Village, which provides services, support and advocacy for international students.
• Lin Hightower, professor of fiber arts and proponent of “art for positive social change,” received the Sheth Distinguished Faculty Award for International Achievement for work with low-income artisans in Turkey, India, Nepal, Thailand, Egypt, Morocco and Peru.
• Marcel Duhaneanu, rector of the Institute for Business Administration in Bucharest, Romania, and professor of international management and global strategic management, received the Distinguished International Partner Community Award that recognized his role in the 14-year partnership with Kennesaw State in the Romanian-American School of Business (ASEBUSS), which operates an executive MBA program.
• Simone Stevens, a senior in the College of the Arts dance program, was awarded the Emerson Scholarship for the Advancement of International Education to study dance in Israel and work directly with artists from the Batsheva Dance Company in Tel Aviv.

The awards ceremony also featured the 12 students who participated in the inaugural “Around the World in 80 Days (AW80)” education abroad program which took participating students to for countries on four continents for an entire semester. The program recently earned Kennesaw State University a 2017 Innovation Award in Internationalization from the Association of International Education Administrators (AIEA). 

Ivan Starev, an international business major, shared a video he produced that captured  the students’ experiences, while Anna Holland, an interdisciplinary studies major, summarized what the trip meant to participants.

“This will stand out as the single most defining experience of my life,” Stavrev said. 

Holland agreed, adding “The AW80 experience taught me how to look at different cultures and see the similarities and appreciate the differences.  It also has given me the confidence that I can go anywhere in the world and know how to handle myself and whatever comes up.”

Kennesaw State’s International Achievement awards, which are organized by the University’s Division of Global Affairs, are made possible with the support of the Madhuri and Jagdish N. Sheth Family Foundation. The Emerson Scholarship is funded by Christie Emerson, assistant professor in Kennesaw State’s WellStar School of Nursing, and her husband, Tom.

– Sabbaye McGriff

Photos by David Caselli

A leader in innovative teaching and learning, Kennesaw State University offers undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees to its more than 47,000 students. Kennesaw State is a member of the University System of Georgia with 11 academic colleges. The university’s vibrant campus culture, diverse population, strong global ties and entrepreneurial spirit draw students from throughout the country and the world. Kennesaw State is a Carnegie-designated doctoral research institution (R2), placing it among an elite group of only 7 percent of U.S. colleges and universities with an R1 or R2 status. For more information, visit kennesaw.edu.