Honoring Pandeli Glavanis: “A Life of Love and Service”

At an AUC memorial held yesterday in honor of the late Pandeli Glavanis, professor of practice, director of Academic Community Engagement (ACE) and associate director of Center for Learning and Teaching (CLT), President Francis J. Ricciardone highlighted the “life of love and service” led by Glavanis.

“He was a man who led a meaningful and impactful life – a life of love and service,” said Ricciardone. “He saw AUC as being the right organization, society, family and group of people who shared his value and purpose in life.”

Glavanis joined AUC with a distinguished set of international experiences that have undoubtedly strengthened the University’s pedagogic mission in providing quality education. His years of commitment to enhancing higher education have influenced his students and colleagues. As chair of the University Senate, he played a key role in actualizing distinguished initiatives at AUC, including the Timely Completion Policy and the cocurricular transcript. 

“He took ideas, things that are easy to say, and made them into a reality,” said Robert Switzer, interim dean of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences, reflecting on useful programs that Glavanis developed to improve the student experience at AUC.

Also talking about his devotion to his students, Ellozy added, “He often shared with me the unsolicited thank you notes from the students he mentored, and they were invariably grateful for his support, encouragement and guidance.” She described Glavanis with two words: passionate and generous. “He was passionate about his teaching, education, serving AUC and what he believed in.”

Reflections and Memories

Members of the AUC community and Glavanis' family viewed the memorial as a celebration of his life, taking the time to reflect on their experiences with him as friends, family-members, students and colleagues:

• “He was loved by everyone – students, faculty and staff. He was generous, not only with his gifts, but his emotions as well. We will always remember Glavanis as one of AUC’s family."
  Provost Ehab Abdel-Rahman
   
•  “He believed education can actually make a big difference in the world and he wanted to empower people.”
  Christos Glavanis, brother
   
•  “He gave me so much more than he had to,” she said. “When I was finishing my PhD in 2013, the library was closed because of instabilities in Egypt. He found and gave me all the references and books I needed that were hard to find. I am sure he has been doing this for everyone – people like that are rare to find in the world.”
  Maha Bali, associate professor of practice, CLT
   
• “He used to push the people he loved to get the best out of them. He believed in me more than I believed in myself. At work, he invested his time and energy to teach me about his experience. As a result, ACE was handled for a whole year with his guidance and support while he was at the hospital. ACE has achieved great success because of him and all his work, dedication and great effort."
  Heidi Barsoum, officer, ACE
   
•  “He’s been there for everybody. So many students would pass by and ask for his advice and opinion.”
  Ahmed Zorkani, manager of multimedia services, CLT
   
•  “As an educator, he helped me discover my competitive skills. As a director, he empowered me professionally and supported in gaining confidence. I am succeeding in life because his precious advice. Only people like Pandeli Glavanis have reputations that last forever."
  Azza El Shafei, former student
   
•  “He was one of the kindest most giving souls at AUC. I was lucky to have him as a professor and briefly worked with him work study program in CLT he was approachable, down to earth and so kind and courteous.”
  Marwa E. Helmy, former student
   
• “He was a humane figure, liberal in his esteem and value for all others. Insightful, delightful of humor, loyal to the values of a just society. We mourn his passing and wish him the fulfillment, one day, of his vision of an equitable society. He is surely at peace and well, truly missed by many."
  Naela Refaat, former colleague, Canadian International Development Agency

About Glavanis

A graduate of Princeton and Hull universities, Galvanis promoted equality and devoted himself to the students and communities he served. His career brims with experiences at universities and institutes at a global level. He started his teaching career in 1974 as a research fellow and instructor at AUC for two years, later returning in 2004 as professor of development studies. He went on to become associate director of CLT.

Glavanis also served as a visiting fellow in the Department of Modern Middle Eastern History at Ain Shams University, as well as a senior international adviser in the Civil Service Modernization Project in the Republic of Yemen. Fluent in Greek, French and English, he spent considerable time working at universities across Europe and North America.

In addition, he served as a consultant for several institutions and nonprofit organizations, including the World Bank, Oxfam, UNESCO, the Norwegian Refugee Council and the Employment and Social Affairs Directorate of the European Commission.

Glavanis made significant contributions to the field of economics, development and sociology through his countless articles in prominent journals and other publications. He has received numerous awards for his contributions to AUC, including the Merit Awards of Excellence, President's Catalyst for Change Award in citizenship and service and an award for contributions to the University Senate.