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Princeton University Athletics
Players Mentioned
Men's Basketball's Dan Mavraides Visits Greek Roots
July 17, 2009 | Men's Basketball
Dan Mavraides, a rising junior on the Princeton men's basketball team, has gotten in touch with his Greek roots the last two summers. Here is Mavraides in his own words about this summer's educational trip:
Last summer, June 2008, I was selected for a
Greek-American Basketball Team which would travel to Greece for a ten
day excursion of Athens. The trip was in commemoration of the
anniversary of AHEPA, The American Hellenic Educational Progressive
Association, and so the government and other sponsors sent for a
Greek-American basketball team to experience Greece through competition
and culture. We competed against pro teams from Greece while learning
about ancient Greek culture and our ancestry and roots in Greece. The
highlights of this phenomenal trip were visiting the Acropolis and
other remaining monuments that carry on the culture of ancient Greece
and defeating the Jr. National Team at the Olympic Basketball Arena.
This past July I was fortunate enough to visit Greece again, yet this
time unrelated to basketball. The Next Generation Initiative is a
program devoted to allowing Greek-American students the opportunity to
learn about the current state of Greece. Compared to last summer when
my experience of Greece was more focused on the culture and the history
of ancient Greece, this trip was geared towards modern Greece,
including the government, economy, education and foreign affairs.
The trip began in Washington, D.C. where on our first day we visited
Congress and the State Department building along with meetings with the
Ambassador of Greece and Cyprus, a Senior Vice President of the
European Institute, a Deputy US trade representative and a Greek desk
officer at the Department of State. The evening concluded with dinner
with former Senator Paul Sarbanes. The following day we returned to
Congress to meet with six U.S. representatives and an assistant to
Speaker, Nancy Pelosi. In D.C. we heard about how these representatives
and politicians came to get involved in government positions and also
how they feel about the current state of Greece. We were able to
inquire about the differences between the Greek and US governments and
hear personal viewpoints of how to establish better relations with
Greece. This was a very beneficial start to our trip because it gave us
a basis on which to compare the Greek viewpoints of their own country
and of their relations with the U.S.
Arriving in Greece, our first day was spent touring several beautiful
islands on a cruise ship. Also throughout the week of intensive
briefings we were able to visit the Acropolis, several museums, the
parliament building and see a concert at the outdoor Herod Atticus
theatre, which has been in use since 160 AD. During the week we met
with chairpersons, secretary-generals and deputy ministers from the
ministries of education, foreign affairs, development, religious
affairs and finance. We met with presidents and owners of the Shipping
Industry, the Athens Stock Exchange, the College in Athens, and the
Hellenic Bank Association. Also we heard from professors of foreign
policy and economics as well as representatives from the chamber of
commerce and the Secretary General of Information. On an average day we
would have around five meetings with these influential leaders of
Greece and we were able to interact with them on a number of topics. I
learned of the current problems Greece is dealing with including the
educational system, the economic crisis' effect on Greece and illegal
immigration. With these high government, economic and global officials
we were able to assess current problems and also discuss possible
solutions to improve the current state of Greece.
The fellowship to Athens gave me a first-hand look at the Greek
economy, politics, foreign affairs and education. I developed an idea
of the Greek commonalities and contrasts with the United States while
discussing an array of issues and meeting such prominent leaders in
Greece. I would like to thank our sponsor
and host in Athens, Secretary General of Information Panos Livadas, and
our chaperons and leaders, Leon Stavrou and Bill Shuyler for the
opportunity I had to be an Athens Fellow.
The Next Generation initiative sponsors The Athens Fellowship—a program
for college students of Hellenic descent who are interested in pursuing
careers in political science and international affairs. For more
information on the Athens Fellowship--including photos and a daily
blog, visit the program's website at http://athensfellowship.wordpress.com.