On Monday evening, September 29, an information meeting was held in the assembly hall of the Church of the Presentation of the Virgin Mary of our Community in Pera. The meeting brought together Mr. Byron Nikolaidis, CEO of PeopleCert, along with his team, with the principals, parents, and students of the three Greek diaspora schools of the City, while schools from Imbros also participated online. Present at the event were also the President of our Community and of SYRKI, Mr. George Papaliaris, the Ecclesiastical Head of the Community, His Eminence Metropolitan Andreas of Saranta Ekklisies, members of SYRKI, as well as representatives of the diaspora press.
The proposal for the launch of this program came from Mr. Byron Nikolaidis, who, through this initiative, demonstrates in practice his support for the Greek Diaspora of Constantinople, and especially for its youth, who represent its future. Mr. Nikolaidis emphasized that before starting this effort, he sought and received the blessing of His All-Holiness, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew. The lessons are offered free of charge, giving students the opportunity to improve their English, obtain a diploma corresponding to their level of knowledge, and become “citizens of the world,” as he characteristically noted in his address.
The President of our Community highlighted the particular importance of this initiative, as it concerns the future of the students of our schools and their subsequent professional development. For this reason, the historic Stavrodromi Community supports this effort by providing the hall of the Church of Panagia of Pera for the lessons. Mr. Papaliaris expressed his thanks to the Ecclesiastical Head of the Community, His Eminence Metropolitan Andreas of Saranta Ekklisies, who immediately responded and agreed to the use of the hall.
Following this, the representatives of the Parents’ Associations of the schools spoke, stressing the importance of this new initiative and expressing their gratitude to Mr. Nikolaidis for his commendable effort for the benefit of the students. Finally, Mr. Nikolaidis’ associates presented the teaching materials to be used in the English lessons, which will focus on interactivity, communication, and the use of new technologies.
