Turkey’s U.S. Exchange Programs (USEP) Alumni Association organized its first event at the Turkish American Association on Friday, February 27 in Ankara. Around eighty alumni and thirty possible future U.S. exchange program nominees from various Turkish educational, governmental and non-governmental organizations participated in the networking opportunity. U.S. diplomats and staff from the Embassy and representatives from the Fulbright Commission also attended.
USEP Alumni Association President Murat Doğru gave welcoming remarks, saying: “Exchange programs have been taking place for 75 years between Turkey and the U.S. Thousands of people from Turkey participated in these programs. We are happy tonight to have our alumni at our new, modern and central headquarters. Our alumni are enthusiastic to work together and network each other.”
U.S. Embassy Deputy Chief Lawrence Mandel also gave remarks, saying “Tonight I met and talked to some of Turkish alumni and learned that they even studied the places in the U.S. that I always wanted but was unable to visit yet. This indicates how deep and diverse U.S. exchange programs are.”
U.S. Embassy Public Affairs Officer Jonathan Henick noted, “Your association provides a unique platform to develop your community projects, to know all the alumni and have network each other. As the Embassy, we are still here to do all we can to help.”
This event provided a platform for alumni to connect with other U.S. Exchange alumni, learn more about the exchange program opportunities from American and Turkish officials, and meet potential partners in personal or professional endeavors.
