CCU acknowledged by U.S. Ambassador to Iceland

Coastal Carolina University president David DeCenzo and a delegation of CCU representatives traveled to Reykjavik, Iceland, on March 15 to meet with CCU alumni and Luis E. Arreaga, U.S. Ambassador to Iceland.

CCU has more than 70 graduates from Iceland. “When Americans and Icelanders work together, great things happen. I can think of no better example of this than the partnership between Coastal Carolina University and its Icelandic alumni,” Arreaga said on his blog after the meeting. “Over the years, these Icelanders have returned to Iceland and formed a tightly knit alumni association based on their shared experiences.”

Icelandic members of CCU’s Alumni Association got together with CCU administration and instituted a new scholarship fund. At a ceremony March 16, DeCenzo and the president of the Icelandic Whales Alumni Association (IWAA), Snorri Gudmundsson, signed an agreement to establish and facilitate a scholarship fund to give five Icelanders the opportunity to attend CCU.

CCU’s Icelandic alumni now hold leadership positions in companies and organizations across Iceland and elsewhere. Members of the Icelandic alumni group worked with CCU staff members Darla Domke-Damonte and Geoffrey Parsons to coordinate recruitment efforts on March 14 and 15 at four local secondary schools around Reykjavik to encourage more Icelandic students to seek their degrees at CCU. Parsons and Domke-Damonte also attended meetings with the presidents of the University of Iceland and Reykjavik University to explore potential collaboration.

“The quality of my Icelandic students over the years has been exemplary,” says Domke-Damonte, professor and executive director of global initiatives. “I am hopeful that we will attract more of these talented students to CCU to help contribute to raising the global awareness of all our students.”