Academy elects SPA professor to help improve government efficiency
Roger Durant, professor of public administration and policy in the School of Public Affairs, was recently elected to the National Academy of Public Administration's 2006 fellowship class, according to an AU press release.
NAPA "is an independent, non-partisan organization chartered by Congress to assist federal, state and local governments in improving their effectiveness, efficiency and accountability," according to its Web site.
There are over 550 fellows in the organization "who are the academy's primary vehicle for addressing emerging issues and contributing to the intellectual and popular discourse on government," according to the NAPA Web site.
There are more than 24 AU alumni fellows and 10 SPA professors. Each year new fellows are elected.
The selection criterion includes "sustained and outstanding contribution to the field of public administration through public service or scholarship," according to the NAPA Web site.
"I was humbled to be selected by colleagues nationally," Durant said. "I was especially pleased to be nominated as a NAPA Fellow by colleagues from outside AU and to have support for my election within the university. It's always nice to think that your work over a career hasn't gone unnoticed."
Putin bestows Russian state honor on Kogod professor
Russian President Vladimir Putin awarded Vladimir Kvint, a Kogod School of Business professor, the Order of the Friendship Nov. 4 in Moscow before a state dinner, according to American Weekly and a press release from the Russian president's Web site.
The Order of the Friendship, a state award, is presented for "strengthening friendship and cooperation between the Russian Federation and other countries in areas of science, culture, economics and peace," according to medals.org.uk.
It is the highest honor that can be given by the Russian government to a non-citizen, according to the Washington State Secretary of State's Web site.
Kvint said in an e-mail he was pleased with winning the award.
"When relationships between different nations are becoming more fluid, it's becoming more and more important to develop allies and friends," he said in the e-mail.
Previously, Kvint said he was a critic of the communist system, which "killed my grandfather and suppressed my work and myself."
However, he says now is a "different time."
"I am trying to be a small bridge between the people of the United States and Russia," he said in the e-mail. "This Order of Friendship ... is a symbol of big changes in the mentality of the Russian leadership"
