Public administration grad student named top Muskie fellow

12:25 p.m., July 30, 2003--Artur Lungu, an Edmund S. Muskie fellow from Moldova, who received his master of public administration degree from UD in 2003, received special recognition at the fellows’ graduation ceremony in June. He was named one of the two keynote speakers at the ceremony—the equivalent of being chosen as a valedictorian and the highest honor of the program. Selected on the basis of academic excellence and accomplishments while in the U.S, two fellows were asked to speak at the closing ceremonies in Washington D.C.

UD grad Artur Lungu (second from left), an Edmund S. Muskie fellow, was one of two fellows singled out for top honors by the U.S. State Department-sponsored program.

Established in 1992 by the U.S. Congress to encourage economic and democratic growth in Eurasia, the 2003 Edmund S. Muskie/FREEDOM Support Act Graduate Fellowship Program offers between 300-350 fellowships each year, given by the Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs of the U.S. Department of State and administered by the American Councils for International Education. Chosen from Eurasian countries, the fellows study in 11 different fields, ranging from economics to public health.

A graduate of the Academy of Economic Studies in the Republic of Moldova, Lungu specialized in financial management while at UD and took advanced courses in the Lerner College of Business and Economics. He also was a research assistant with UD’s Institute of Public Administration and had an internship last summer with the International Institute of the Graduate School of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Before coming to UD, Lungu was director of the Division of International Relations in Chisinau, Moldova; served as part of the Moldavian delegation to the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe; and held other posts in the country.

He currently is employed by Development Alternatives Inc. in Romania as regional coordinator of its project, Government Reform and Sustainable Partnership.

Lungu said of his career, “The greatest satisfaction…while working in the public sector is to see how your everyday activity improves the life of your fellow citizens. It is a special feeling to be part of a team that works for the general public benefit.”

He said he felt “very fortunate to be awarded a Muskie Fellowship and come to the University of Delaware.”

Lungu was nominated to be a speaker by Arno Loessner, assistant professor in the School of Urban Affairs and Public Policy, who wrote that Lungu had impressed everyone as “sincere, hard working and dedicated” and that his “super ability to lead is based upon his sincerity and quiet competence, not cheerleading.”

Article by Sue Moncure

[an error occurred while processing this directive]