PRESS RELEASE
UCLA AEF Chair in Armenian History
Contact: Prof. Richard Hovannisian
Tel: 310-825-3375
Email: Hovannis@history.ucla.edu

AMBASSADOR JOHN EVANS TO SPEAK AT UCLA, FEBRUARY 17

UCLA–Honorable John M. Evans, U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of
Armenia, will speak at UCLA on Thursday afternoon, February 17, 2005,
at 2 p.m., in the Viewpoint Conference Room of Ackerman Union (student
union building, level A). Evans was confirmed by the Senate in June,
took his oath of office in August, and presented his credentials in
Yerevan in September 2004.

The Ambassador’s visit to UCLA is being arranged by Professor Richard
Hovannisian, AEF Chair in Armenian History, with the cooperation of
the Armenian Students Association. Evans has stated that he looks
forward to a free and open exchange with students, faculty, and
members of the public who wish to attend the afternoon forum. He will
begin the hour with a brief overview titled “Report from
Armenia–2005.”

A native of Williamsburg, Virginia, John Evans studied Russian history
at Yale University and Columbia University. Since entering the foreign
service, he has served in a number of posts, including Tehran, Prague,
Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Washington D.C., as well as on special
commissions and peace-keeping missions in Europe. His role in
coordinating the American response to the Armenian earthquake of 1988
earned him a medal and statement of appreciation from the Armenian
government. Prior to his appointment as Ambassador to Armenia, Evans
directed the State Department’s Office of Russian Affairs.

Ambassador Evans will be accompanied by Mrs. Donna Evans, former
President of the World Affairs Council of Washington, D.C., Robin
Phillips, Mission Director for the U.S. Agency for International
Development, Eugenia Sidereas, the State Department’s Desk Officer for
Armenia, and Aaron Sherinian, the Embassy’s Political Officer and
Assistance Coordinator in Yerevan

The gathering is free and open to the public. Parking for Ackerman
Union. located on Westwood Plaza. is available at parking structures
that can be reached from Sunset Boulevard at the Westwood Boulevard
entrance to UCLA (Structure 4, underground parking) or from Wilshire
Boulevard north on Westwood Boulevard to Westwood Plaza (Structure
6). The UCLA campus map is on the web at
<;

Contact person: Professor Richard Hovannisian,
<mailto:Hovannis@history.ucla.edu>Hovannis@h istory.ucla.edu or
310-825-3375, MWF (9 a.m.-12 noon).

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