President

President Chris Spirou 

Christos “Chris” Spirou is the Founding President of Hellenic American University. It was President Spirou’s vision, spirit, and sense of purpose, with co-Founder and University’s Executive Vice-President Leonidas Phoebus Koskos, which gave rise to the New Hampshire, USA based American Higher Education Institution with its main campus in Athens Greece.

Hellenic American University thrives today under its President’s ambition, as the Institution assumes the deserved reputation of being a “truly global American University”, one which embraces and embodies fully the value traditions and high standards which define the best American higher education.

President Spirou was born in the small village of Porti in the Prefecture of Karditsa, Province of Thessaly, Greece. At the age of thirteen, he migrated to the United States; he and his family took up residence in Manchester, New Hampshire and subsequently became citizens of the United States. Within fourteen years of his arrival, Mr. Spirou had entered politics and been elected to the New Hampshire House of Representatives. Recognized as a tireless advocate for the “average citizen”, a reputation he had earned prior to elected office in numerous public service capacities, including election to the Presidency of the Northeast Model Cities Citizens Union and appointment by President Nixon to the Board of Directors of the National Center for Voluntary Action.

In short order, President Spirou rose to become the House Democratic Minority Party Leader of the New Hampshire House of Representatives. During his tenure as Democratic Leader, he focused his energies on issues of education, health care, sustainable economic growth, fair wages for workers, and the environment. In 1984 he was the Democratic Party nominee for Governor of the State of New Hampshire and in 1990 he became Chairman of the New Hampshire Democratic Party.

From 1972 through 2000, President Spirou either chaired the campaign for or served as a Delegate for Democratic candidates for the U.S. Presidency.

In 1992 President Spirou was elected President of President Clinton’s electors for the State of New Hampshire.

In 1994, Chris Spirou was elected President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Hellenic American Union, a bi-national educational center located in Athens Greece. Under his leadership, the Union was revitalized. Its headquarters in the Kolonaki district became and continue to be widely recognized as a respected center for education, culture, diplomacy, and business. It was, however, the prominence of HAU’s educational mission which inspired President Spirou and the membership of the Hellenic American Union to establish an American university in the heart of Athens, the cradle of Western civilization, especially its philosophical and political thought.

When, in 2004, the New Hampshire Legislature enacted and Governor signed into law the Charter which established Hellenic American University, the University’s Board of Trustees called upon the experienced and trusted leadership of Chris Spirou to guide the institution’s founding and development. His steadfast and visionary leadership of both the Hellenic American Union and Hellenic American University has transformed both Institutions into a significant academic force in Greece and the larger Mediterranean region, as well as created a valued arbiter for Greek-American concerns and interests in both Europe and the United States.

President Spirou attended St. Anselm’s college in Manchester, New Hampshire and has a Master’s Degree in Urban Studies and Social Change from Goddard College in Vermont. He has lectured and taught courses on the “Process of Practical Politics” in numerous higher education venues.