Divan’s 8th Annual Dialogue & Friendship Dinner was held on November 14th, 2012 at the Hilton RTP. Every fall, this dinner brings together over a hundred distinguished governmental officials, community leaders, businessman and academics with the objective of discussing a specifically chosen topic. This year’s topic was “Education: Cure for Poverty, Ignorance and Disunity” and more than 200 guests honored the event.
The dinner was hosted by Mr. Frank Stasio, the host of the NPR Show “State of the Things”. The event started with opening remarks by Mr. Richard D. Sears, Mayor of Holly Springs and Prof. Allen Page, the Former Vice President for Academic Programs at the Meredith College. They were followed by th a keynote speech, delivered by Dr. Jayne Fleener, Dean of College of Education at North Carolina State University. Dr. Faruk Taban, President of Turkish American Alliance, and Mr. Darrell G. McCormick, North Carolina State Representative provided the concluding remarks. During the ceremony, the Secretary of State Elaine Marshall, State Representative Jamie Boles, Mayor of Morrisville Jackie Holcombe, Dean of College of Humanities and Social Sciences at North Carolina State University Jeff Braden, and Vice Provost for Institutional Equity & Diversity at North Carolina State University Joanne Woodard presented their gifts to the speakers of the night. The guests also enjoyed a “kanun” recital performed by the Turkish musician Aytekin Senyaylar.
Visit for more info: http://www.divancenter.org/activity_details.php?id=203
