Stella Kokoli
President of the Federation of Greek-American Educational and Cultural Associations of America and the founder of numerous philanthropic organizations focused on education, culture, and social service
Stella Kokoli, BA, MA, M.Ed., ABD, is an iconic
figure in Greek-language education and the Greek
diaspora in the United States. She is the President of
the Federation of Greek-American Educational and
Cultural Associations of America and the founder of
numerous philanthropic organizations focused on
education, culture, and social service.
For more than five decades, she has remained
continuously at the forefront of service to the Greek
language and Greek culture. Her work spans Greek
diaspora schools, Greek language learning programs,
the creation of Greek-interest charter schools, and the
development of Greek studies programs in public high
schools and universities across the United States. In
parallel, she organized educational trips for students to
Greece, enabling them to experience firsthand the
history, language, and culture of their homeland.
She placed particular emphasis on the professional
development of diaspora educators. From 2011 to
2018, she implemented training programs in modern
methods of teaching Greek as a foreign or second
language, in collaboration with educational and
academic institutions in Greece and Cyprus. At the
same time, she contributed to hosting educators from
Greece in the United States by providing free housing
for short- or long-term stays, substantially supporting
their work and residence.
Stella Kokoli is the author of the autobiographical
book My Journey (Sideris Publications, 2016) and the
poetry collection Indelible Memory. She has published
countless articles on websites and in newspapers of the
Greek diaspora and in Greece.
Born on the island of Andros, with a deep passion for
Greece and Greek culture, she remains firmly committed to the preservation and promotion of the Greek language worldwide. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she undertook significant international initiatives, organizing online conferences and building bridges of collaboration among Greek language educators around the world. Her multifaceted educational, philanthropic, and social work has been recognized with numerous awards and honorary distinctions from major organizations and political leaders in the United States and
internationally. Her life’s work consistently reflects the timeless role of the teacher of the nation, with an invaluable contribution to the preservation of Greek identity and cultural heritage for future generations.