{"130981":{"#nid":"130981","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Birchfield Knighted by French Government","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EDr.\u0026nbsp;\u003Cstrong\u003EVicki Birchfield\u003C\/strong\u003E\u0026nbsp;was presented the \u201cChevalier de l\u2019Ordre Nationale du Merite\u201d (Knight of the French National Order of Merit) in a ceremony in Atlanta on May 9.\u0026nbsp; Decreed by the president of the French Republic, the award is one of highest civilian honors accorded by the French government. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAn associate professor in The Sam Nunn School of International Affairs, Birchfield was recognized for her \u201cbrilliant leadership in service\u201d of the U.S. \u2013 E. U. \u201ctransatlantic relationship.\u0022\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn presenting her the award,\u0026nbsp;\u003Cstrong\u003EPascal Le Deunff\u003C\/strong\u003E, France\u2019s consul general for the\u0026nbsp;Southeast, lauded Birchfield for\u0026nbsp;raising the international profile of Atlanta and for strengthening mutual understanding between the American and the European views \u0022during difficult times -- transatlantic trade disputes, political and diplomatic disagreements.\u0022\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBirchfield has served on the IAC faculty since 2000. She currently co-directs the Center for European and Transatlantic Studies whose mission is to advance knowledge and understanding of the E.U., transformations in European politics and society, and the significance of the E.U.-U.S. relationship.\u0026nbsp; She directed the European Union Center of Excellence at Georgia Tech from 2008 to 2011. She has led a study abroad program in Europe taking hundreds of students to study the European Union and transatlantic relations from the capitols of Brussels, Paris, and Berlin.\u0026nbsp; Her research and teaching has focused on French political economy and culture and she has been a visiting scholar at Sciences Po, Paris and the University of Bordeaux.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBirchfield was presented the award during a private ceremony on Europe Day an event in which she partnered that brings together European members of the Consular Corps, regional economic and educational leaders to showcase the U.S. - E.U relationship.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ERead article in \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.globalatlanta.com\/article\/25528\/\u0022\u003EGlobal Atlanta\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EDr.\u0026nbsp;\u003Cstrong\u003EVicki Birchfield\u003C\/strong\u003E\u0026nbsp;was presented the \u201cChevalier de l\u2019Ordre Nationale du Merite\u201d (Knight of the French National Order of Merit) in a ceremony in Atlanta on May 9.\u0026nbsp; Decreed by the president of the French Republic, the award is one of highest civilian honors accorded by the French government. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":"","uid":"27167","created_gmt":"2012-05-16 10:12:13","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:12:13","author":"Rebecca Keane","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2012-05-16T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2012-05-16T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"73103":{"id":"73103","type":"image","title":"Vicki Birchfield","body":null,"created":"1449177979","gmt_created":"2015-12-03 21:26:19","changed":"1539025143","gmt_changed":"2018-10-08 18:59:03","alt":"Portrait photo of Vicki Birchfield with EU flags","file":{"fid":"193729","name":"vickibirchfield228flagc200x300.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/vickibirchfield228flagc200x300_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/vickibirchfield228flagc200x300_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":204165,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/vickibirchfield228flagc200x300_0.jpg?itok=TQLQUdwC"}}},"media_ids":["73103"],"groups":[{"id":"1281","name":"Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts"}],"categories":[{"id":"134","name":"Student and Faculty"}],"keywords":[{"id":"5466","name":"European Union"},{"id":"1188","name":"International Affairs"},{"id":"5352","name":"Vicki Birchfield"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:rebecca.keane@iac.gatech.edu\u0022\u003Erebecca.keane@iac.gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E \u0026nbsp;404-894-1720\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["rebecca.keane@iac.gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}