Interviewed by Tatjana Srceva-Pavlovska

In the dynamic world of the Macedonian-American alumni association, Mr. Gazmend Ilazi does not need any special introduction. The MAAA members are all very well acquainted with Mr. Gazmend Ilazi, the U.S. Embassy's Exchanges and Alumni Coordinator; He is well known for his great enthusiasm, positive attitude, and huge smile which welcomes you the very first moment you enter the premises of the U.S. Embassy in Skopje as an exchange program candidate, and then guides you through the selection processes. It is Mr. Ilazi who delivers you the excellent news that you have first been nominated and then elected to participate in a study program in the U.S., who assists with the paperwork and then conducts the pre-travel orientation, who remains most supportive, patient, helpful and highly professional, communicating with you throughout the entire program until the final 'welcome back', when you return home as new alumnus/alumna filled with an excitement and burning experience upon the completion of a certain exchange program. Wrap these skills up altogether and you will get professionalism of the highest level.

For our latest Newsletter, the MAAA conducted an interview with Mr. Gazmend Ilazi, touching on the topics of interest to our members.

Tatjana (MAAA): You are the first person the candidates come across when they decide to dive into the world of the State Department's exchange programs. What is Gazmend Ilazi like personally? Please tell us more about your passions and interests.

Mr. Ilazi: Yes, that is correct, I am always happy to help the potential candidates. Currently we have a wide range of exchanges, which cover candidates aged from 16 to 55. I would also like to add that in our exchange programs we cover all professional and educational backgrounds. I am continuously conducting educational-exchange outreach through the American Corners, universities, educational institutions and the media. My contact information is posted in all application calls that we post on our website and social media and I respond to all the emails and phone calls related to the educational exchanges. I simply love my job! 

Tatjana (MAAA):  You've been cooperating with the members of MAAA for years now. What do you think about the past and ongoing activities and the engagement of our alumni? Could you illustrate this with several positive examples coming from your personal experience?

Mr. Ilazi: The Macedonian American Alumni Association (MAAA) is a home organization for all the exchange alumni in North Macedonia. We have new memberships on a daily basis and we continuously ask all our exchange participants to register with MAAA. There are many activities that MAAA is conducting. For example, lately, we are in process of singing Memorandums of Cooperation with the state universities. In addition, MAAA organizes a New Year’s concert annually. This year the concert will take place on December 29th, 2022. This concert, among others, has two main goals: to strengthen the cultural bridges between the United States of America and the Republic of North Macedonia through music and a social component - money from the ticket sales have been used so far to help specific social groups, like rural schools with school supplies and other needs.

Furthermore, MAAA organizes regular alumni gatherings. These gatherings help the alumni to expand their network of contacts. MAAA is the umbrella organization of the Youth Exchange and Study, Summer Work and Travel and other programs too. We are the first Post world-wide to establish the Summer-Work and Travel alumni association.

Tatjana (MAAA): The MAAA members are in a way ambassadors of the USA and the State Department's study programs. Are you satisfied with the alumni's follow-up engagements and do you have any ideas or suggestions in what other ways the MAAA alumni can further contribute to promoting the cultural, economic, social, and political development and cooperation between the two countries?

Mr. Ilazi: Well, as we usually say, “keep up the good work”. MAAA’s management team are innovative professionals and MAAA is among the most active alumni associations in Europe. We regularly share the alumni highlights with the U.S. Ambassador and Alumni Headquarters in Washington.

Tatjana (MAAA): Could you give concrete ideas or steps on how our alumni could improve the follow-up activities and engagements with the programs' host institutions/universities and their staff?

Mr. Ilazi: To be honest, they are always ahead of us with innovative ideas. What I would like to ask them is to seek any available opportunity to intensify their cooperation with the U.S. Universities and/or their host institutions in the United States. We need the U.S. experience in any field, particularly in community service activities.

Tatjana (MAAA): Can you tell us a bit more about your experience regarding the open competitions for past participants of U.S. government-funded and U.S. government-sponsored programs and the Alumni Engagement Innovation Fund? Can you point out some positive examples and benefits that our alumni can have from participating in such funding opportunities?

Mr. Ilazi: We will announce the 2023 Alumni Engagement Innovation Fund very soon. We as a Post may submit two project proposals to the Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs (ECA), Department of State. Both projects that we submitted this year were approved by ECA. Recently, we were also notified that there will be another AIEF with the focus on media disinformation this year. And, MAAA has budget for funding small project proposals, to which all MAAA members are eligible to apply.

Ilazi with the Open World fellows in Washington D.C. and in other cities in the United States

Tatjana (MAAA): And finally, I want to ask you about the move-ahead possibilities and opportunities for our alumni - what is the "next level"? Are they eligible to apply to any continuation programs or courses in the USA? 

Mr. Ilazi: There are always ways for the alumni to extend their activities and at the same time maintain professional relationships with their hosts. The alumni may invite Fulbright Senior Specialists from the U.S.A for teaching purposes, seminars, conferences, workshops and other professional activities. I would like to use this opportunity to invite them all to be more active. Whoever has any idea for any project may contact MAAA at any time as well as the U.S. Embassy, of course, which has open doors for all our alumni.

In the end, I would like to greet all MAAA members and say that I am looking forward to seeing all of them at MAAA’s concert on December 29th  at the Macedonian Philharmonic Center.