Dr. Joanna Athanasopoulos Owen

AAFSW Fun for Funds Fundraising Events Chair

AAFSW Public Relations and Publicity Chair

Dr. Joanna Athanasopoulos Owen has been an FS EFM since 2001, and served as AAFSW President  2016- 2020.  She is currently the AAFSW Fun for Funds Fundraising Events Chair, as well as the AAFSW Public Relations and Publicity Chair.

During her postings abroad as an EFM, Dr. Owen volunteered her expertise as a trained geophysicist and environmental management consultant and provided unique hands-on experiences and education to many of the U.S. missions’ international students and their families in Argentina, Sri Lanka, and Venezuela.  While serving as AAFSW President, Joanna advocated tirelessly for family member rights, benefits, and services. Additionally, inspired by her multi-year academic career, in January 2018, Joanna conceived and implemented AAFSW’s “Twice Exceptional” Merit Scholarship, designed to reward academic excellence annually to two students who have overcome adversity due to special needs. Joanna was the recipient of the Eleanor Dodson Tragen Award in 2020 for her numerous efforts to champion the needs of EFMs.