Costas Tsatsoulis, Vice Chancellor for Research and Dean of the Graduate School of Southern Illinois University (SIU) Carbondale, called on Ambassador Mahinda Samarasinghe at the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Washington, D.C., to discuss ongoing academic collaboration and future initiatives.
SIU Carbondale, with the facilitation of the Embassy of Sri Lanka, Washington D.C. entered into agreements with several Sri Lankan higher education institutions, fostering student exchanges, joint research opportunities, and academic partnerships that contribute towards further strengthening ties between the United States and Sri Lanka.
Ambassador Samarasinghe congratulated SIU on its recognition as one of the leading research universities in the United States under the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education and welcomed the university’s expanding engagement with Sri Lanka.
Vice Chancellor Tsatsoulis expressed SIU’s commitment to enrolling more international students, including those from Sri Lanka, across undergraduate, graduate, and post-doctoral programs. The Vice Chancellor is scheduled to visit the National Institute of Business Management (NIBM), Horizon Campus, and the University of Jaffna during an upcoming trip to Sri Lanka to further expand academic cooperation.
Deputy Chief of Mission Madhuka Wickramarachchi and Counsellor Chathuri Perera also attended the meeting.
SIU Carbondale is ranked among the top 5% of U.S. higher education institutions for research and is designated as a doctoral university with high research activity, receiving substantial external funding annually for research, training, and service-based projects.
Embassy of Sri Lanka
Washington D.C.
25 September 2025
