The Foundation underwrites the annual Nicholas Petris Lecture Series now hosted and presented by the Hellenic Studies Program at Sacramento State University. The lecture series seeks to present leaders and academic scholars who can inspire students and the general population to understand and appreciate the amazing legacy of knowledge, wisdom, and creativity found within the broad scope of Hellenic culture. The lecture series is named in honor of the late state senator Nicholas Petris who was a dedicated public servant of exceptional character and integrity who embodied the very best qualities of Hellenism and who was instrumental in establishing, along with Professor Thanasis Maskaleris and benefactor Angelo Tsakopoulos, the Nikos Kazantzakis Chair and Endowment at San Francisco State University in 1981.