08/19/16 sc/kb
HAYS, Kan. -- Following a membership-wide election spanning the entire network of more than 550 U.S. cities that are members of Sister Cities International, Cindy Elliott, assistant provost for global relations at Fort Hays State University, was one of 10 people elected to Sister Cities' 27-member Board of Directors.

Elliott was elected as an at-large board member during the organization's 60th annual conference in Washington, D.C., in July Sister Cities International was created Sept. 11, 1956, by President Dwight D. Eisenhower at his White House Conference on Citizen Diplomacy. It's mission is to create world peace and understanding, one individual, one community at a time.

"This mission is as relevant today as it was 60 years ago," said Elliott.

Elliott joined FHSU in 1998 as dean of the Virtual College and helped launch FHSU's China initiative. Before coming to FHSU, she was director of distance learning at Florida International University and manager of product development and distribution at Miami-Dade Community College. She is also a trustee of the FHSU Foundation, the Sias International University Foundation and the Smoky Hills Public Television Advisory Board.

Hays has two sister cities, Santa Maria, Paraguay, and Xinzheng, China. The local board is a 10-member advisory board to the Hays City Commission.

"It is a privilege to represent a vibrant city the size of Hays," said Elliott. "I am the only person on the board from a city of less than 100,000."

U.S. member cities have relationships with 2,300 communities in 150 countries on six continents.

Sister Cities' website is www.sistercities.org and can be engaged on social media: Facebook, Sister Cities International; Twitter, @SisterCitieslnt; Instagram, @SisterCitieslnt; and Medium: @SisterCitiesInternational.