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Encyclopedia of Women & Islamic Cultures
EWIC Scholar's Database

Over 1,500 scholars from all over the world, from all disciplines, all research subjects
A resource of international experts on women and Islamic cultures
Search by scholar’s names, scholars’ institutional affiliations, countries of research, and research topics.

To participate, please fill out your information on the website at www.sjoseph.ucdavis.edu/ewic/author/template.htm.

Books for Baghdad-Latest News
After four shipments of more than 55,000 textbooks and journals to universities in Iraq, we are saddened to report that "Books for Baghdad" books collection has been suspended for the time being due to lack of resources.

"Books for Baghdad" project has become a well known humanitarian project in Iraq and the demand on textbooks has increased. We have received many requests from the universities in Iraq asking us to support their education system. The fact is that we are a small organization and we have absolutely no extended funds to support the activity of this project. As a result, we are not able to satisfy the increasing demands and we cannot promise anything we can’t deliver. We would love to continue this project because we believe in it and we consider it a labor of love. We are waiting for the opportunity to come to allow us to restart book collections in the near future. However, other objectives of this project will continue, specifically helping the faculty in Iraq to establish collaborative work with the counterpart in the US. Books for Baghdad will continue to assist undergraduate and graduate students in finding a scholarship to come to the US and promoting partnerships with educational institutions in the United States.

Anyone who would like to contribute books and other gifts should contact Dr. Al-Hamdani (256-782-5801; sah@jsu.edu). Cash contributions can be made to the JSU Foundation, 700 Pelham Road North, Jacksonville AL 36265. Visit: www.booksforbaghdad.org.

Dr. Safaa Al-Hamdani and a small group of faculty volunteers established the Books for Baghdad project in 2004 as an international humanitarian effort to help reestablish the war-torn Baghdad University library. Local volunteers were soon joined by faculty and students from throughout the U.S. Thanks in part to international media coverage, including special reports on CNN, the project far exceeded its goal of 5,000 books with a total collection of more than 11,000 textbooks and $6,500 in school supplies.

The Baghdad Museum Project
The Baghdad Museum, or the Iraq National Museum in Baghdad, has been looted, stripping it of a priceless collection of cultural artifacts dating back to the dawn of civilization. As you will see from the “museum walkthrough” (available from the website), these are major historical treasures not only for the Iraqi people but for all humanity as well. How can we respond to this cultural catastrophe? This is an opportunity to promote better dialogue among our cultures. The Baghdad Museum Project proposes a 4-part program to not only help save the museum but also to bring about improved relations in the international community. The goals are to: Establish a comprehensive online catalog of all cultural artifacts in the Baghdad Museum to help locate them, discourage illegal dealing in these antiquities, and encourage their safe return to the museum’s curators in Baghdad; create a virtual Baghdad Museum, a content-rich website–free to the general public–based on the Baghdad Museum collection, in order to stimulate cross-cultural appreciation and dialogue. We anticipate that this site would feature the best search and navigation tools, including interactive streaming video, GIS, 3D navigation, and online classrooms; build a 3D collaborative workspace within the virtual Baghdad Museum, to allow international teams to work together on renovation designs, exhibit layouts, and new building proposals for the museum in Baghdad, as well as fundraising programs for construction and events; and establish a resource center for community cultural development within the virtual Baghdad Museum, offering experiences, ideas and success stories that show how people can contribute creatively to their own culture, and thereby strengthen their historical memory. For information and or to participate, contact: John Simmons, Chairman, The Baghdad Museum Project (JohnSimmons@BaghdadMuseum.org; BaghdadMuseum.org).

Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE) (Post date: March 18, 2009)
Proposal Reviewers for FY 2009 Grant Competitions
Now that President Obama has signed the 2009 budget for federal agencies, FIPSE anticipates receiving additional funds for its Comprehensive Program as well as the EU-U.S. Atlantis Program. (See www.ed.gov/fipse for a discussion of each program.) This will create a demand for proposal reviewers from all fields in the postsecondary sector. Reviewers are generally asked to read 5-10 proposals and are compensated for their efforts. The Office of Postsecondary Education at the U.S. Department of Education requires that all field readers have a Bachelor’s or higher degree.  If you are interested in being a proposal reviewer, please sign up in the Department of Education’s field reader database. Visit: http://opeweb.ed.gov/frs/register.cfm.  

Arabic Distance Learning Network
Seeking Institutional Participants
Montana State University-Bozeman is looking for institutions that want to add Arabic language to their modern language offerings to participate in an innovation project dubbed the U.S. Arabic Distance Learning Network, which is supported by the US Department of Education, Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary Education (FIPSE). The network offers a full two-year program of Arabic language taught through a distance-learning approach complemented by face-to-face instruction and an integrated study abroad component for students who want to continue their Arabic studies. Interested parties should contact Yvonne Rudman (406 994-4032; rudman@montana.edu). Dr. Norman Peterson will be attending the upcoming AIEA conference and will be available to discuss the program in more detail. For more information about the Network, access: www.arabicstudies.edu.

Focusing on the global man­agement expertise needed for leadership roles in mul­tiple international sectors, the MGM degree is offered at the Muscat-based World Learning Center, also home to World Learning’s SIT Study Abroad programs. The Oman setting will provide a culturally rich and academi­cally engaging context for exploring global marketplace dynamics in the Gulf region and beyond.

The field location will enhance professional studies by providing students with opportunities to immerse themselves fully in the culture, study Arabic language, form lasting friendships with an international cohort, and investigate firsthand how issues of identity are negotiated in Oman.

The MGM curriculum, taught by a world-class faculty drawn from the US, the Gulf region, and other countries, presents a balanced approach to leading and managing twenty-first-century organizations. It enables students to develop a solid foundation in functional management areas, while examining the nature of globalization and its implications in an increasingly interconnected world in a context of rapid change. The program culminates with a Capstone Project in which teams of students apply their learning within Omani organizations.

Students participating in the MGM degree program will benefit from SIT’s proven experiential learning techniques and gain critical competencies in key areas, including:
• Global management and leadership
• Core management skills and applied practice
• Arabic language and linguistic skills
• Intercultural competence
• Entrepreneurship and innovation

The MGM degree is designed to be completed by full-time students in 12 months and by part-time students in 22 months. Degree completion requires 38 credits (exclusive of language cred­its).

Additional options are available for optional concentrations. For students wishing to extend their time and learning in the Gulf and beyond, a post-degree practicum can also be arranged through World Learning connections in areas such as Middle East, India/Asia and West Africa for an additional fee.

For more information, visit www.sit.edu/graduate/grad_mgm_oman.htm or contact  Graduate Admissions Counselor Mark Clark at mark.clark@sit.edu or 802-258-3518.