Egyptian Fulbright Scholar visits LSSU for 3 weeks; will discuss Muslim/US relations in communityPosted: October 27th, 2005SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. – A visiting Fulbright scholar from Egypt is based at Lake Superior State University for the next three weeks as she visits classrooms and communities to discuss relations between Americans and Muslims.
Rachida El Diwani Ph.D. addresses LSSU class
Rachida El Diwani Ph.D., arrived at LSSU on Oct. 22 and started meeting students and community members right away. Besides LSSU students and faculty, El Diwani is meeting with residents at St. Joseph Parish in Sault Ste. Marie, members of Lake State Elders, and students and staff of Sault Area High School, Bay Mills Community College in Brimley and North Central Michigan College in Petoskey.
“She comes to the community as a Fulbright Visiting Specialist, whose two-fold mission is to help American colleges and universities enrich their international programs and courses of study, and to provide opportunities for intensive exposure to the surrounding communities,” said Jason Swedene, LSSU professor of humanities. “Current events and ideologies have refocused attentions to the ways in which Islamic civilizations and the West interact. El Diwani, who holds a Ph.D. in French literature, will provide insight to students in subjects as diverse as women in Islam, humanities, French, sociology, and nursing.”
El Diwani has been to the U.S. as a Fulbright scholar in the past. She was a Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence at Chatham College in Pittsburgh in 2002-03, where she taught courses on Islam and presented public lectures across the U.S.
El Diwani said she is looking forward to her time in Michigan.
“It is fulfilling to me to build bridges of understanding and respect between Americans and the Muslim world, especially in these days of crisis.”
El Diwani has been teaching at Alexandria University in Egypt since she started her doctoral work there in 1981. She worked there also in 1973-74 as a demonstrator in the Dept. of French Language and Literature. Today, she is a professor of comparative literature and civilization with AU’s Dept. of French Language and Literature.
Highly regarded for her scholarly work, in 1993 El Diwani received the Alexandria University Award for scientific research.
El Diwani has already presented programs in several LSSU classes and a public presentation, “What is Islam?” on Oct. 24. Future presentations include a public lecture, “Do Muslims hate Americans?” at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 26 in the Newman Center, 517 W. Easterday Ave.
On Friday, Oct. 28, she will present three programs in the Petoskey-Charlevoix area, including, “Misconceptions about Islam” from 9:30-10:30 a.m. at Petoskey High School; “The Distorted Image of Islam in the West,” a presentation of the lunchtime lecture series from 12:10-1:10 p.m. at North Central Michigan College; and “The Distorted Image of Islam in the West” at 2 p.m. for Charlevoix High School sophomores.
El Diwani will be at Bay Mills Community College in Brimley on Nov. 8 to speak to Prof. Kathy Adair’s Counseling Class. The public is welcome to attend between 5-6:30 p.m. to hear “Misconceptions about Islam.”
From 2-3 p.m. on Nov. 9 at LSSU, she will present, “Do Muslims Hate Americans?” to the members of Lake State Elders and then a public program, “The Distorted Image of Islam in the West,” at 7:30 p.m. in the LSSU Arts Center.
To read more about El Diwani’s presentations and to see her complete schedule, visit www.lssu.edu/faculty/jswedene/Fulbright or call Prof. Jason Swedene, 906-635-2122. –LSSU-
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