Focusing on antiquities theft in Egypt and around the world, students in the Core Curriculum class, Loot: The Research for Buried Treasures in Egypt and Beyond, gained hands-on experience in Egyptology through visits to historic sites.    

Offered for the third semester, the course encourages students to preserve their own cultural heritage by learning more about it through readings, presentations, activities, field trips and conflict resolution.

But why looting?

 “I got interested in this topic when I was doing research for a novel,” said Gretchen McCullough, senior instructor in the Department of Rhetoric and Composition who designed this course. “Theft of antiquities became a huge issue after the Arab Spring and the security breakdown. But then, I realized this was not only a big issue in the Arab world, but also in Turkey, Greece and so many other countries.”

McCullough added, “This course focuses on how antiquities intersect with issues of cultural identity and ownership. We decided to run it as a course within the Core Curriculum, and since there are so many things to see, we added field trips as part of the course. One semester, we went to Ibn Tulun, Sultan Hassan and Refai [mosques], and Coptic Cairo.”  

Mariam Habib, who is currently enrolled in the course, appreciates the chance to complement her interest in history with knowledge on this topic. “The theme of looting was interesting and eye-catching to me from the beginning, especially because I've always been interested in history and the importance of antiquities,” she said. “What I like most about the course is the fact that we learn so much about the different methods of looting, how looters think, how antiquities are smuggled and the importance of cultural identity.”

Kathleen Saville, senior instructor and associate chair of the Department of Rhetoric and Composition who is currently teaching the course for the first time, is enjoying the course and how the students get to know their own culture and visit its historical sites, which they might not have had the chance to visit before.

“Despite being a foreigner, I’ve gone to more sites than any of my students,” she explained. “Maybe this course will engender some interest in the students who’d like to study Egyptology.” Said Saville. “Only a few of the students have been to the pyramids for example, so we are working on helping them to know more about their country. We already went on a field visit to Saqqara.”

Monica Hanna ’04,’07, who studied Egyptology at AUC and received the SAFE [Saving Antiques for Everyone] Beacon Award one (SAFE) for her tireless efforts to publicize and expose the rampant looting of Egypt’s ancient Egyptian, Coptic and Islamic archaeological sites, was invited as a guest speaker during the class, talking to the students more about the dangers of looting antiquities and giving real-life examples.

“This is an excellent course,” said Hanna. “It keeps the students engaged and very-well informed. They actually built a solid background and arguments about the topic, which means that the content of the course is really strong. It’s not an abstract course. It’s very hands-on and triggers the students’ enthusiasm to learn and know more about their own heritage.”

According to Saville, the students were as much impressed with Hanna’s arguments and knowledge as she was with their enthusiasm. They were eager to know more about the real-life problems that the theft of antiquities might cause.

“The students were pretty impressed when Hanna explained how the mafia uses young children in the sites to help them search for antiquities because they can wiggle down in the tunnels,” said Saville. “Sometimes they destroy the sites, and sometimes the sites actually collapse on top of these kids and kill them.”  

 “There is a huge black market in terms of antiquities, and it’s often tied with the mafia,” added McCullough. “There are families in Upper Egypt who make their living by stealing antiquities.”  

An added value of the course and its importance to the students is learning to not only preserve their heritage, but also to value it as part of their own individual identity. “The course has taught me so many things that now I look at antiquities and looting in a very different way than I used to.,” said Habib.

Widely recognized as a hub for cultural and artistic expression, AUC’s School of Humanities and Social Sciences (HUSS) recently received a $50,000 grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to fund a series of teaching, research and outreach programs for strengthening public humanities and civic discourse.

Bel Arabi Falsafa (“philosophy in plain Arabic”) is a public humanities venture designed to democratize access to philosophy and change popular perceptions of it not just in Egypt, but also in the Arabic-speaking world as a whole. Its purpose is to bring philosophy to a non-specialist audience, demonstrating the relevance of philosophy and philosophical methodologies to matters of both private interest and public concern.

A Philosophical Vision

The name of the initiative—Bel Arabi Falsafa—points to one of the project’s central goals, which strives to combine philosophy and plain speaking –– concepts that are often considered incompatible in the contemporary Arabic-speaking world.

The goal for the coming year is to host events at cities in the Nile Delta and Upper Egypt. The long-term aim is to establish a visible, active and sustainable presence in Egypt beyond the greater Cairo metropolitan area. Over the next 10 years, Bel Arabi Falsafa events are envisaged to be held in three different governorates every year. The project organizers hope to establish self-sustaining Bel Arabi Falsafa-type events across the MENA region.

The project will also create an online database of curated intellectual content, a portal through which the public may access videos, webinars and Arabic translations of philosophical texts (particularly contemporary philosophical texts, of which only a scant few have been translated) with commentaries. This online repository is intended as a supplement to the ongoing public outreach programs that allow people, who might otherwise not have access, an entry point into the academy.

Philosophical Culture on Campus 

At AUC, Bel Arabi Falsafa will make a significant impact in promoting a culture of philosophical inquiry on campus, where it will serve as an extension of the formal classroom. Undergraduate students who attend Bel Arabi Falsafa will have the opportunity to enrich their study of philosophy and to do so in their native language.

There are numerous perceived benefits to this initiative, including minimizing the perception that philosophy is inherently Eurocentric by preparing students to re-enter English-speaking classrooms with a newfound awareness of how philosophical concepts—especially concepts from contemporary philosophy—can be translated back into their own colloquial idiom and cultural context. Hence, Bel Arabi Falsafa envisions contributing to the teaching and study of philosophy by encouraging AUC’s philosophy classrooms to be more broadly inclusive and bilingual through the example and leadership of its speakers, most of whom are themselves recent graduates of the Department of Philosophy.

The project aims to bring philosophy to a larger audience as well as strengthen the ties between AUC students and the wider community and its concerns, changing perceptions about the field and demonstrating its universal applicability and relevance. 

According to Robert McIntyre, assistant professor in the Department of Philosophy, postdoctoral teaching fellow and project director, participants at Bel Arabi Falsafa events should walk away from the public conversations and lectures with a greater appreciation for the relevance and usefulness of philosophical modes of discourse to their daily lives. The role of speakers and workshop leaders in this project is to place the tools and methods of rigorous philosophical investigation into the hands of the public and to disseminate scholarly knowledge as widely as possible. 

“There is a need, globally, to enhance the quality of civic discourse through sustained public philosophical activity. We can grow and nurture a respect for a diversity of opinions, the willingness to listen to dissenting points of view and intellectual integrity,” McIntyre said.

Student-Led Regional Model

As Bel Arabi Falsafa expands beyond Egypt, AUC’s model will provide an example to instructors in other universities in the MENA region, showing how to engage students in the active construction of philosophical learning. Even at universities that do not have robust graduate and undergraduate programs in philosophy, the Bel Arabi Falsafa model can still be successfully implemented as a teaching tool, McIntyre explained.

Bel Arabi Falsafa is a largely student-led initiative, and the founding members of its planning committee include many uniquely dedicated former and current graduate students: Yossra Hamouda, Hussein Barrada, Wafaa Wali, Sherif Salem, Wassim Sabry and Khadeega Gafar. As McIntyre noted, the initiative provides an opportunity for AUC graduate students involved as lecturers and speakers -- researching, writing and delivering workshop and lecture content and engaging in constructive debate with members of the general public -- to enrich their own educational experience and contextualize philosophical knowledge in a hands-on way.

Mcintyre believes that philosophical engagement is undeniably an essential feature of critical thinking and that it is a primary goal of post-secondary education to cultivate skillful critical thinking. "When students engage their own community by leading and participating in long-form philosophical debates and workshops, they inevitable sharpen their own critical abilities," he explained. "They will discover
that philosophy, though lampooned as idle wordplay—a parlor game for an elite few—is, in fact, at the very heart of human progress and the human experience."

After years of remote study and intermittent contact, AUC successfully signed an agreement with Harvard University to establish long-term relations and increased cooperation, especially between Harvard and AUC's Department of Egyptology. As part of this new partnership, AUC will be hosting a Harvard PhD student in Spring 2019.

During his career, Egyptologist and Harvard Professor George A. Reisner led the Harvard University-Boston Museum of Fine Arts Expedition and excavated 23 sites in Egypt and Sudan. Today, Harvard carries on Reisner's legacy, strengthening its contact with Egypt through AUC. 

"Its good for Harvard to have this relationship with AUC, as we complement each other wonderfully," explained Salima Ikram, distinguished University professor and Egyptology unit head. "AUC has the on-the-ground research and presence, and Harvard has the professor at the forefront of digital Egyptology,"

Ikram refers to Peter Der Manuelian, Philip J. King professor of Egyptology in the Department of Anthropology and the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at Harvard University. He is also director of the Harvard Semitic Museum and founding director of The Giza Project, an international collaboration based at Harvard, serving as a free database for research materials and archaeological records pertaining to the Pyramids and Egypt's Giza Plateau. This digital teaching tool is an important resource for the field. 

"Bringing back Americans and others to study, teach and do research in Egypt and at AUC is a top priority in our quest for excellence as 'Egypt's global University,'" said President Francis Ricciardone. "Our current students, faculty and staff know the many unique attractions of this great country and our fine University.  I invite all to join in re-acquainting the outside world with Egypt, and with AUC.   And, as AUC and Harvard have just agreed -- what better field to advance this precise purpose than Egyptology?"

Manuelian believes the new agreement will enhance Harvard's Egyptology studies and will be an opportunity for Harvard students to study with AUC's distinguished Egyptology Department and gain field experience.

"We are very excited about this new collaborative exchange agreement between Harvard and AUC, and look forward to increased 'traffic' on this two-way street between Cairo and Cambridge," said Manuelian. "Where else to gain additional experience in Egyptology but in Egypt itself?"

Historically and until today, AUC has served as a popular destination for international students interested in learning Arabic, studying Egypt’s long and diverse history, or just looking for an adventure. One of AUC’s current international students is Jayme Reichart, an American pursuing a master's in Egyptology and currently working as a teaching assistant for Lisa Sabbahy, assistant professor of Egyptology, and Fayza Haikal, professor of Egyptology.

News@AUC met with Reichart to learn what brought him to AUC, his passion for the past, his outreach through social media and his future plans.

Q: What got you interested in pursuing a master's in Egyptology at AUC?

A: I grew up in Buffalo, New York, and I had a fascination with the ancient world from a very young age. My friends and family have often told me that I’m an old soul. It started out with the ancient Mediterranean because I loved to read books on Egyptian, Greek and Roman mythology. My parents and grandparents often took me, with my sisters and cousins, to museums. By far, one of my favorites was the Royal Ontario Museum’s Egyptian collection. I knew by sixth grade that I wanted to come to study at AUC because of its location in Egypt and the opportunity to be taught by prominent Egyptologists. Beginning in middle school, I molded my studies to fit the prerequisites for the master's in Egyptology. 

Q: Where did you get your bachelor's, and what did you major in?

A: I studied at Pace University in New York City’s Lower Manhattan. My major was modern languages and cultures, with a focus in French and Spanish. I was also able to fulfill two minors in art history and classical and medieval studies. I completed the first half of my major in New York and the second half in Paris, as I was granted the opportunity to study abroad at the Université de Paris IV – Sorbonne for one year.  My time in New York and Paris has had a lasting impact on my college experience. It allowed me to make friends from around the world and visit many museums, galleries, parks and monuments. Throughout my undergraduate career, I was also fortunate enough to be hired as a volunteer in the Department of Visitor Services at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. My time there allowed me to interact with museum visitors from around the globe and utilize both my language skills and art history knowledge.

Q: What is your focus within Egyptology?

A: My main interests are Egyptian art, architecture, material culture and agency. My interests began with the art of the Ptolemies, the ruling dynasty of Egypt from the 330s B.C. to the Roman conquest in 30 A.D. In terms of dynastic art, I really love the art of the late-Old Kingdom, Middle Kingdom and the Thutmosides (New Kingdom - 18th Dynasty). I also find the First Intermediate Period, a time when the Egyptian state decentralized, to be of interest, because there are provincial art forms that flourished and act as witnesses to community identity. I think it is important that Egyptian art is not seen as static and unchanging, but nuanced and evolving from the Predynastic to Graeco-Roman Period.

Q: What do you like about AUC?

A: I love to attend the field trips and workshops that are organized by AUC’s Egyptology unit each semester. We have had the opportunity to visit many archaeological sites and take epigraphy lessons. The professors and the faculty in the Department of Sociology, Egyptology and Anthropoloare always very helpful and welcoming. I also love the gardens and architecture of the Tahrir and New Cairo campuses. I care very much about the environment and think the sustainable architecture on New Cairo’s campus is a good reference point for future building projects around the world. It exhibits the way that architecture and nature can be combined to create a learning and working environment that is both eco-friendly and beautiful.   
 

Q: What is your favorite historical site in Egypt?

A: I love temple architecture, especially the cenotaphs (memorial temples) at Abydos built in Sety I and Ramesses II during the New Kingdom. The quality of preservation and color of the relief are phenomenal. The dynamism and naturalism that is achieved by the craftsmen is absolutely breathtaking! Unfortunately, we can only imagine what the temples looked like fully painted and unfragmented in antiquity. They must have been gorgeous, especially when the lamps were burnt at night. I wish I could travel back in time to see all of the monuments and cities of ancient Egypt at their zeniths, especially Memphis, Bubastis, Elephantine, Thebes and Alexandria.
 

Q: Who are your favorite ancient Egyptian gods or goddesses?

A: My favorite ancient Egyptian gods are Khonsu, a moon-god, and Sheshat, the goddess of writing and architecture. My grey cat Khonsusaiah is named after Khonsu. I also have a ginger and white cat Amunherkhepeshef. She is named after the god Amun-Ra and a son of Ramesses II.

Q: What work do you do as a a research assistant for The Theban Mapping Project based at AUC?

A: I am grateful for having the opportunity to work as as a graduate research assistant and linguistic consultant for almost a year at The Theban Mapping Project because I have been able to put my bachelor's and master's studies to good use. I have mostly been helping edit bibliographies and input language data into the The Theban Mapping Project’s Egyptian Archaeological Database. I typically have to research, edit and input lots of different names and bibliographies for each site. It is fascinating to witness the temporal transition of a site’s name from its ancient Egyptian, Greek, Latin and Coptic names to its Arabic, English, French and German names. This project aims to preserve as many of Egypt’s archaeological sites on the web as it can because it is important for current and future scholars and students who wish to study Egypt’s rich history.

Q: Would you encourage other Americans and international students to study abroad at AUC?
 

A: Yes, I would encourage Americans, Erasmus students and other international students interested in Egyptology and the Middle East to study at AUC because there is nowhere better to study these!

Q: Do you think graduate research is something students should pursue?

A: Yes, I think it is great exposure, especially for building familiarity in a profession’s authoritative works. Taking part in research when you are an undergraduate or in a master's program is also super-beneficial, especially if you ever want to pursue a PhD or independent research. Conducting research helps your writing as well. It makes you have to be more succinct and to the point.

Q: What are your goals for the future?

A: Once I have graduated from AUC, I would love to work back in museums again. When I volunteered at The Metropolitan Museum of Art and an art gallery in New York City during my undergraduate studies at Pace University, I loved the inspirational atmosphere, the work environment and engaging with the public. I've had an Egyptian art history blog on Instagram for more than two years now called @egyptologydaily where I write daily blog posts in English, French and Spanish (space permitting), with an aim to expose as many people to not only Egyptian art, but to all art in general. I think the humanities are a vital part of the human experience. In the future, I would also love to apply to Ph.D programs in Egyptian art and archaeology, since it has always been a personal goal of mine to achieve a doctoral degree!
 

Working in diverse fields, from banking and trade to business management and telecommunications, 13 AUC alumnae are named by Forbes Middle East among The Middle East's Most Influential Women of 2018. Focusing on women in executive business and finance positions, as well as women in government departments, this annual list considers the title, scope and impact of the women's work, as well as the revenues of the companies they lead. AUC alumnae continually impress, making important contributions in a variety of sectors and fields within Egypt and abroad. 

Read about these women, their jobs and how they got to where they are today:

#3

LOBNA HELAL '83, '89

Deputy Governor, of Central Bank of Egypt 

Graduating from AUC with a Bachelor of Arts in political science and a Master of Arts in economics, Lobna Helal is the first woman ever appointed deputy governor of the Central Bank of Egypt. 

#16

 ELHAM MAHFOUZ '84

Chief Executive Officer, Commercial Bank of Kuwait 

Graduating from AUC with a Bachelor of Arts in business administration, Elham Mahfouz first worked as a credit manager and deputy chief executive officer at the Commercial Bank of Kuwait before becoming its CEO. 

#20

DALIA EL BAZ '95

Deputy Chair, National Bank of Egypt 

Graduating from AUC with a Bachelor of Arts in business administration, Dalia El Baz has been a member of the National Bank of Egypt's executive committee since 2016. She supervised the deployment of the new core banking systems and the centralization of banking operations. El Baz started her banking career at Barclays Bank Egypt.

#23

SAHAR EL DAMATI '76, '79

Managing Director, Union Capital

After graduating from AUC with a Bachelor of Arts in economics and Master of Arts in business administration, Sahar El Damati worked in a number of organizations in the banking sector such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), commercial International Bank (CIB) and the World Bank. She went on to be head of the Credit and Portfolio Management department at the Social development fund, deputy managing director, chief risk officer and board member of HSBC Bank followed by deputy chairman and board member at Banque Misr. She is currently holding the position of managing director of Union Capital credit funds, an Egypt-based private equity firm focused on small and medium enterprises.

#24

RAWAN AHMED AL SAID '88

Chief Executive Officer, Takaful Oman 
Chairperson, National Bank of Oman

Graduating from AUC with a Bachelor of Arts in economics, Rawan Ahmed has been the chairperson of the National Bank of Oman since 2005. She is also on the board of five other companies. Before her time at the National Bank of Oman, she held the position of non-executive director at ONIC Holding and deputy chief executive officer of the State General Reserve Fund of Oman.

#31

MERVAT ZOHDY SOLTAN '83, '89

Chief Executive Officer, Export Development Bank of Egypt

Graduating from AUC with a Bachelor of Arts in business administration, Mervat Soltan worked as the vice president of Deutsche Bank Cairo, as the director of HSBC and as the general manager at Ahli United Bank Egypt before her time at the Export Development Bank of Egypt. 

#45

RASHA EL-AZHARY '97 

Chief Financial Officer, Vodafone Egypt

Graduating from AUC with a Bachelor of Arts in economics and a Master of Business Administration, Rasha El Azhary previously served as the development director for Vodafone Qatar, leading the launch of fiber and LTE services. She joined Vodafone in 2003 after working as a senior associate at EFG Hermes. 

#46

HANIA MOHAMED SADEK '82, '90

Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director, HSBC Egypt

Graduating from AUC with a Bachelor of Arts in economics and a Master of Arts in economics, Hania Sadek has more than 30 years of banking experience. She has worked as the head of the IT Department, head of the Internal Audit Department and head of Operations and Systems at HSBC. 

#47

MARWA EL AYOUTI '98

Chief Financial Officer, Orange Egypt

Graduating from AUC with a Bachelor of Arts in economics and a Master of Business Administration from the Maastricht School of Management, Marwa El Ayouti got her start working at Vodafone, taking on her position at Orange Egypt this past April.

#66

HALLA SHAKER SAKR '84

Managing Director, Attijariwafa Bank Egypt

Graduating from AUC with a Bachelor of Arts in business administration, Halla Shaker went on to serve as the deputy chief officer of HSBC Egypt before taking on her current position as managing director of Attijariwafa Bank Egypt.

#86

SHAHIRA MAGDI ZEID '83

Co-Founder, Maridive Group
Vice Chair, MZ Investments

Shahira Magdi Zeid graduated from AUC with a Bachelor of Arts in business administration. She co-founded the Maridive Group, the largest company providing off-shore marine and oil support services in Egypt. She also is the Vice Chair for MZ investments, a company that provides financial and investment advice to both insitutional and private investors. 

#89

RANA ADAWI '93

Managing Director, Acumen Asset Management

Graduating from AUC with a Bachelor of Arts in economics, Rana Adawi co-founded Acumen Holding. Bringing more than 22 years of experience in the financial services industry, her previous roles include head of research in Fleming CIIC Securities.  

#96

SOHA EL TURKY '94, '98 

Chief Financial Officer. Banque du Caire

Graduating from AUC with a Bachelor of Arts in business administration and a Master of Business Administration, Soha El Turky has experience spanning corporate and retail banking. Before taking on her position at Banque du Caire, she worked as the chief financial officer for Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank and as the chief financial officer at Citibank.

Last week, the Egyptian Archeological Mission of the Ministry of Antiquities discovered a sandstone sphinx statue from the Ptolemaic era during excavations at the southeastern side of the Kom Ombo temple near Aswan. It was found near the site where two reliefs of King Ptolemy V were recovered two months earlier.

Salima Ikram, distinguished Univeristy professor of Egyptology who was asked to analyze the animal bones at the excavation site, explained the significance of this discovery.  "The team working at Kom Ombo has found some extraordinarily interesting remains, mainly from the Ptolemaic Period," she said. "The sphinx and stelae show us that the exterior area of the temple was an active ritual and cult place, accessible to a large number or people, and that it played an important role in the spiritual, political and economic life of the people of Kom Ombo."

Sphinxes were a symbol of power in ancient Egypt, frequently memorialized through art and sculpture. According to Ikram, for ancient Egyptians, "the sphinx and stelae were visible manifestations of the constant presence and power of the king in their lives, and his close relationship with the gods –– a relationship that should bring prosperity to the land."

Today, discoveries like this give us a small window into the past, allowing us to learn more about ancient Egyptians, their customs and values. 

Eight graduate students from Koc and eight from AUC have attended a summer program in Kavala, Greece, the birthplace of Muhammad Ali Pasha, often referred to as the founder of modern Egypt. AUC students hailed from diverse specializations, including history, literature, Islamic studies and Islamic art and architecture, as well as Middle East studies. 

The AUC students, guided by Distinguished University Professor Nelly Hanna, attended lectures and went on excursions, joined by students and faculty members from Koç University in Turkey. 

The summer program, initiated by the Muhammed Ali Foundation, covered the architecture and history linked to the Muhammad Ali reign in the early 19th century. Muhammad Ali had founded a waqf in Kavala (part of Albania at the time). The waqf recently underwent major repair and is now in use. The summer school took place there.

"Exposure to other cultures is an important part of students' education, beyond what they learn in class," said Nelly Hanna, distinguished University professor in the Department of Arab and Islamic Civilizations. "This cooperation gives students the opportunity to meet and exchange on academic and on general subjects of common interest. For some, it may lead to further studies in the domains covered."

For the AUC graduate students, the trip was a memorable part of their learning experience. “The whole experience was certainly unforgettable." said Maha Shawki, a graduate student in the Department of Arab and Islamic Civilizations. "We had the opportunity to build a dialogue and exchange knowledge with Turkish students from Koç University. The classes were held at MOHA Research Center, the only Egyptian waqf property in Europe built by Mohamed Ali, which exposed us to the tangled history of Kavala, Greece and its relationship with the Ottoman Empire. Through the summer school, we learned how to interpret Mediterranean history through the city's monuments and its various layers. Finally, we were privileged to meet Prince Abbas Hilmi and hear about his views and opinions regarding the history and accomplishment of the royal family."

“Teaching is like a one-person show,” said Jillian Campana, professor of theatre in the Department of Arts, likening the students to an audience, and a lesson plan to a script.

It was moving to Cairo for the first time in 1993 as a fresh college graduate — before returning again in the second half of 2016 — that sparked her interest in teaching. “I was deciding whether to become an actor or not, and I had moved to Los Angeles. But I didn’t feel like a strong woman there; that industry privileged appearance over intellect and creativity,” she said. “It was too hard to give up something I had been doing since I was 5, so I wanted to go as far away as I can. I wanted to immerse myself somewhere completely different. So I came to Egypt, and I immediately fell in love with it. I found out that through teaching theatre, you’re able to teach a lot of other subjects.”

Since then, she embarked on a journey to not only explore, but test the limits of conventional teaching methods by pairing them with her passion for performing arts.

Old Beginnings

Campana began her teaching career by taking teaching English as a foreign language classes at AUC's School of Continuing Education. Upon working with refugees from Eritrea and Ethiopia, she found that she was successful in teaching language skills through drama, realizing that this method of education was key to the learning experience. “It provided authentic context and repetition, reinforced memory and allowed them to be more playful with the language,” she explained.

As a result of her innate passion for drama and theatre and her extensive educational knowledge of performance studies, Campana could not help but acknowledge the performative nature of teaching and how much it resembled being on stage. Her then-newfound interest in pedagogy, the art of teaching, allowed her to take note of the way in which all teachers often find themselves adopting completely different and well-rounded characters that automatically present themselves during class.

“If the content is delivered in a creative way, it will stick in the students’ minds; it will connect them to the subject matter,” Campana affirmed, adding that this type of experiential education at AUC has often proven itself as a great way to engender more interest in the subject. “Students will be more likely to engage with the subject and more likely to use it in their everyday lives.”

Since her return to AUC, has taught an array of theatre classes, including Theatre in the Making, Acting I & II, Documentary Theatre, Applied Theatre and Physical Performance. Campana shed light on the approach of integrating art in teaching by giving an example where students might be presented with material pertaining, for instance, to the history of Greek theatre. This information may be strictly theoretical, she noted, requiring hours and hours of traditional lecturing techniques. This is when she takes a different route so that students are able to connect to it on a more personal level.

"Rather than just talk at them, I can give them a little bit of information and then maybe have them create a poem with that information and perform it as a Greek chorus,” she said. “That way they’re hearing the information; they’re turning it into something that’s meaningful for them in a creative way; and they’re delivering the content to their class as a member of the Greek system.”

While drama and acting typically fall under non-traditional ways of teaching, experiential education is not necessarily exclusive to conventionally hands-on material. Campana explained how she teaches a master’s degree program in the United States for teachers using an approach known as Integrated Arts Education, which utilizes fine and performing arts to teach kindergarten through grade 12 non-art teachers how to use the arts to enhance student engagement in classrooms.

The Art of Teaching Art

The theatre professor recognizes the impact of technological advancement on the existing methods of teaching. “Teaching has become very hard," she reflected. "I mean, there is very little factual information that I can give you that you can’t just go look up. My job is to give [students] the needed information, but also have them do something with it.”

At the beginning of each semester at AUC, Campana has been using introductory forms that students are required to fill out. She emphasized the importance of teachers getting to know their students to deliver the information in ways that are more relevant to them. Campana asks her students about their respective majors, their aspirations in life as well as reasons for taking her class. If she is aware of which student is majoring in which subject, she can work to make connections between the content she is teaching and the content students are learning in their departments of major, inspiring them to effectively use the information upon leaving the classroom.

Dynamic Art Scene

Campana pointed out how the art scene has changed in the past few years in relation to socioeconomic status. “Theatre has tended to be an art form more accessible to people with means,” she explained. “It takes time to go view art, and for people who don’t have time or the money, it’s a discretionary activity that doesn't add to their lives. It’s unfortunate because art teaches us and makes us think and hopefully, activates some change.”

Director of the successful student performance of Lysistrata at the University, Campana pointed out that AUC students are able to learn all about theatre. “AUC is in an incredible position to be a major changing force in the theatre scene in Egypt,” she said. “The students are so talented. But what I’d like to see is AUC alumni work together to form their own theatre company.”

Establishing a company of actors, directors and designers working as a group to produce a number of plays every year requires hard work, according to the theatre professor. “We would have to produce about two to three plays once a year for maybe five years,” Campana explained, adding that achieving consistency in this regard would be the main challenge when it comes to implementing such a concept. However, she does not deem the process an impossible feat and believes that with the alumni’s effort and dedication, the project is very much a doable one.

Campana studied acting at the California Institute of the Arts, performance studies at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts and has earned an interdisciplinary PhD in theatre and the social sciences. Campana’s book, Acting Successful: Using Performance Skills in Everyday Life, is used as a required textbook at several universities and schools.

It is estimated that 17 percent of all Egyptian adults have diabetes, according to the 2017 statistics by the World Health Organization’s Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office.

Ithar Hassaballa, assistant professor in the Department of Psychology, says community-based interventions can step in to  be more sustainable for the health and well-being of individuals with chronic conditions.

“Public health was one of the disciplines that started community psychology,” Hassaballa said. “It focused on prevention of these issues using behavioral methods ,such as behavior change strategies. A lot of public health issues are related to behaviors of communities."

Before joining AUC in Fall 2017, Hassaballa completed her PhD in behavioral psychology, with a focus on community health and development. It was also there that she had worked on her main research-based community intervention, which was for a group of African-American women with Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) in Durham, North Carolina (NC).

The same concept, she believes, can be applied in Egypt – where Type 2 Diabetes is on the rise.

Involving the Community

“Community psychology is multidisciplinary; it’s sociology, public health, economics, politics,” she stated. “But it is also all about including participants as decision makers.” It is not impossible, but unlikely, to sustain any type health and development program over time if community members are not
active participants.

The first advantage is that in a bottom-top approach, participants are able to cater the intervention to their own needs. “For women in Durham, NC, running outside as exercise was not an option because in that community, running outside could be perceived as running away from a crime scene or having committed a crime,” she explained. “The Durham Diabetes Program participants decided they could create mall walking groups – it is a safe environment, and it is comfortable enough to walk indoors in the state’s harsh winters and humid summers. They were able to commit themselves to this and hold each other accountable. Without the participation of the women, who are the community experts, the program would not have been successful.”

Hassaballa perceives this type of community participation as one of Egypt’s strengths. “Social support is huge here. People have no issues asking each other for help,” she noted. “It’s the way people live here. Nearly everyone is family-oriented. It’s key to addressing problems, stress levels and other behavioral issues.”  

With this motivation in mind, the assistant professor is ready to start working this summer. The first step will be a literature review to detect the gaps in terms of T2D, where she would be able to determine what people understand and believe about diabetes and which behaviors related to the condition are prevalent.

Another observation that will be confirmed with data are some of the weaknesses that contribute to the high level of diabetes among Egyptians. “People are, unfortunately, only physically active within their daily routine – so no extra exercise. There are high stress levels, high number of smokers and nutrition issues. What we know is that these environmental and social factors play a larger role than genetics,” she stated. “Starting in the fall, I will create a team of students to begin our research.”

Hassaballa wants to take advantage of being at AUC, where not only can she apply for a research grant, but start with the smaller community of students for surveying, connect offices and universities working in chronic diseases with international organizations and collaborate with departments that have experience in addressing diabetes. But she stressed that all these bodies aren’t as important as the community members. “People need to feel like it’s theirs, like the entire program is their baby,” she said. “We have to provide opportunity. We have to train people on how to make their own decisions and be active participants. If you come in and make a decision on behalf of a community, it will fall apart when you leave or when funding ends. No one will be interested. We want people to carry it on afterward on their own.”

Making a Difference

Hassaballa chose to join AUC because of its community psychology program. She currently teaches two undergraduate courses and one graduate course. She believes that one of AUC’s strengths is students not being afraid to express their opinions.

Students in her Community Psychology course are currently conducting focus groups related to smoking at AUC. “They are currently looking into student views on the [Tobacco-Free Campus Policy] as well as strategies for assuring that the smoking spaces on campus meet the students’ needs,” she stated.

But it’s not just within AUC that community psychology is being put into use; it’s around Cairo as well. The same class is going into Al Shorouq and conducting focus groups with psychosocial workers in the district’s schools. “My students are trying to find the challenges and recommendations for assuring that the roles are fulfilled, but not burdened by the amount of students who need help,” she explained. “They go into the community, implement, carry out interviews. They’re trying to make improvements by including participants and their ideas.”

One of Hassaballa’s major experiences at the University of Kansas was working collaboratively with the World Health Organization in Africa to improve community health. During the Ebola outbreak in 2014, her team effectively used community toolbox – the largest community-building resource online – to evaluate training modules and adapt them to the African context; address educational, economic and social determinants of health; and provide prevention methods. With AUC going through some changes to promote a healthier campus, Hassaballa’s expertise in examining gaps and providing solutions will benefit the community in taking significant steps toward these changes. “I know AUC is moving toward promoting a healthy AUC," she said, "so I want to connect with that and engage as many students and faculty members as possible, whether those in community psychology, athletic facilities, marketing or communication.”

To make a real difference, awareness and empowerment go hand in hand, according to Hassaballa, and we need to hold community members accountable in order to move forward toward prevention, change and development. “We need to look at the surrounding environment as a whole,” she asserted. “It’s related to the behavior of everyone – including politicians, researchers, those who design buildings – not just those who are affected. Understanding these issues is where behavioral psychology comes in and where community psychology can play a role.”

Mostafa Kandil '15, co-founder and CEO of Swvl, a mobile app that organizes convenient transportation routes around Egypt at reasonable prices, was recently featured in Forbes Middle East commenting on the $8 million the company raised in its first round of venture capital financing. This is the largest round of funding for a tech startup in Egypt and one of the largest in the Middle East. 

“Swvl is on its way to becoming a household name in Egypt and one of the biggest job providers in the country," Kandil told News@AUC. "We are very excited about what the future holds for us as we build the first unicorn in Egypt.”

Kandil and his team are alumni of the AUC Venture Lab, where they participated in cycle 7. With entrepreneurial support and the knowledge and guidance of mentors, the team was able to launch the application before graduating from the cycle. Read more about how SWVL got started here.