UNC Asheville Prepares Students for a Global Community;
Changing World Addressed in a Variety of Courses and Special Events

Linda Cornett, director of UNC Asheville's International Studies Program, has always believed that international education is important. But the ongoing war in Afghanistan and Iraq, the recent U.S. presidential election, and the death of Yasser Arafat have caused others to realize its importance, too.

“After September 11, a much broader cross section of the American public became aware of how important it is for students to understand the rest of the world. The U.S. has always affected the rest of the world much more than most people understood. But the events of that day and the ensuing war made many students realize how much the rest of the world affects us, too,” said Cornett. “The events of September 11 confirmed and reinforced UNC Asheville’s commitment to promoting international understanding as a vital component of our efforts to prepare students for the changing global community.”

Public opinion surveys from the changing global community reveal widespread and deepening antipathy toward the United States, especially in Muslim countries. In a poll conducted by New York Times correspondents in Africa, Europe and Southeast Asia last year, respondents were clear that the war in Iraq has had a negative impact on public opinion, which has moved generally from post-9/11 sympathy to post-Iraq invasion antipathy. Zogby International, a prestigious 20-year-old public opinion tracking company based in New York, confirmed those findings this summer. The Zogby poll showed significant negative attitudes towards the United States as expressed by 78% of Jordanians, 88% of Moroccans, 94% of Saudis and 98% of Egyptians.

To help students understand and meet this changing global society, UNC Asheville’s curriculum and special events are evolving. The University has embraced the UNC Board of Governor's strategic initiative to "promote an international perspective throughout the University community to prepare citizens to become leaders in a multi-ethnic and global society."  The initiative calls for providing opportunities for students to have direct contact with other cultures in travel, internships, study abroad, and student exchange programs; enrolling qualified students from other countries; offering courses of study with international content; maintaining vigorous foreign language programs; intercultural special events; and working collaboratively with non-profit organizations.

This fall, UNC Asheville’s nationally recognized Humanities sequence offered a special faculty-student forum on medieval Islamic concepts of religion, science, politics and women. Peg Downes, UNC Asheville professor of literature and language, was one of the faculty facilitators. "It was an ideal seminar," said Downes. "The students were talking together and relating their own lives to medieval Islamic philosophical texts. It was pretty amazing.”

In the last session, students read passages from the Koran and then discussed what the text says about the need for women to be modest in the eyes of God. “Passages from a seventh-century translation of the Koran spurred discussion about how contemporary American women are supposed to dress, look and speak,” said Downes.

In addition, several Islamic scholars have visited campus in recent months to speak in classes and to meet with faculty. Together, guest speakers, faculty and students have examined such issues as Christian-Muslim relations, genocide in Darfur and the role of Islamic women. The faculty development opportunities during these visits have been vital in helping UNC Asheville professors better prepare for teaching Islam in the classroom. “Because most of us have had few interactions with people from Muslim nations, it was wonderful to be able to ask questions and have them answered by a Muslim,” said Downes. “Conversing with these Islamic scholars helped filled in some of the gray areas of our knowledge on Islam and better prepared us to more completely answer the questions students may ask in our classes.”

Junior political science major Sarah Mine says that she has appreciated learning more about Islam in class. She discovered how Christianity evolved from Judaism, and how Islam evolved from Christianity. "I have found my brief study of Islam fascinating," she said. "Learning how similar Islam is to Christianity has really shaped my thinking on the two religions and makes Islam seem far less foreign."

Mine also points out that, "I think that learning about Islam is very, very important for students, especially at a time when our country is at war with a Muslim nation. Just a couple of weeks ago, a student in one of my classes accused Islam of being ‘a religion which hates other religions,’ an inaccuracy which disturbed me greatly. Such inaccuracies are part of what is fueling the conflict and if Americans learned more about Islam, it might help increase our popularity in Muslim nations and eventually ease the situation.”

Students like Mine have been pushing for more global learning opportunities. "Students are tremendously interested in world affairs and are asking for more international programs, special events and curriculum,” said Cornett.

Mine and several other students formed the World Affairs Club this fall, whose goal is to spread awareness of international issues on campus. The group attends World Affairs Council of Western North Carolina lectures and recruits other students to come along. Next semester, the group hopes to set up displays on campus that relate information about current world issues. Topics under discussion include contemporary slavery in Brazil and the controversial Wal-Mart store set to open in Teotihuacan, a major archeological site outside Mexico City.

The World Affairs Club also helped Cornett pull together the weeklong series of events for International Education Week. Founded by the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Department of Education, the fifth annual International Education Week will be observed worldwide November 15-19. UNC Asheville will join the celebration by hosting a variety of programs designed to highlight the benefits of international education and exchange and to strengthen the bridges of international understanding.

Despite such widespread efforts as International Education Week, the challenge to help students better understand the religious and cultural values of others -- especially those with whom they have had few shared experiences -- is a growing concern for colleges. The University's Asheville Institute on Liberal Learning will host a national conference on "Teaching Islam in the Undergraduate Curriculum" next June to help address this need. The two-and-a-half day conference will feature paper presentations, panel discussions and three distinguished Islamic scholars as plenary speakers.

"Already the response from colleagues at other institutions has been very good," said Downes, one of the conference organizers. "Professors know that the foundation of the liberal arts is critical thinking and a willingness to examine any issues, including inquiry beyond our national borders."

Media Contacts:

• Merianne Epstein, UNC Asheville Public Information Director, 828/251-6676
• Jill Yarnall, UNCA Public Information Assistant Director, 828/251-6526