UNC Asheville Students Travel to the Middle East;
Eight to Attend International Conference on "Women as Global Leaders"

It is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for eight young North Carolina women. On Saturday, March 12, these UNC Asheville students will board a flight to the Middle East to attend the first international “Women as Global Leaders: Educating the Next Generation” conference from March 14-16 at Zayed University in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Some 1,000 female college students, educators and leadership professionals from 36 countries around the world are expected to attend.

The conference will focus on new ideas in leadership, with particular attention to cross-cultural perspectives and the empowerment of women. Speakers include Gro Harlem Brundtland, former prime minister of Norway and former director-general of the World Health Organization; Tipper Gore, mental health policy advisor to President Bill Clinton; and Kim Campbell, former prime minister of Canada.

“At a liberal arts college, such as UNC Asheville, a true education requires challenging conversations where students can explore problems and find creative answers. This conference will provide the opportunity for UNC Asheville students to hold those conversations with women from around the world and to realize that they truly are global citizens,” said Margaret Downes, a UNC Asheville Literature and Language professor, who visited Zayed University last year to explore opportunities there for UNC Asheville students. “It will broaden their sense of what is possible and will begin to teach them how to become cooperative leaders in their own families, communities, nation and world.”

Sophomore Katie Rozycki, 19, of Charlotte, has been looking forward to the experience with great anticipation all semester. “I am so excited to see first-hand a way of life that is completely different than any I’ve ever experienced,” she said. “I also know that opportunities like this don’t come along very often for someone my age. Being given the chance to attend this conference and to begin planning my undergraduate research project on women journalists in war-torn countries is just amazing.”

When the UNC Asheville students return, they will build upon their experience in a specially designed course, give a variety of campus and community presentations, and formulate plans for individual undergraduate research projects with an eye toward participating in the 2006 National Conference on Undergraduate Research that will be held at UNC Asheville.

“I think that our students will gain an appreciation for the different experiences of women around the world and the particular challenges and opportunities that they face as leaders,” said Linda Cornett, UNC Asheville International Studies Program director and one of three professors who will attend the conference with the students. “Our students will come back with a new curiosity for other people, ideas and perspectives which will carry over into their academic and personal development in ways we can’t even imagine. You cannot overestimate the value of traveling abroad as a way to promote one of UNC Asheville’s central educational missions: to help students think critically and creatively in an increasingly global community.”

Senior Teaching Fellow Rhiannon O’Conner, 22, of Greensboro, is counting on translating her experiences into teaching expertise. “When I found out that I was going to be able to go on this trip, I was really excited. I plan to be a U.S. history teacher. School children have a tendency to think that the Middle East is all bad. Having the opportunity to experience a part of the Middle East first-hand, I will be able to tell them about my travels and help break down negative stereotypes in the classroom.”

The cross-cultural experience is at the heart of the conference, said Tom Cochran, who is deputy provost at Zayed University, a Western-style college for 2,400 women from the United Arab Emirates.

“We believe this conference is an important opportunity to advance a better understanding of the Middle East to students from the West, and for Zayed students to better understand life in the West and other parts of the world,” Cochran said.

Media Contact:

• Merianne Epstein, UNC Asheville Public Information Director, 828/251-6676