S.U.S.I Study of the U.S. Institutes
Summer 2013
Pullman, WA – San Francisco, CA – Washington, D.C.
In 2010, in partnership with the U.S. Department of State and the Study of the U.S. Institutes (SUSI), the Edward R. Murrow College of Communication at Washington State University welcomed the first cohort of students from more than six Arab nations. The Arab Journalism Project, as it is referred to, was pursued as part of the communication college’s long-term goal of bringing a better understanding of international affairs to American students – helping them to see media on a global, connected level. For more than a month, students learn in classrooms and in the field about politics, American journalism and new technologies.
SUSI is a New Media and Journalism Program with 20 Middle Eastern students selected by the United States State Department. As one of three core faculty, my five-week intensive course included orienting and teaching students base skills in digital technologies and techniques, providing hands-on experience and demonstrating practical application in the intersection of journalism and marketing in digital platforms and online tools.
Blog Posts
Welcome to SUSI 2013
I am so excited to welcome the 2013 SUSI group to WSU and Murrow College. I, along with David Grewe and Ben Shors, will spend the next 6 weeks teaching the students various tips, techniques and tools in digital media, video editing, reporting and journalism. The students are from Yemen, Oman, Bahrain, Iraq and Palestine…
Week 1 with SUSI
My first week with an Arab nation No – I am not in Oman, Yemen or Iraq. I have not traveled to the villages of Bahrain or Palestine. Instead I have walked beside, stood before and shared tater tots with 19 men and women from each of these Arab nations. In America we are raised…
Week 2: SUSI Celebrations
92 degrees and rising is what welcomed us on day 1 of week 2. Hot hot hot. For most it was nothing – maybe even comfortable – as they are far more accustomed to the heat. This week I introduced the wonders of a couple online tools – Wix for web development and Gliffy for…
Week 3: Gearing up to travel
Week 3 came and went in a flash and just as I caught my breath from the busy weekend, I immediately prepped for week 4’s trip to San Francisco, pushing assignments thru in feature story-writing, online portfolios, team websites and social media tools, personal blog posts and LinkedIn profiles. I never stopped experiencing and learning…
Week 4: SUSI goes to California
5am on week four’s Thursday I traveled to San Francisco with my now-dragging companions – a whirlwind 3-day trip packed with tours of Google and YouTube on the itinerary along with light hiking at John Muir Woods, a bay cruise and shopping downtown. Trip highlights lie with, among others, the raucous bay cruise as we…
Week 5: SUSI goes to D.C.
Every day in DC was packed full of tours, meetings, presentations and events. There was little free time but we stuck together as a group – capturing pictures, sharing laughter, giving hugs and reconnecting through disconnect. Like SF, I experienced DC in an entirely new way- mastering the metro rail, chaperoning Kurdy to the business…
Week 6: Saying good-bye to SUSI
In closing – to my Arab friends, I say… …you are beautiful, intelligent, important you will find the success you allow yourself to achieve your family loves you; wants nothing less than for you to be happy you will make mistakes, you will learn, you will grow you will never give up; you are too…