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AUT Honors School Principal |
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Byblos Official High School principal Joseph
Mikhael was honored by AUT during a ceremony
held at Crystal Room on December 4. The school
was AUT's top feeder school for fall 2008. Mr
Mikhael previous students - now AUT students-
attended the ceremony that included words by
Director of External Relations Marcel Hinain,
the sudents' representative and the guest
himslef. The Chair of the Board of Trustees
Ghada Hinain then presented Mikhael with an
award for the occasion.
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Berbara Fun on Campus |
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On Dec. 4, one of the three events happening on
main campus was a Berbara (the traditional
Lebanese Halloween) show/fundraiser organized by
the English department in coordination with the
Student Affairs Office. This fun-filled event
involved a beat box, a fire and bottle flaring
show plus a masquerade. To make sure students
would do their best in costume design, a jury
was formed, consisting of faculty and staff
members to choose the best three costumes.
The third prize was a 4 GB USB, the second prize
was a dinner for two at Flobby diner, and the
first prize was 2 speakers with a remote
control. Am7ieh (the traditional wheat and
raisin concoction) was also offered to everyone
that happened to be on campus.
Everybody—students, instructors, staff, and
guests—had a wonderful time and asked for
another successful event. Wait for some more
fun on campus!
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The Influence of Media on Politics |
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AUT External Relations invited the chairman of
the board of Radio Free Lebanon and its news
director, Antoine Mrad to lecture on the
influence of the media on the political life in
Lebanon. The special lecture held on December 4,
2008 focused on cases where the media were
instrumental in effecting political decisions
and a debate took place with the students of
communication arts. Mr Mrad is a seasoned
journalist who has worked at Radio Free Lebanon
for 25 years also contributing political
analyses to major dailies in Lebanon and the
Arab world
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Australian Ambassador at AUT on Human Rights December 1 |
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Human Rights and the freedom of the press were
the highlights of the debate organized at AUT by
the External Relations department on December 1,
2008 on main campus. The Australian ambassador,
Mrs Lyndall Sachs and the managing director of
L'Orient-Le-Jout, Mr Michel Touma responded to
the invitation addressed by AUT to present and
debate their views with AUT students.
The director of External Relations at AUT Marcel
Hinain started by presenting a documentary on
the Iraki refugees in Lebanon and reminded the
audience that the sufferings of Iraki refugees
are similar to those endured by the Lebanese
population during the civil war and went on to
ask Mr Touma what prevents the Lebanese media to
present in all transparency the violations of
human rights in Lebanon. Mr Touma exposed facts
on the restrictions imposed on the local media
when it comes to covering such abuses and said
lack of accountability of Lebanese politicians
is an obstacle to true freedom of the press in
addition to absence of reliable data. Touma
emphasized that true democracies are about
authorities effecting changes requested by the
society and expressed in the media.
Ambassador Sachs informed the audience of the
principles of Australian human rights and
enumerated the many areas where Australia has
led on this level like the fact that the first
country to grant voting rights to women was
Australia. She presented the instruments of
application of human rights in the world and
insisted that change is never impossible in any
society that works hard towards change
especially in terms of granting rights to its
citizens.
Students had the chance to debate the issues
presented and asked about the Palestinian
refugees rights and the implications on a
political level. Other questions were asked
about the detention delays of refugees seeking
asylum in Australia, the position of the
Australian government towards the Iraki current
situation, the gay community rights in
Australian and other topics.
This debate was organized by AUT to motivate
students to join in a campus-wide effort towards
Iraki refugees that would be announced by the
administration soon
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AUT Hosts Caritas on Migrant Workers Rights |
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In preparation for
the December 1 debate with Australian Ambassador
in Lebanon around human rights, AUT’s External
Relations department invited Caritas Migrant
Center representatives to speak about the
violations of the rights of domestic migrant
workers in Lebanon. The presentation included a
documentary and an active participation of the
audience through instant opinion polling.
Students of Human Rights HUM 318 and English
Communication Skills II attended the
presentation in the company of instructors Roger
Ashkar and June Antoun.
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Brazilian Film Festival at AUT |
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The Brazilian Film
Festival organized by AUT with the support of
the Brazilian Embassy in Lebanon will allow
viewers to discover the Brazilian movie scene
through five carefully selected films. The
launch of the Festival takes place Tuesday
November 25 at 6 pm at the AUT Auditorium with
“Central do Brasil”. Entrance is free and the
invitation is open for all films shown. The
other films are:
Filhios de
Francisco (suspense) November 28 at 6 pm
Bossa Nova (music and dance): December 2 at 6 pm
Carandiru (drama): December 5 at 6 pm
Casamento de Louise (social comedy): December 9
at 6 pm
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Italian Ambassador at AUT to Announce Agreement with IED Milan |
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Italian Ambassador
Mr Gabriele Checchia and the Director the
Italian Cultural Institute, Mr Ennio Troili were
the hosts of AUT on Thursday November 13 during
the ceremony organized to announce the agreement
made between AUT and Instituto Europeo do Design
in Milan.
The ceremony
started with the national anthems of Lebanon and
Italy followed by a word by AUT’s Chair of the
Board of Trustees, Ghada Hinain who stressed the
policy of openness to other cultures followed by
AUT. She said universities in Lebanon cannot
afford not to be open to different academic
cultures when they prepare graduates for a
globalized world. She pointed to the fact that
AUT has made an agreement with the leading
university in Europe in the field of design, IED,
so it offers students of AUT the best options.
“Fashion Design is now offered as a major at AUT
and we hope our initiative with IED will help
make it a great success”, she added. Hinain
encouraged students to take advantage of this
opportunity and faculty to engage ion joint
research with their counterparts at IED.
Her word was
followed by that of the Director of External
Relations, Marcel Hinain who gave details on the
agreement and the practical procedures for
implementation. His visual presentation included
works designed by students of IED and
information about IED (locations, majors, ties
with the industry…) and pointed to the fact that
AUT will also receive students from IED willing
to benefit from the Mid-east experience AUT can
offer and from its leadership in design among
the universities of Lebanon.
HE Mr Checchia was
last to speak to the audience. He congratulated
AUT for this initiative, noting the efforts made
by his staff to promote academic and cultural
ties between Lebanon and Italy. Speaking of the
leadership of IED in European design, he
reminded the audience that fashion and jewelry
design started as far back as the Etruscan
period in Italy and that nowadays Italian
products especially luxury ad fashion items are
found everywhere, Beirut not being the
exception.
A recognition
plaque was offered to Ambassador Checchia by
AUT’s Chair of the Board of Trustees and a
cocktail gathered the guests that included Jbeil
governor, Mr Habib Kairouz, faculty and staff of
AUT, directors of secondary schools, fashion
designers, and cultural figures of the area.
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The Influence of Media on the Italian Society |
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Students of media
at AUT had the opportunity to debate the
influence of media on the Italian society with
Lorenzo Trombetta, correspondent of the ANSA
news agency and scholar on Mid-Eastern history.
Mr Trombetta was the guest of Media and Society
course instructor, Roger Achkar. The freedom of
the press and the social impact of media on the
society in Italy were exposed then compared with
the Lebanon environment.
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Mexican day at AUT |
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It was Mexican
fiesta time on campus on November 11 with plenty
of music and food distributed to all. Tapas,
burritos, nachos, fajitas were for grabs and
Mexican music blared through the speakers as
poncho-clad students rode electric bulls and
lost their sombreros. The fiesta was an
initiative by the Campus Life Committee.
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The World Financial Crisis and its Repercussions on Lebanon |
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Business students
had the opportunity to interact with Central
Bank Director of Financial Operations, Dr
Youssef Al Khalil around the current financial
crisis that is shaking the world. Dr Khalil
pointed to the factors that were the same in the
1929 crisis and those that are notably
different. He also spoke on the repercussions on
the Arab world in general and on Lebanon in
particular, stressing that the crisis in Lebanon
would be economic but not financial. Remittances
of expatriates may be affected if the countries
of residence of expatriates are severely hit,
but the canvassing factor, he said, is the
nature of Lebanon’s economy which is quite
diverse.
Dr Al Khalil,
educated in Lebanon, the US and France, was
invited by the Dean of the Faculty of Business,
Dr Alfred Riachi.
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Calendar of Events and Lectures Fall 2008 |
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The Office of External Relations in
collaboration with the faculties of AUT has
prepared a series of events for the fall
semester 2008. The list below, which will be
updated as needed, details the different
activities and all the AUT community is invited
to attend:
Friday, November 7: “The Current World Financial
Crisis and its Repercussions “, special lecture
by Central Bank Financial Operations Director Dr
Yousef Al Khalil (at the invitation of the Dean
of the faculty of Business) 1:30 pm,
Auditorium, Halat Main Campus
Thursday, November 13: HE the Ambassador of
Italy Mr Gabriele Checchia, will announce the
cooperation agreement between AUT and Instituto
Europeo di Design (IED) in the presence of
guests and students. 3 pm, Auditorium,
Halat Main Campus
Thursday, November 20: Brazilian day at AUT.
Live Samba and Amazonian ethnic dance and music
in cooperation with the Brazilian Embassy.
Starting 12:30 pm in the Green Area,
Halat Main Campus
Monday, November 24: “Caritas Migrant Center:
caring for foreign labor rights”, by Ms Hosn
Sayah. 11:30 am Auditorium
Tuesday, November 25: Launching of the Brazilian
Film Festival organized at AUT by the Brazilian
Embassy, by Cultural Attache Roberto Medeiros in
the presence of students and guests. 6 pm,
Auditorium, Halat Main Campus
Monday, December 1: “The Australian Experience
in Human Rights”, by HE The Ambassador of
Australia Mrs Lyndall Sachs. “Human Rights in
the Lebanese Media: Restrictions and
Constraints”, by Managing director of
Orient-Le-Jour Michel Touma (followed by a
debate with AUT students) 11:30 am
Auditorium, Halat Main Campus
Thursday, December 4: “The influence of media on
Lebanese politics”, by Antoine Mrad, general
director of Radio Free Lebanon, 11:30 am AG 116
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Fares Foundation Donation to AUT |
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AUT
and Fares Foundation have signed a protocol
of collaboration on Friday October 24 at 3
pm on campus that allows for the completion
of the Halat campus Auditorium with funds
offered by the Foundation. The ceremony was
attended by AUT Trustees and Council Members
as well as by the representative of Maronite
Patriarch Sfeir, MP Gen Shamel Mozaya
representing Gen Michel Aoun, the digovernor
of the Jbeil district Habib Kairouz and
guests from the Jbeil and Kesrwan area in
addition to AUT faculty, staff and students.
Work is expected to start early November and
end by February 28, 2009. The Auditorium
will be dedicated to Mr. Issam Fares.
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AUT in MBC2 Movie Competition |
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AUT has
been selected among all universities in
Lebanon to take part in Arab TV chain MBC2
Two Minute Movie competition which is held
in collaboration with SAE, the leading
university in film making and animation,
Sony, Cadillac and Apple.
For this, AUT hosted SAE Corporate Training
director Mr Giorgio Ungania on October 16 as
he exposed the details of this competition
to AUT students. He detailed the competition
steps and encouraged students to go into
phase 1 which consists in creating original
storyboards for a movie that would last
between one and two minutes in genres
including drama, action and comedy.
Storyboards must be submitted to the Faculty
of Arts before October 31 so AUT can send
them to Dubai in time. Ungania will be back
in November after the best 3 storyboards
submitted by AUT students have been
selected. The lucky 3 teams will be provided
video cameras and assisted in making their
movie. The shoot location cannot be farther
than 3 kms from campus and 3 days are
available for students to present the final
edition of their movies. This will also take
place in each of the participating 30
colleges and universities in Jordan, KSA,
Egypt, UAE, Kuwait and then the best 3
movies will be selected. Winners get prizes
offered by sponsors Apple, Cadillac, Sony,
and SAE and their movies will be shown on
MBC2 and will enter the Abu Dhabi Film
Festival 2009. Mr Ungania then answered
questions and informed his audience that
storyboard platforms will be emailed to AUT
and available with the Faculty of Arts for
pick up.
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AUT-Brazilian Embassy Cooperation |
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AUT and the Brazilian Embassy in Beirut
represented by its Cultural Attache Roberto
Medeiros have put up a plan for the
development of cultural and academic
relations that would kick start with a
Brazilian Film Festival early November and
would develop with establishing relations
with universities in Brazil for joint
research and exchange and also the
establishment of a permanent Portuguese
language center at AUT funded jointly by the
government of Brazil and AUT.
Mr Medeiros who visited AUT on October 8 met
with members of the University Council and
had a tour of the campus.
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Donation to Financial Aid Fund |
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AUT’s financial aid fund was the recipient of a
donation by Lebanese American businessman Joseph
Elias, who showed the will to help students in
dire needs for assistance in paying their fees.
The director of External Relations, Marcel
Hinain and the Director of Admissions, Rita
Abed, thanked Mr Elias for his generosity and
expressed the hope that his gesture will be
emulated by many others for the benefits of
students.
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AUT Teams Up with Milan’ IED for Studies in Design |
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AUT and Instituto Europeo di Design, IED,
based in Milan have signed a cooperation
agreement that offers students of both
universities the possibility of exchange and
internships in their respective countries in
addition to offering scholarships for those
who wish to spend a semester or two in the
corresponding university. IED, with branches
in Spain and Brazil, is recognized as being
among the top universities in design
including fashion, car, product, interior
and graphic design and is connected to the
best firms in Italy in the areas of fashion,
jewelry, cars and luxury products.
The agreement is not limited to studies in
design but extends to marketing and to PR in
the luxury products industry. AUT’s External
Relations department had started
negotiations with IED in November 2007 in
the scope of its policy that favors cultural
and academic interaction with foreign
universities that widen the academic choices
of AUT students. External Relations director
Marcel Hinain had paid a visit to IED in
Milan in November 2007 and the university
has endorsed negotiations with IED that have
led to the agreement that also enjoys the
full support of the Italian Embassy in
Beirut.
AUT students who wish to obtain more
information are invited to contact the Dean
of the Faculty of Arts
Maurice Maalouf or the Director of
External Relations,
Marcel Hinain
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Registration for Fall 08 |
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Registration for Fall 2008 continues at AUT.
New students are urged to submit all
admission documents and take placement exams
before October 6. Returning students should
see their advisors before October 6 as well.
For calendar information click
here
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Poland’s Minister of
Culture at AUT |
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AUT welcomed Poland’s Minister of
Culture Roman Przewozniak on Friday
August 29 at 3 pm where he will
delivered certificates to AUT students
and students of the Byblos, Kesrwan and
Tripoli areas, who took the course
“European Civilization and Polish
Language” (offered by the Embassy of
Poland in Beirut with Besalam
association). The Minister was
accompanied by the Polish Consul Mr
Swavomir Kraytchinski and the
Vice-Director of Consular Affairs in the
Polish Ministry of Interior, Voichek
Taytchinski.
In front of an audience made up of the
heads of municipal councils of Jbeil,
Amshit, Halat and Fidar, school
principals, heads of cultural
organizations and other community guests
and the students, the opening word was
given by AUT’s Director of External
Relations, marcel hinain who welcome the
guests and indicated that AUT had
immediately responded to the request of
Besalam association and the Polish
embassy and opened its campus to people
of the area who wanted to take the
course. He reminded the audience of
AUT’s commitment to serve the
educational needs of the people of the
Byblos area and open horizons to them
through the exchange programs AUT
offers.
In their turn, the members of Besalam
addressed the audience after showing a
short documentary about Poland and
singing with the students a popular
Polish song and expressed admiration for
the enthusiasm shown by students during
the course.
Next, AUT’s President of the Board of
Trustees, Ghada Hinain pointed to the
common features that Poland and Lebanon
share in terms of regional role,
leadership in education in their
respective regions and their strive for
freedom. She also said this initiative
lies in the scope of AUT’s policy to
promote cultural interaction and
exchange and congratulated students on
showing interest about Europe which
Lebanon has multiple ties with and about
Polish language.
Last was the Polish Minister of Culture,
Roman Przewozniak, who pointed to the
singularity of Poland, land of tolerance
and openness. He expressed hope that
Lebanon will reach stability in peace
thorugh tolerance and dialogue and
promised such initiatives will multiply
so ties with Lebanon are reinforced.
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MBA Students Presentations |
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The Entrepreneurship & Venture
Initiation students of AUT Graduate Studies
Program held a session at the AUT
Auditorium- Halat on August 13, 2008 to
present nine business plans in front of a
jury composed of professionals in various
fields. The class teams used different tools
to present their companies and their
business plans in front of the jury and an
audience made up of other graduate students
and AUT faculty and staff.
The Jury will evaluate and grade the
Business Plans. It was composed of:
Keynote speaker: Dr. Jihad Samaha: Former
Dean of the Faculty of Engineering – NDU,
C.O.O. Hourié contracting.
Dr. Youssef Zgheib – Chairman of the Jury:
Former Chairman of the Hotel Management
Department – NDU, International Trainer on
the SCOTWORK Negotiation system.
Lawyer
George Daher: Vice-president of
Administration & Human Resources, The CAT
Group - International contracting.
Mr. Khaled Hariri: International businessman
+ C.O.O. – Kocache International.
Mr. Abdessalam Hakawati – C.F.O. Kocache
International.
Dr. Fady Lama: Former professor of
engineering at AUB, Member of the National
Council for Scientific Research, co-founder
+ CEO of Y-L Engineering.
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