Four Palestinian leaders from the West Bank are visiting campus today to learn how ASU implements its Service Learning Program.
The program combines courses and internships with community involvement, for ASU students of all levels and majors.
Eman Abboushi, Anan Qadri, Basel Tarawa and Fathi Ahmad Younis requested the visit after finding the program online.
They will view a presentation and talk with Janice Kelly, Director of Academic Community Engagement Services and her colleagues.
The four are affiliated with Citizen Participation in a Democratic Society, an international visitor leadership program.
According to Kelly, the Service Learning Program is of interest to the Palestinian leaders who want to get their citizens involved in the community.
"[They want to know] how higher education institutions can collaborate with their organizations," Kelly said. "When they return to their country at the decision making level, they will remember what they learned here."
The U.S. Department of State's International Visitor Program is coordinating the officials' visit.
Council executive director Sue Reiner said the four are considered to be the future leaders in their chosen fields -- Children's Libraries, Laboratories and Quality Control, Library and Public Relations and Legislative Council -- and must go through a nomination and invitation process to be selected for the society.
"[They are] nominated by their country and invited by [the United States] at the embassy level in their country," she said.
The participants are involved with different ministries in Palestine including Ministries of Culture and Supplies, Palestinian Legislative Council and Salfeet Municipality, which provides utilities such as water and electricity; all hold middle to upper management positions in their government.
The leaders and their interpreters will travel in the United States for three to four weeks and will visit six or seven states.
Kelly said this visit is will bring the opportunity for the Service Learning Program to reach out internationally.
"The opportunity to provide an international audience with a model that could be implemented around the world is a pretty big deal," Kelly said.
Reach the reporter at jenna.eckenrode@asu.edu.
