The President of Yarmouk University, Professor Islam Massad, has decided to name Dr. Nawzat Abu Al-Asal, the Director of the Department of Public Relations and Media, as the university's offical spokesperson.
Simultaneously, he decided to allow holding and arranging activities and events on campus, acknowledging the significance of holding activities while complying with all public safety regulations.
The President of Yarmouk University, Professor Islam Massad, discussed with the first official in the Protection Department of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Daniela Floridia, possible ways of cooperation between Yarmouk represented by the Refugees, Displaced Persons and Forced Migration Studies Center and the UNHCR in areas of common interest. The meeting was attended by the Vice President for Administrative Affairs, Professor Riyad al-Momani, the Director of the Center for Refugees, Displaced Persons and Forced Migration Studies Center, Dr. Reem al-Kharouf, and Mr. Tariq Al-Nasser, Miss. Zina Jadaan, and Mr. Kamal Al-Mashreqi from the center.
At the beginning of the meeting, Massad stressed that the refugee crisis is not new to Jordan, as the Kingdom has always welcomed several waves of refugees, which provided Jordanians with the extensive experience of how to deal with asylum issues, pointing out that the establishment of the Refugees and Displaced Persons and Forced Migration Studies Center in Yarmouk was to achieve several goals like conducting research and studies related to issues of asylum and displacement and developing awareness of asylum and displacement issues among university students and community members. Massad also stressed the importance of cooperation with the UNHCR to establish a network with organizations and institutions working in the field of asylum.
In return, Floridia affirmed the Commissioner's constant endeavor to cooperate with institutions and organizations concerned with issues of asylum and displacement, which positively influences the refugees residing in the territory of the host country at the economic, educational and health levels. She further stressed the importance of institutional, organized, and sustainable work in terms of refugees’ education, health and economics. She then acknowledged that the Refugees, Displaced Persons and Forced Migration Studies Center in Yarmouk University is one of the most distinguished units that emphasize asylum issues and that it is well-known member of the Civil Society Network for Conflicts.
The Dean of the Faculty of Tourism and Hotels, Dr. Atef Al-Sheyab, discussed with the Dean of the Faculty of Management and Rural Tourism at the Romanian University of Banat, Dr. Brad Iwan, ways to enhance cooperation between the two universities. During their zoom meeting, both deans discussed the possibility of signing a scientific-academic cooperation agreement between the two universities, emphasizing the significance of exchanging faculty members, students, and researchers as well as establishing joint academic programs for master and doctoral degrees.
Interestingly, the head of the Department of Tourism and Travel, Dr. Bashar Maayah, participated in the meeting, as he reviewed certain information about the Faculty’s programs, study plans, and the possibility of opening new joint programs in cooperation with the University of Banat.
The President of the University, Professor Islam Massad, recently declared Dr. Nawzat Abu al-Asal as the Director of Public Relations and Media Department at the university, starting on Sunday, 2/1/2022. Interestingly, Abul-Asal is a faculty member in the Department of Public Relations and Advertising in the Faculty of Mass Communication at Yarmouk University since 2015. She holds a PhD degree in media and communication science, specializing in Digital Public Relations from Manouba Press and Information Sciences Institute in Tunisia, a Master’s degree in Media from Yarmouk University, and a Bachelor Degree in Journalism and Media, majoring in Public Relations and Advertising, from Yarmouk University, with a minor in English Language and Literature. Moreover, Abul-Asal has been the Director of Public Relations and Media at the Hospital of the University of Jordan for ten years. She has also worked in the Department of Cultural and Public Relations at the Hashemite University for six years and served as a press editor in a number of newspapers and electronic journals.
The President of Yarmouk University, Professor Islam Massad, patronized the activities of the introductory day of the second phase of the Erasmus Plus program (2021-2027) for the northern region, which was organized by the Erasmus Plus National Office in cooperation with the Department of International Relations and Projects at the university in the presence of the head of the Higher Education Accreditation Commission, Dr. Dhafer Al-Sarayrah, and the former Minister of Health, Dr. Mahmoud Al-Sheyab.
during his opening speech, Massad said that Yarmouk University has always been viewing the international dimension of education as a priority in terms of attracting distinguished faculty members and students from all over the world and cooperating with the most prestigious international academic institutions. He then added that Yarmouk University’s strategic plan for the years 2021 to 2025 seeks to enhance such an international vision by engaging with several international institutions in various cooperative activities concerning the global changes and challenges, such as sustainable development, climate change, and digital transformation. For this purpose, as Massad explained, the university decided to establish and develop an administrative department concerned with international relations and projects and another unit concerned with the quality of education in terms of academic programs and teaching methods.
In return, the Director of the Erasmus Plus National Office, Dr. Ahmed Abu al-Haijaa, reviewed the significance of the program in its first phase (2014-2020) and the value of the European-Jordanian cooperation in the field of higher education. He explained that the program is to enable Jordanian educational institutions to cooperate with their counterpart institutions in 30 European countries through more than 5,700 exchange grants made available to staff and students. He then acknowledged the achievements made by the Erasmus Plus National Office during the first phase, which contributed to the quality of education through the exchange of experiences between Jordanian universities and European partners in terms of the recommendations of the Higher Education Accreditation and Quality Assurance Commission. Furthermore, Abu al-Haijaa pointed out that the Erasmus Plus program 2021-2027 will include new opportunities for the various institutes concerned with educating and training the Jordanian youth.
Noteworthy is that the activities of the induction day included two work sessions: the first was chaired by Dr. Mahmoud al-Shayyab, where Dr. Ahmed Abu Al-Haijaa talked about cooperation between organizations and institutions as well as capacity-building in the field of higher education, while Dr. Ammar al-Maaytah talked about educational exchange programs for students, education and training opportunities for youth, and exchange programs for students and faculty members in the field of vocational education and training. These talks as well as other activities were attended by the Vice President of the University, Professor Muwaffaq Omoush, and a number of deans of faculties, faculty members, researchers, and interested individuals from various Jordanian ministries, authorities, and universities.
The President of Yarmouk University, Professor Islam Massad, met with the attaché of cultural, scientific and university cooperation at the French Embassy in Amman, Annabelle Ostyn, discussing ways to enhance academic cooperation between Yarmouk University and the French Embassy as well as various French educational institutions.
Massad pointed to the history of the academic and cultural cooperation relations between Yarmouk University and the French Embassy in Amman and several prestigious French universities, stressing the university's keenness to enhance such cooperation. He then encouraged the French embassy to consider sending more professors of the French language to teach in the Department of Modern Languages in the Faculty of Arts. Massad also called on the French embassy to work on finding opportunities of cooperation between Yarmouk and French universities concerning the Postgraduate programs in medical law, ethics, and Middle Eastern studies.
For her part, Ostyn praised the depth of relations linking Yarmouk with the French Embassy and universities, especially in the field of teaching the French language, archeology, and cultural history. She pointed to the possibility of creating opportunities of exchanging students and faculty members between Yarmouk and various French universities as well as conducting some joint scientific projects in cooperation between Yarmouk, French universities, and universities of the European Union.
This meeting was attended by the Vice President of the University, Professor Riyad Momani, Professor Muwaffaq Omoush, the Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Professor Mousa Al-Rababah, the Dean of the Hijjawi Faculty of Technological Engineering and the Director of the Department of International Relations and Projects, Professor Muwaffaq Otoom, and Dr. Batool Muhaisen from the Department of Modern Languages, and the Director of Public Relations and Media, Mr. Mukhles Ebbeni.
The President of Yarmouk University, Professor Islam Massad, met with a delegation from the American Embassy in Amman, which included the Deputy Cultural Attaché, Benjamin Rudy, and the Academic Cooperation Adviser, Irene Petro, to discuss ways to enhance academic and research cooperation between Yarmouk and various American universities. Massad stressed that Yarmouk does have a diverse educational environment, which includes medical, scientific, literary, and humanitarian disciplines, and is therefore seeking to consolidate its academic and research cooperation with various prestigious international universities. He then pointed out the importance of strengthening cooperation between Yarmouk and American universities by increasing students exchange programs that provide an opportunity for Jordanian students to spend a semester in American universities, which should contribute to students’ scientific and cultural identity.
In return, the delegation stressed the embassy’s endeavor to build bridges of cooperation between various American universities and Yarmouk University through the exchange programs of students and faculty members, emphasizing the need to provide a number of grants for Yarmouk students to complete their graduate studies in American universities. They also declared that some orientation sessions will be held for Yarmouk students to discuss ways of filling applications to complete studies in American universities for various scientific degrees, admission requirements, and types of scholarships, etc.
Represented by the Dean of the Faculty of Arts – The Secretary General of the Association of Faculties of Arts in the Arab World, Professor Mousa al-Rababah, Yarmouk University participated in the “Arabic and International Language Conference”, which was organized online during the past two days by the Lebanese University of Jinan, with the participation of many academics and researchers from various Arab and European countries.
In his speech, al-Rababah confirmed that talking about Arabic as a global language implies multiple dimensions considering that the premises of any language’s universality stem from the essence of the language itself. He added that the Arabic language had always been able during its long history to contribute to the production of knowledge, as it was the language of science, literature, and feelings. Moreover, al-Rababah pointed out that if the Arab person is to preserve his own language, then he must transcend the romantic and emotional theory of language into initiatives, thus contributing to the prosperity and essence of Arabic, promoting it to universality, and preserving it as a representation of Arabs’ identity and belonging. He further stressed that it is important to celebrate the Arabic Language Day on the eighteenth of December every year, as such activity may help in preserving Arabic.
The Canadian Ambassador to Amman Donica Pottie visited Deir Alla Archaeological Research Station of Yarmouk’s Faculty of Archeology and Anthropology, as part of her tour in the Jordan Valley, where she visited the solar cell system project implemented by the embassy at the station as part of the sustainable energy and economic development project supported by the Canadian government.
The Dean of the Faculty of Archaeology, Dr. Lamia al-Khoury, gave a brief introduction about the station, the objectives of its establishment, and the contents of its museum. She then acknowledged the Canadian government's support and contribution to implementing the solar cell project at the station.
Accompanied by the Vice Dean of the Faculty, Dr. Ahmed Abu Bakr, the station supervisor, and the engineers who supervised the implementation of the project, the ambassador then toured the station and enjoyed spending some time in the Archaeological Museum.
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