Jordan: Students oriented prior to travel
Continued from page 1
from studying in the Middle East.
According to data compiled by the
Institute of International Education
and the National Security Education
Program, applications to IIE study
abroad programs in the Near East
and South Asia increased by 32 per
cent in the two years immediately
following Sept. 11, 2001.
That information confirms the an
ecdotal findings of Caroline Van
derkar, associate director of Overseas
Study Programs at the University,
who has noticed an uptick in Univer
sity students interested in traveling to
the Middle East.
The University is mindful that
problems can arise for students
overseas and has taken measures to
ensure the safety of students who
travel abroad.
In order to decrease the risk of
negative incidents occurring while
traveling in foreign countries, stu
dents who enter a University-affili
ated study abroad program are pro
vided opportunities to prepare
themselves before traveling to their
destination countries.
Students participate in a general ori
entation program, which applies to all
countries. They then attend a second,
regional-specific orientation program.
Additionally, students are given in
formation from the U.S. Department
of State about the country they plan
to visit.
The University is also careful to
make sure students traveling abroad
will not cause behavioral incidents in
a foreign country.
Before a student is accepted to a
study abroad program, he or she
must sign a clearance form, authoriz
ing the Office of International Pro
grams to check his or her record with
the Office of Student Judicial Affairs
for any serious violations.
“We want to have good represen
tatives of the U of O, of our country,
and we want to send students abroad
for academic reasons, students who
want to learn,” Vanderkar said.
The University frequently evalu
ates study abroad programs to make
sure they are safe for students. Pro
grams to Israel and Indonesia have
been suspended because of safety
concerns, Vanderkar said.
“The most common
reaction I received when I
told people that I would be
studying in an Arab country
was something along the
lines of ‘Why would you
want to study over there?
Aren’t you afraid?”’
Thomas Hojem | Student
“Our office and our partners take
the safety and security of our stu
dents as number one. It’s a primary
concern,” Vanderkar said. “Should
anything happen, we monitor the sit
uation so we are providing the best
information that we can to our stu
dents, and then if need be, temporari
ly suspend the program.”
When Hojem decided to travel
to Amman, he encountered skepti
cism and concern from friends and
family members.
“The most common reaction I re
ceived when I told people that I
would be studying in an Arab coun
try was something along the lines of
‘Why would you want to study over
there? Aren’t you afraid?”’ Hojem
said in an e-mail.
Hojem said perceptions of the
Middle East as a place riddled with
violence are inaccurate, even after
the bombings.
“People mistake the Mideast as full
of backwards and bloodthirsty Arabs,
when the reality is quite different,” Ho
jem wrote in the e-mail. “The fact is,
and I think most of my fellow Ameri
can students would feel the same, that
my idea of the Middle East as formed
by American media was way off. Peo
ple there are normal, friendly people
with a different culture and religion.”
Before traveling to Jordan, Hojem
worried that people there would dis
like him because he is American.
While he said he has encountered
some resentment on the part of Jor
danians, he has not experienced any
major incidents of anti-Americanism.
“Most Jordanians are thankfully
able to separate American citizens
from the actions of their government,”
he wrote.
jbailey@ daily emerald, com
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WORLD AIDS DAY
WEEK OF EVENTS
ALL WEEK
HIV TESTING at UO Health Center. Oral swab ($15), blood draw ( $12). Allow two weeks for results. 346-2770 for appointment.
UO PEER HEALTH EDUCATORS will be have a table outside the Health Resource Center in the EMU
10 a.m. - 2 p.m. M-F with a WAD educational board, materials, condoms and ribbons.
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 28
MOVIE “Global Health: America's Response to Aids" The U.S. has announced the most far-reaching program ever devised for
prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS around the world, but some critics say it's simply a reshuffling of existing commitments.
What’s the real truth behind President Bush’s global project on AIDS? 6 p.m. EMU Ben Linder Room.
MOVIE Philadelphia. 7 p.m. EMU Ben Linder Room.
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 29
LGBTQA presents a Sex Positive Workshop in the Multicultural Center (EMU room 33) — 6 p.m.
THE DOWNTOWN LIBRARY 100 W. 10th Ave. will feature a slide show and talk by Lindsey Reynolds about her experience
in Southern Africa. Public Health Educator and photographer Lindsey Reynolds brings home both the facts and the faces of
southern Africa's HIV/AIDS pandemic. 6:30 - 7:30 p.m.
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 30
“AIDS HERE AND ABROAD” Round table discussion with HIV positive college students and a person who
spent time in the orphanages in Ethiopia. 6 p.m. in the EMU Gumwood Room
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1
THE YOUTH PROGRAM will have a table at the UO Bookstore from 8:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. with information
about the services provided by HIV Alliance.
UO PEER HEALTH EDUCATORS tabling in the Rec Center. HIV prevention, HIV testing, World AIDS Day
history and Health Center services 4 - 6 p.m.
“STOP AIDS. KEEP THE PROMISE” A candlelight memorial observance, sponsored by the HIV Alliance will
happen at the Downtown Eugene Park Blocks SW corner of 8th & Oak Street 5:30 - 6:30 p.m.
DRAG AND BURLESQUE SHOW featuring SheBangl, Imperial Sovereign Court Empresses, Burlesque
performers and an amateur drag contest to crown campus Queen & King! Health Center and Peer Health
staffing with HIV educational materials. 8 p.m. in the EMU Ballroom.