Newsletter - March 2023

International Women’s Day Speech

The American University of Kurdistan hosted an inspirational speech by Yazidi social influencer Shukria Khalaf in honor of International Women’s Day. Her story is one of triumph over adversity, of tenacity to attain an education despite daunting barriers.

Here is her own explanation of the circumstances in her Sinjar village: “Girls in my area did not go to school. Parents did not send their daughters to study, as people could not survive without all hands working. They sent their children to work in agriculture and animal husbandry instead of schooling, as education did not provide a path for livelihood at that time.” After the fall of Saddam Hussein, she got a very late start on formal education, at the age of 13. She was able to finish the sixth grade in a classroom setting, but she thereafter had to do distance learning to round out her secondary education. The horrors that ISIS brought to Sinjar meant she and her family had to flee, but she did not give up on her education or anything else she valued, continuing to educate herself while serving as a teacher and mentor to people with disabilities.

She is now a professional pharmacist in Zakho. As she put it: “I helped many through my work, and I became a role model for women to start their own businesses. I help by providing consultation [and] psychological and emotional support. I want to encourage girls and boys to rely on themselves. Life does not provide everything ready, and whoever wants to achieve something can do so if they have the will.”

AUK College of Engineering Holds Special Lecture

The AUK College of Engineering hosted accomplished Iraqi-Austrian architect Dr. Jaafar Chalabi for a special lecture on March 1. His talk was particularly relevant for students and faculty in the Architectural Engineering Program. Dr. Chalabi went over the specifications of LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), which address energy efficiency and sustainability in building practices. He spoke on his personal successes with LEED not only in Western countries, but also in the United Arab Emirates. His firm has been contracted to design a sports facility and male dormitory spaces for the AUK campus.

AUK Giving Day 2023

The Office of Advancement spearheaded AUK’s first-ever Giving Day, to drum up support for contributions to financial aid. It was a mega-event held over the course of five instructional days, March 7, March 8, March 9, March 12, and March 13. The Office of Advancement partnered with other AUK units to put on a number of exciting activities. 

Design Thinking Tech Bootcamp Panel Discussion

On March 2, the Center for Academic and Professional Advancement (CAPA) organized a panel discussion on an important summer initiative. Raffi Simonian, participating remotely from UCLA, has overseen numerous “tech bootcamps,” in which young entrepreneurs come together, collaborate, and ultimately compete to formulate “minimum viable products” addressing various issues. This July, CAPA will be overseeing its own such bootcamp, dubbed “CAPAi.” It is set to last two weeks, but it will be immediately followed by a much lengthier “incubation” phase for the design idea determined to be the best. The panel discussion, moderated by CAPA Director Loucine Hayes, focused on how design thinking can contribute to the development of Kurdistan’s private sector and employment prospects for graduating students. CAPA seeks to spread an entrepreneurial spirit through this and other initiatives.

United States National Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month

The American University of Kurdistan aims to be as inclusive as possible in all aspects of its operations and to honor both parts of its dual Kurdish and American identity. So, it is natural for the University to acknowledge March as National Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month in the United States. The Director of AUK’s Office of Student Affairs, Yelena Sardaryan, pictured above, is richly experienced in helping individuals with autism spectrum disorders, examples of developmental disabilities, in her native Armenia. She now stands eager to assist all comers to AUK’s Access & Disability Services Center, made possible through a United States Department of State Grant titled “Support for American-Style Higher Education in Iraq.” To mark National Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month, she granted an interview in which she discussed, in addition to other issues, the disability and counseling services she offers the AUK community.  

Ambassadors in Training

The Student Recruiter for the American University of Kurdistan (AUK), Fatima Osman, conducted an orientation session on February 28 for Student Ambassadors, to ready them to speak to prospective students and their parents with all the more confidence. She showed AUK’s “numbers at a glance,” advised on what is meant by “American-style” education, and highlighted what is distinctive about AUK’s academic programs. Details of the requirements for admission and the application process were covered. Student Ambassadors will also be involved in school visits, outreach, and the call center.

Bringing LRS to AUK

On March 1, the AUK Library rolled out its fully operational LRS (Library Reservation System), after 18 months of development. The automated system enables the reservation of private study rooms, computer workstations, group worktables, and learning centers (as well as the booking of tutoring sessions) through smartphones. It was developed through AUK Library collaboration with Dilovan Matini, a student in the University’s Computer Software & Information Technology Department. In the words of AUK Library Director Gulan Ahmed: “This initiative is a testament to how different AUK units can work together to come up with innovative … solutions for the benefit of [the University] community.”

AUK Office of Student Affairs and IFMSA Team Up for Chess Tournament

On Monday, March 6, there was a chess tournament involving 30 competitors, 10 from AUK and 20 from IFMSA (the International Federation of Medical Students Associations). The AUK Office of Student Affairs oversaw the tournament, which lasted several hours. At the end of the event, the top finishers from AUK were Niyas Tayib, who took 2nd place, and Mohammed Jameel, who took 4th.

New World Record Set, with Extensive AUK Student Involvement

On Saturday, March 11, dozens of AUK students, among hundreds of other people from across Kurdistan, went on a hike, with the goal of setting a new world record. AUK Student Areen Barzani helmed this world record attempt, seeking to draw attention to the “Visit Kurdistan” tourism drive. Ultimately, Guinness World Records, via a remote connection, certified that a new world record had been set, for the greatest number of people hiking in a single group simultaneously.

“Spirit of Halabja” Writing Contest

It is customary in Kurdistan to memorialize the tragic events of March 16, 1988, when Saddam Hussein’s regime attacked the Kurdish city of Halabja with chemical weapons. One way to memorialize the tragedy is through writing, and the Bibliophile Club, in coordination with the Kurdish Culture & Study Club, put together a writing contest named “Spirit of Halabja,” in which students would produce English prose expressing their thoughts and feelings on the attack. A commonly encountered topic in the students’ writing was the campaign to get the “Halabja Massacre” internationally recognized as a genocide. The judging of the students’ entries, under the auspices of the AUK Office of Student Affairs, resulted in the naming of two winners on March 13.

First place: “The Capital City of Peace” by Adan Rashid (pictured above, on the left)

Adan Rashid is a freshman in the College of Nursing. She herself hails from Halabja.

Second place: “Halabja Massacre” by Sana Khalid (pictured above, on the right)

 Sana Khalid is a freshman majoring in Architectural Engineering. She is from Duhok.

EnviroPower (and KEY) Workshop

The AUK student club devoted to environmentalism, “EnviroPower,” invited the organization KEY (Kurdistan Environmental Youth) for a workshop in the AUK Library Learning Center on March 13. The motto of KEY reads: “Bringing Kurdish people together to make a sustainable impact on the environment.” The workshop’s theme was articulating environmental problems in Kurdistan and devising feasible solutions thereto. The KEY representatives gave an example of an environmental problem confronting all of Kurdistan: the lack of public transportation.

Most of the session consisted of group work, and the numbers worked out perfectly for three even teams. Each team had to select a particular environmental problem; the chosen problems were the overreliance on single-use plastic, deforestation, and a general decline in water quantity and quality. After presenting their problems, groups then had time to work out “SMART” solutions, that is to say, specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound ones. The groups presented their solutions to cap the workshop, from which any objective observer should conclude environmentalism is on the right path at AUK.  

Ninevah University Students Visit AUK

The AUK College of Nursing welcomed a delegation from Ninevah University on March 13. It started in the AUK Auditorium with addresses by AUK President Dr. Randall Rhodes and AUK Chief Nursing Administrator Dr. Jervy Bernardino. According to Dr. Bernardino: "The visit [was] aimed at fostering academic and cultural exchange between [the] institutions and exploring potential collaborations." After the visitors met their AUK peers, they received a guided tour of the campus. The Nursing Skills & Simulation Lab, made possible by the United States Department of State Grant titled "Support for American-Style Higher Education in Iraq," was the tour's focal point.

National Clothing Day and Silence for Halabja Victims

To honor the victims of the Halabja chemical attack which occurred exactly 35 years prior (March 16, 1988), the AUK community gathered on the lawn outside the Mustafa Barzani Building and participated in a “minute of silence.” There were miniature Kurdish flags spaced slightly apart throughout the rectangular field.

On the same day, AUK celebrated National Clothing Day.

Meet Joanna Nazar

Staff/Alumna, Office of Communications

Joanna Nazar is the Design Coordinator in the AUK Office of Communications. She has been at AUK almost uninterruptedly since its inception.

AUK’s establishment is usually dated to December 2014, since that was when the University had its “grand opening,” but Joanna can confirm that even before then it was possible to register and take some language classes connected to the University. She undertook study at ELI (the forerunner to CAPA) to improve her English proficiency, though it must have been quite advanced already, since she placed into the highest class they had at that time. She began her academic studies at AUK in the Spring 2015 semester and wrapped up her course requirements in Spring 2019. Her degree was conferred on her upon completion of her Interior Design capstone project, on the Erbil Airport VIP Lounge, in Spring 2020. She spent the next year away from AUK engaged in an extremely noble and worthwhile cause, working with refugees, and her Spring 2021 return was as Administrative Assistant for the College of Business. She moved into the corresponding role in the Office of Communications just a few months later, and in October of 2022 she was promoted to Design Coordinator.

As Design Coordinator, she works on all aspects of visual appeal, for the interior and exterior of the building. For example, there is a good chance that what you have seen on the stage of the AUK Auditorium was a Joanna Nazar design. She is also active in AUK cyberspace, designing graphics and reels for posts. With how much she has done for the AUK community and the indisputable fact that she is a charter member of it, her stance toward the University should come as no surprise: “AUK is my second home.”