PSu Magazine Winter 2002

AROUND THE PARK BLOCKS Many students from the Middle East staying home So far fears have outnumbered actual problem for Mohamad Aboujamou , a student from Lebanon. Since Septem– ber 11, he ha experienced no preju– dice on campus or in Portland, but he does feel the tension and misses friends who did not return fall term from the Middle Ea t. "Things are ambiguous and frustrat– ing," says the junior in computer engi– neering. "I do not want to be judged becau e of my ethnicity or religion, but I can accept increa ed security and will gladly cooperate. I am just a regu– lar college student." For the past three years, Abouja– mous has made Portland his home as he attends PSU with the help of an International Cultural Service Pro– gram scholarship. He talks with uni– versity and high school student , haring cu ltural information, as part of the scholarship. Aboujamous never left Portland this past summer or fall, but many of hi friends from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and United Arab Emirate (UAE) did-and quite a few did not return. Fall enrollment of tudents from the Middle East is down by more than ha lf, according to PSU's Internationa l Education Services Office. In particu– lar, 48 students from UAE either stayed home or left after the terrorist Chipped and fractured bone on this hulking mastodon skeleton at the Ore– gon Zoo was recently replaced, filled in, and smoothed over by Mindi Don– aldson, a PSU doctoral student in zoology. Donaldson learned her skills from an expert, biology professor Deborah Duffield. The mastodon was also in need of reinforced pelvic bones, which were crafted by Marc Nisen• feld (in background), a technologist in PSU's Science Support Services. 4 PSU MAGAZINE WINTER 2002 attack in September. Mo t of these students, if not all, are attending Port– land State on UAE government chol– arship . Their government kept them home fearing they would be in danger from anti-Middle Eastern sentiments escalating into vio lence. The Smith Center dining room is not the same these days, says Abouja– mous. The tab le of boisterous Midd le Eastern students i not there, and those who remain are keeping a low profile. He hopes to see hi friends return soon. The International Educa– tion Services Office is going out of its way to make sure the paperwork for student like Aboujamou is up to date and ready for the inevitable scrutiny it will receive when the stu<lents travel. And international student advisers and staff are ready to ca lm fears and help solve the few problem encoun– tered. To date, the students are able to ensure family back home that Portland is a place that treats them fairly. Profs receive Fulbrights Gil Latz, professor of geography, and Jacqueline Temple, assi cant profes r of education, are among the Fulbright scholarship recipients for 2001-2002. Latz is conducting research at Uni– versity of Florence in Italy on interna– tional agricultural land-use history and fore t management practice . Temple is lecturing and conducting research at the University of Jyvaskyla in Finland on the topic, "The Journey of an Inclusive Special Educator: From Belief to Practice." Only 800 faculty and professionals in the United States receive Fulbright grants each year to study abroad. A similar number of visiting scholars receive awards to come to the U.S. Rodney Cousin of the Hammersmith Police Unit in the United Kingdom will be researching criminal justice issues at Portland State from January through April. D