Opening Doors to the World Through Debate in Afghanistan
2014 Sam and Marilyn Fox Atlas Week
Wednesday, April 2, 2014
10:00 - 11:00 a.m.
Busch Student Center 253 D
Sponsored By: International Initiatives
Four years ago the NGO IFES (International Foundation for Electoral Services) began a British Parliamentary Debate project for university students in Afghanistan. The purpose of the program was to help students improve English, public speaking, research, and critical thinking. Through the program over 20 universities across Afghanistan introduced debate programs with a national tournament as the culminating activity each year. Students represented Afghanistan in international competition. Today students are attending graduate programs in the US and several other countries and have positions in Afghanistan that grew out of their debate experiences. Dr. Diana Carlin, professor of communication and AVP for graduate education and International initiatives, Frozan Maqsoodi, a graduate student in electrical engineering and computer science, and Reshad Farzan, a graduate of one of the universities in Kabul and a St. Louis resident, will describe the program and the impact it had on their lives and cross-cultural understanding.