On 27-28 March 2003, the Center for Islamic Studies sponsored the visit of Dr. Rachida El Diwani, Fulbright scholar-in-residence at Chatham College, to the YSU campus. She delivered several lectures to members of the YSU community and to the general public. Some of her lectures were entitled with the following:

• Perceptions and Misperceptions about Women in the Muslim World
• Egyptian Women and Islam
• Arab Perspective on the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict
• Islamic and Western Cultures in Conflict? Avenues of Dialogue and Cooperation

Dr. El Diwani is a professor of comparative literature at the College of Arts of Alexandria University in Egypt. In addition to teaching courses related to Islam, such as Communities of Islam and Islam and the West, she has written extensively on several topics, such as Orientalist scholarship on Islam and the emancipation of Egyptian women.

The pictures (taken by Mr. Carl Leet, Media and Academic Computing, YSU) displayed on this page were taken at a luncheon for Dr. El Diwani and members of the YSU faculty and administration on 28 March 2003.

Dr. Rachida El Diwani	From the left: Dr. Qi Jiang, Department of Sociology and Anthropology; Ms. Randa Shabayek; Dr. Tony Atwater, Provost
From the left: Dr. Stephanie Smith, Department of Art; Ms. Randa Shabayek; Dr. John Loch, University Outreach	Proceeding clockwise from the far left: Dr. Tony Atwater, Provost; Dr. Qi Jiang, Department of Sociology and Anthropology; Dr. Sherry Linkon, Department of English; Dr. Brendan Minogue, Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies; Dr. William Greenway, Department of English; Dr. David Stephens, Department of Geography; Ms. Randa Shabayek
From the left: Dr. Tony Atwater, Provost; Dr. Victor Wan-Tatah, Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies	From the left: Dr. Thomas Shipka, Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies; Dr. David Porter, Department of Political Science; Dr. John Russo, Department of Management; Mr. Leon Stennis, Office of Equal Opportunity and Diversity
Dr. Rachida El Diwani	Proceeding clockwise from the left: Dr. John Loch, University Outreach; Dr. Victor Wan-Tatah, Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies; Dr. Ndinzi Masagara, Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures; Dr. Mustansir Mir, Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies; Dr. Robert Bolla, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences; Dr. Keith Lepak, Department of Political Science

On 27 October 2001, the Center for Islamic Studies hosted a seminar on "Islam in the News" in the Presidential Suite of Kilcawley Center on the Youngstown State University campus. The featured speaker was Dr. Andrew Walsh, associate director of the Leonard E. Greenberg Center for the Study of Religion in Public Life at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut. Mr. Dawud Abdullah, imam at a local masjid, provided a brief overview of Islam before Dr. Walsh's presentation.

Dr. Walsh speaks with a member of the local media.
 

Members of the media and the surrounding community attended
the "Islam in the News" seminar.
 

During a break in the seminar, many attendees discussed recent events.
 

After the lecture, several audience members spoke with Dr. Walsh individually.

Dr. Walsh discussed how Islam and Muslims are portrayed by the news media and how that portrayal has been affected by the events of 11 September 2001. Media members, he said, are trying to educate their audiences about Islam, which does not condone the violence used by terrorists.

On 29 October 2001, Dr. Walsh delivered a lecture on "Understanding How American Journalists Cover Religion" in the Ohio Room of Kilcawley Center. In his view, the presentation of religion in the news media is deeply influenced by the values of liberal Protestantism.

Dr. Walsh's seminar and lecture were attended by members of the local media and local community.

On 4 December 2000, the Center for Islamic Studies hosted a workshop on "Teaching about Islam in Schools" in Kilcawley Center. The guest speaker was Mr. Shabbir Mansuri, founding director of the California-based Council on Islamic Education. The workshop was attended by educators from public and private schools in the larger Youngstown area, and by faculty members from the Beeghly College of Education and from other colleges at Youngstown State University; a few members of the local Muslim community were also present.

Mr. Shabbir Mansuri

Mr. Mansuri discussed how teachers in public schools can teach about Islam and about Muslim heritage. He presented information about how social-studies textbooks have traditionally portrayed Muslims and how he and members of his organization work with publishers to prevent further stereotyping and misinformation. He also discussed other related topics.

Mr. Mansuri begins his presentation.
 

Faculty from the Beeghly College of Education
listen to Mr. Mansuri's talk.

Another workshop on teaching about Islam is being planned. If you are a teacher or an educator and would like to know more about the workshop, please contact the Center for Islamic Studies.

Cosponsorship of Lectures

In April 2000, the Center for Islamic Studies cosponsored, with the Department of Political Science at Youngstown State University, the visit of Dr. Farhang Rajaee, who teaches political science at Carlton University in Ottawa, Canada. Dr. Rajaee's talk was entitled "The Iranian Revolution in Global Islamic Perspective."

 

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