US embassy cable - 03AMMAN6820

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 006820 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SECSTATE FOR IIP/G/IR-BCONATY, NEA/PPD-JDAVIES; ABU DHABI 
FOR IRO-HMENDELSON; VIENNA FOR RPO 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KIRC, KPAO, OIIP 
SUBJECT: American Corners In The Middle East 
 
Ref: (A) State 198601 (B) State 224009  (C) State 273900 
 
1.  Post requests 4 (four) American Corners collections and 
supporting equipment to be hosted at the institutions listed 
individually below.  Post estimates the cost of each Corner 
at approximately USD 102,000 based on module costs provided 
by IRO and current procurement costs of equipment and 
supplies. 
 
2.  CAO Donna Winton will be post POC for this project. 
 
3.  Justification:  Post has been and remains actively 
involved in strengthening existing American Studies programs 
in Jordan and providing support to universities wishing to 
expand or begin programs in American Studies.  We see these 
programs as a logical nexus for programming about US 
society, culture and policy to the larger student body and 
to the public.  The materials provided in American Corners 
collections will enable direct engagement of professors and 
students with American literature and culture; the 
interactive capabilities of the Corners will solve a long- 
standing problem: how to more proactively engage university 
students and faculty in direct dialogue with American 
students and professionals, when they have no on-campus 
facilities to permit that.  We also see the interactive 
capability of American Corners as the potential node for 
expansion of `distance learning' classes in American Studies 
programs, such as the long distance courses taught by Prof. 
Chris Wise for UJ grad students this past summer. 
 
4.  The four requested American Corners are for the 
following institutions: 
 
--University of Jordan - American Studies Program. 
University President and Faculty Dean have agreed to host an 
American Corner to be located next to the Faculty Library. 
University of Jordan provides the first American Studies 
graduate degree in the Middle East.  The program is in its 
fourth year and is strongly supported by post through 
placement of Fulbright professors, visiting speakers, DVC 
programs, and small grants.  The American Corner will give 
the graduate degree program a much-needed focal point and 
will encourage investigation by new students who might be 
considering the program.  We also expect distance courses to 
be taught by preference from the Corner. 
 
--  Hashemite (or Hashemiyya) University - This public 
university, located in Zarqa, a traditionally conservative 
suburb neighboring Amman, has requested post's help in 
starting an American Studies program and specifically 
requested the kind of support provided in the American 
Corner.  The nascent program is under the direction of 
recent Voluntary Visitor Dr. Marwan Obeidat, who has a US 
degree in the field.  Dr. Obeidat and Hashemiyya are very 
eager to develop a viable and multi-dimensional American 
Studies program and to encourage direct ties with US 
counterparts they met during the VOLVIS program. 
 
--  Philadelphia University - This private university, 
located an hour north of Amman, is under the direction of 
Dr. Adnan Badran, current chair of the Binational Fulbright 
Board and a very active and receptive contact of the 
embassy.  Dr. Badran, in meetings with Embassy officers and 
visiting officials such as ECA's Barry Ballow, has indicated 
his intention of expanding the university's arts and 
literature offerings to encompass more English language 
teaching and more emphasis on American arts, literature and 
society.  The university has made space available in their 
main campus library to house the American Corner.  As 
Philadelphia's IT department recently won the national prize 
among Jordan's twenty universities, we have no doubt that 
appropriate technical support for the interactive portion of 
the Corner will be readily available. 
 
 
 
 
--  American Language Center - With security issues making 
on-premises outreach to the general population chronically 
difficult, post is seeking to more actively involve students 
at the ALC in more traditional public affairs programs.  By 
housing an American Corner at the ALC, we will be able to 
more actively engage the language students, offer a new 
dimension to ALC's English teaching, and make greater use of 
ALC facilities as a venue for programs open to students and 
to a greater audience. 
 
5.  Post will arrange for formal MOU's with each of the 
partners above, once approval of the American Corners 
request has been obtained.  In conversations with the 
responsible parties at each location, we have found great 
enthusiasm and ready agreement on the salient points of 
American Corners usage as outlined in reftels. 
 
6.  Post anticipates the following budget breakdown: 
 
-- For ALC, one full set of all modules advertised on RPO 
Vienna's American Corners catalog page, plus one full set of 
items in IRO Stephen Mallinger's "Islam in America" list, 
total for all of these currently USD 46,000. 
-- For the universities, three full sets as above, minus the 
Government Information module and the Young Adults module, 
cost USD 44,000 each. 
 
-- For all, additional print resources, VHS and CD/DVD and 
reference resources - to be chosen by posts and recipients 
jointly, cost approximately USD 12-15,000 each. 
 
-- For all, electronic and interactive equipment (Polycom 
DVC setup or equivalent, multi-system TVs, VCRs, CD and DVD 
players, computers, printers and scanners, plus installation 
of ISDN lines for DVC setup), costed out at post for 
approximately USD 28,000 each. 
 
-- For all, shipping based on 20 percent of value, 
approximately USD 17,000. 
 
Total for each Corner, approximately USD 102,000. 
 
Total request for four Corners, approximately USD 408,000. 
 
7.  American Corners workshop.  CAO Donna Winton requests 
attendance at the Vienna RPO workshop to be held December 8- 
10.  Post understands that the NEA workshop is likely to be 
held in Amman.  Post hopes to have 2-4 local FSN staff in 
attendance at the NEA regional workshop. 
 
8.  Looking forward to your reply.