El-Djazair Alumni Newsletter
DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Volume I, Issue 5
A Word from Alumnus
My name is Mouloud Mouhoubi, I am
Inside this issue: 20 and I am a sophomore at the Alge-
rian Chamber of Commerce and
Industry.
During the year 2006-2007, I and four
other people from my school went to
A word from 1 the U.S. on an exchange program
Alumnus called YES.
Our visit started in Washington DC;
we were then individually sent to
different places in the US. Atlanta in
YES 1 military ball, in the Air Force base in
the state of Georgia was my destina-
tion. I was so excited because I was
going to meet my host family for the
first time, and I was so happy and
surprised to meet with all the mem-
2 bers of my host family at the airport.
First Annual
The following day I went to visit the
Women’s Health high school I was attending classes in
and I met all the teachers who were
glad to have me attending in there. For
Between the Lines 3 the first semester, I studied US His-
tory, Biology, English 4 and Business
Laws. It was hard at the beginning but I
managed well.
Earth Day 2010 2 During the same period, I went to
several student meetings where I had
the opportunity to meet with interna-
tional students a thing that allowed me
to make new friends.
Ambassador Pearce 3 Being in an American high school
helped me to meet a lot of people and
in Sétif many of them were so curious to learn
about me and my country, thus I gave
several presentations about Algeria
Get Connected 4 during my History class and at Church.
I was so proud because this helped
people to know more about my coun-
Youth Exchange and Study Program (YES)
Youth Exchange and Study
(YES) program was established
in October, 2002 and spon-
sored by ECA to provide schol-
arships for high school students
(15-17 years) from countries
with significant Muslim popula-
tions to spend up to one aca-
demic year in the U.S. Students
live with host families, attend
high school, engage in activities
April 2010
try.
I also did a lot of community service,
specifically some related to the local
Church.
In January, I joined a program called
JROTC, which is a US army program
for people who want to go to the
army after graduation. This program
was the best part of my stay in the US.
It was tough at the beginning but I had
to get used to it, I also attended the
Marietta, Georgia.
I had such a good time over there,
because I had a ride in the huge Air-
craft C-130. Furthermore, they made
me a favour when letting me in the JROTC (Junior Reserve Officer
cockpit during landing. After being in Training Corps)
the army for a month, I took the
Corporal Test. I passed it with honour
students as well and we had the op-
and became a Squad Leader.
To be more involved in my high portunity to meet with two Senators
school, I played soccer. Our team won (picture).
This experience brought a lot of bene-
most of the games.
By the end of school year, I decided to fits. It taught me how to be more
share my last moments with my host responsible and motivated in life. After
all, I am not sad because it is over, but
parents and my friends.
The most beautiful thing that hap- happy because it happened.
pened to me was the Prom. What a Mouloud MOUHOUBI
great day. My date was so gorgeous YES Alumnus
and I was handsome in my tuxedo.
June 1st 2007, was the last day of
school and the saddest moment of my
stay. It was so hard for me to leave my
teachers and all my friends.
A week later, I left my host family,
which was another hard moment.
And went to Washington DC, there I
saw my friends and the exchange
to learn about American society ship Program where Algerian
and values, acquire leadership youth can spend a portion of
skills, and help educate Ameri- the summer in the United States
cans about their countries and doing leadership training and
cultures. In 2007, YES Abroad cultural activities.
was established to provide a
similar experience for U.S. stu-
dents (15-19 years) in selected
YES countries. Algeria does not
have a YES program currently
but does have a Youth Leader-
 Page 2
First Annual Women’s Health Fair
As part of Women’s History
Month, the Embassy Health Unit
and PAS combined efforts to put
on the Embassy’s first Women’s
Health Fair on March 25. Embassy
personnel were asked to invite
their sisters, cousins, and friends to
participate in this event. Dr. Souad
Oulmane, Foreign Service Medical
Officer, and Ann Eversley, RN
organized the event which included
Ann Eversley on blood screen-
stations that screened for blood
ing duty.
pressure, blood glucose levels,
weight and body, a CPR training
session, and an informational on
breast cancer awareness.
Embassy Co-Sponsors Community Service Project with Muslim Scouts
In a successful effort to include
the Embassy community in
local outreach, the PAS and the
Community Liaison Office
teamed up with the Muslim
U.S. Embassy’s staff and the Scouts to plant trees. On a
Muslim Scouts joint efforts.
cold and rainy Saturday morn-
ing, more than 30 FSN and
American Embassy employees
gathered with more than 150
Muslim Boy and Girl Scouts to
help the environment and to
show young people that civic
join State Q&A Live Discussion: Food Security and Agricultural Related
Alumni for a Patricia Sheikh, the deputy ad-
ministrator for the Office of Capac-
ity Building and Development in the
Q&A Live U.S. Department of Agriculture’s
(USDA) Foreign Agricultural Ser-
discussion on vice (FAS), will join State Alumni
for a Q&A Live discussion on food
food security security and agricultural-
development issues on Wednes-
and agricultural day April 14, 2010
from10:45a.m. – 11:45a.m.
EDT* (14:45 – 15:45 GMT**).
-development
Sheikh is charged with overseeing
issues all capacity building endeavors,
including those associated with
El-Djazair Alumni Newsletter
Participants were also able to par- U.S. foreign policy. The fair was a
ticipate in a raffle for a Thai Mas- great success, and will be dupli-
sage treatment donated by a local cated on a grander scale next year.
salon. The Health Unit invited
local professionals to discuss taboo
topics as well as to inform Algerian
women of their health rights.
Participants also completed online
screening that gave them an imme-
diate assessment of their health
situation.
The fair was a prime example of
the Secretary of State’s goals of
women’s empowerment and global
health as powerful tools that sup-
port the overarching objectives of
engagement and activity is for project was in celebration of
everyone and is everyone’s Women’s History Month and
responsibility. The Muslim Girl Scout Day. The media
Scouts treated the Embassy was present at the event and
employees to an Algerian lunch aired the event on national
at their facility and also sang television.
campfire style songs in a circle
that included park rangers as
well. At the end of the project,
Embassy employees presented
Algeria/U.S. solidarity pins to
the Scouts who actually put
them on their uniforms. The
food assistance. She also coordi- food security and assistance. For
nates the U.S. government’s foreign more information on Ms. Sheikh or
policy objectives as they relate to to submit a question now or at any
capacity building endeavors. Her time during the event, please visit:
extensive work in agricultural
affairs, including her role as the https://alumni.state.gov/news2/
architect of USDA’s Africa strategy, qa-live.
as well as the USDA’s North Asia
trade policy strategy, puts her in
the unique position of employing
her vast working experience to
tackle the complex problems asso-
ciated with food security.
Ms. Sheikh welcomes your ques-
tions including those that focus on
 Volume I, Issue 5 Page 3

Between The Lines

When writer and teacher Tarek
Eltayeb gave his students an assign-
ment to write from the point of
view of anything that wasn’t human,
he never expected a wolf. ―I hap-
pen to love wolves,‖ Eltayeb said.
―And, in fact, I have written a long
poem on wolves myself.‖
Writing as a nonhuman object was
one of the exercises the students
— from Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, the
Palestinian Authority and Israel —
experienced as part of the bilingual
program ―Between the Lines.‖ The
program, administered by the Uni-
versity of Iowa’s International
Writing Program, brings new and
notable international writers to the
university each year for seminars
and readings.
WORKSHOP WRITING
The workshop approach of writing
and critiquing each other’s work —
the heart of the teaching method
for virtually all creative writing
programs at Iowa — was a new
experience for many of the stu-
dents.
The object of these exercises,
whether English or Arabic, is to
break down conventional ways of
thinking, to react more with senses
and imagination, and to learn how
to manipulate language through
play and surprise.
The Arab and American students
attended regular literature semi-
nars, but two mornings a week
they teamed up and went outside
on what were termed ―Missions
Inscribable.‖
In one case, students picked out a
car on the street. After examining
it and peering in the windows, they
wrote a page-long character sketch
of the person who owned and
drove the car,
Along with the International Writ-
ing Program, the University of Iowa
is home to the famed Iowa Writers
Workshop, the oldest graduate
creative writing program in the
country. A large Summer Writing
Festival runs annually from June to
August.
As a result, Iowa City probably has
more writers per capita than any
Students from the
other community in the country; it “Between the Lines”
was named UNESCO’s most re-
cent City of Literature, after Edin-
burgh, Scotland, and Melbourne,
Australia.

Earth Day 2010

"We’re trying to green diplomacy and we want to do it U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson in 1970 and is cele- “Accepting that
every day, not just on Earth Day. That starts with our for- brated in many countries around the world. Every
eign policy, and accepting that climate change is more than year, alumni mark the occasion by organizing and climate change
a scientific phenomenon. It’s a political challenge, it’s an taking part in events and community service activi-
economic force, it’s a security threat, and a moral impera- ties that help raise awareness of the environment.
tive." is more than a
Secretary Of State Hillary Clinton's Remarks at the scientific
State Department's "Greening Diplomacy" Earth
Day Event, April 22, 2009 phenomenon.
It’s a political
Earth Day, commemorated annually on April 22nd, is a
day dedicated to raising awareness and appreciation for challenge”
the Earth's environment. Earth Day was founded by

Ambassador David Pearce Visits Sétif

U.S. Ambassador David Pearce
visited Sétif March 29-30. During
his visit, the Ambassador held
discussions with senior officials of
the Wilaya/State, met with the
chairman and members of the
chamber of agriculture and with
the rector of the University Ferhat
Abbes. During his meetings, he
discussed prospective cooperation
and exchange possibilities in differ-
ent fields namely education, agricul-
ture and culture.
The Ambassador also toured the
ancient roman city of Cuicul
(Djemila), its museum and the leaving the Access School, Ambassa-
archeology museum of Sétif. He dor Pearce gave a press conference
was fascinated with the beauty of
to local Algerian press representa-
the vestiges and archaeological
tives. As is the custom with new
sites.
At the end of his two-day visit, visitors, the Ambassador drank
Ambassador Pearce led a lively water from the fountain of Ain El-
discussion with the EPITA Access Fouara, the city’s symbol, which
means that he will return again.
School students and handed over
certificates of achievement to
around twenty of them.
The English language level that the
students have achieved through this Ambassador Pearce’s Endless
Interest in History
program is remarkable. Before
 DEPARTMENT OF STATE

This would be a good place to insert a short paragraph about your or-
ganization. It might include the purpose of the organization, its mission,
founding date, and a brief history. You could also include a brief list of
the types of products, services, or programs your organization offers,
the geographic area covered (for example, western U.S. or European
STATE ALUMNI
markets), and ais the officialof
profile website for moreofthan
the types 1,000,000 alumni
customers of exchange programs
or members served.spon-
sored by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Interactive, dy-
It would
namic also be useful to
and password-protected, include a contact
alumni.state.gov name
offers alumni fromfor
U.S.readers who want
government-sponsored
exchange programs a place to network with other alumni from around the globe; share information
U.S. Embassy Algiers more information about the organization.
about exchange programs and alumni activities; participate in Q&A Live discussions with experts; and
http://algiers.usembassy.gov/ access resources such as grants, jobs and research databases.

Build upon your exchange experience. Visit: https://alumni.state.gov

Alumni Coordinator/Education
Adviser at the U.S. Embassy:
Boussoufaa@state.gov EducationUSA Opportunity: Funding to Help You Take the Next Step Toward Study in
the U.S.!

Opportunity is an EducationUSA The aim is to demonstrate that United States.

initiative to support talented
international students who may
need financial assistance to take
the next steps toward studying in
the United States at an accred-
ited institution of higher learning.
These grants are available now to
help cover the upfront costs of
seeking higher education in the
U.S., and are part of Educa-
tionUSA’s broad range of assis-
tance to international students.
international students like you Apply by requesting an applica-
are welcome in the U.S., and tion from the EducationUSA
increase access to U.S. institu- Advisor:
tions of higher learning for de- Boussoufaa@state.gov
serving students who have
broad interests and ambitions
but modest means. These
grants make it possible for stu-
dents who would be otherwise
unable to afford the costly appli-
cation process to take the next
step toward an education in the

Get Connected:The U.S. Embassy on the Web