www.thepeninsulaqatar.com COMMUNITYCO | 6 HEALTH & FITNESS | 10 ENTERTAINMENT | 1212 Institute of Internal Six great benefits Neha Dhupia scareded Auditors organises of regular of reality TV seminar exercise shows THURSDAY 18 FEBRUARY 2016 Email: [email protected] thepeninsulaqatar @peninsulaqatar @peninsula_qatar P | 4-5 MOVING BEYOND Stepping into the second decade in Qatar, Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar (SFS-Q), is set to move beyond offering a School of Foreign Service by leveraging the resources at its main campus in Washington DC. THURSDAY 18 FEBRUARY 2016 | 03 CAMPUS DPS-MIS delegation of 44 students alongwith debate coordinator and DPS teams qualify for World Scholar’s Cup global event teachers participated in the World Scholar’s Cup (WSC), Doha Round, hosted by International School of London (ISL) Qatar. The championship was a celebration of learning related to the 2016 WSC theme, An Imperfect World, from the refugee crisis to the science of disease to the history of cheating which focused on critical thinking, problem-solving and collaborative skills of students and their prowess through ‘Collaborative Writing’, ‘Team Debate’, ‘Scholar’s Challenge’ and ‘Scholar’s Bowl’ in Senior and Junior Divisions. The extensive research, constructive debate and writing by the teams helped DPS to bag laurels in different events for both divisions. All 15 DPS teams were listed among toppers and earned berths in World Scholar’s Cup Global Round. The championship opened an opportunity of community building for all young participants. Principal Asna Nafees congratulated the students. DeBakey High School Qatar honours outstanding students DeBakey High School–Qatar celebrated students’ achievements during their Cycle 3 Awards Ceremony. Students were awarded for achieving All A’s and displaying positive character traits. Students in Grades 7–12 participated in the ceremony. 04 | THURSDAY 18 FEBRUARY 2016 COVER STORY Georgetown to go beyond foreign service classes Qatari students benefit from Heritage Learners Arabic language courses which are specifically designed for those of Arab background. By Fazeena Saleem tional academic partner to the Josoor are tailored specifically to reflect issues include an emphasis on student re- The Peninsula Institute, focusing on the sports and and perspectives of the region and Qa- search, where our professors mentor events management industry. Also the tar, are considered as the curriculum’s students in funded research on rele- university is being asked by the Minis- strength. vant topics. This strengthens the stu- try of Interior’s Permanent Emergency In particular, Qatari students ben- dents’ skills as well as contributing to tepping into the second dec- Committee to develop a training pro- efit from Heritage Learners Arabic the future of a sustainable and bus- ade in Qatar, Georgetown Uni- gram in Emergency and Disaster Man- language courses which are specifi- tling research hub in Qatar,” said Dr versity School of Foreign Serv- agement for government and public cally designed for those of Arab back- Nonneman. Sice in Qatar (SFS-Q), is set to sector employees. ground. Tailoring the pedagogy to this “But what really makes a Georget- move beyond offering a School of For- “Looking well beyond 2016, we con- group allows these classes to equip own education unique from other “lib- eign Service by leveraging the resourc- tinue to explore the possibility of intro- Qataris and others from the region eral arts” schools is the emphasis on es at its main campus in Washington ducing Masters level courses or pro- with professional Modern Standard Ar- hands-on learning that takes students DC. grams. Some of this may be offered abic skills that are vital for careers in out of the classroom and sends them SFS-Q will make use of some of jointly or independently in coordina- the public sector, as well as to preserve all over the world to learn about con- the expertise from the wide offering tion with HBKU and our partner insti- the Arabic language heritage of a gen- flict and reconciliation exactly where of top-quality programs in business, tutions. The possibilities are endless; it eration of young people increasingly those dramatic historical events took law, medicine and more from the main is now a matter of identifying the most living in a world where English is the place,” he added. campus. meaningful projects for Qatar and cre- common language. Currently the tuition fee stands at “Going forward depending on ating a sustainable model to move for- The campus’s faculty includes about $48,000, identical to the fees agreements and interests of our part- ward,” said Dr Nonneman. some of the world’s top scholars. paid in Washington. Qatari students ners in Qatar, some or all of this exper- SFS-Q’s Bachelor of Science in For- “They (faculty) help prepare our are eligible for their fees and costs be- tise can be put in the service of build- eign Service (BSFS) is a multidiscipli- students to tackle global issues by ing fully funded by scholarships from ing human capacity for new industries nary undergraduate degree includes challenging them to think critically as the Ministry of Education. Non-Qa- in Qatar and the region,” Dr Gerd Non- courses in international affairs, govern- they observe the world and to find ra- tari students either arrange their own neman, Dean at SFS-Q told Doha To- ment, economics, philosophy, theolo- tional and practical solutions for the payment, or they can apply for finan- day. gy, history, literature, language train- problems they identify. Furthermore, cial aid from Qatar Foundation, which At present SFS-Q is the institu- ing, and geography. But many of which our path-breaking research objectives is awarded on the basis of need. THURSDAY 18 FEBRUARY 2016 | 05 COVER STORY Some of SFS-Q’s graduates serv- ing in advanced positions in the gov- ernment of Qatar at present. These include H H Sheikh Abdullah bin Ha- mad Al Thani, the Deputy Emir, and H E Sheikh Mohamed bin Hamad Al Thani, Managing Director of the Su- preme Committee of Delivery & Legacy, (for the 2022 World Cup. SFS-Q’s 269 alumni are now present and active across the private and public sector, including in the Min- istry of Foreign Affairs and some for- eign diplomatic services, but also in sectors as diverse as energy, law, con- sulting, sport, media and education. About 40 of them have made a con- tribution at embassies, ministries, or other Qatari government entities. Al- so others working in the private sector, helping to add value and diversify the economy, and in organisations such as Teach for Qatar, helping to shape the next generation. “Our students come to Georgetown with the ambition to make the world a According to Dr Nonneman, there’s the new pedagogy into practice for Post-Doctoral Researcher Award com- better place – whether that be through so much that all members of SFS-Q its own Arab students and are open- petition. diplomacy or, for most, a whole range community do every day to make an ing it up to all of Education City. A set SFS-Q library and the new commu- of other roles in society and the econ- impact and supports Qatar’s national of web-based tools are also being de- nity classes are also great contribu- omy. We help them build the skills and development, that it is hard to single veloped which will carry the impact of tions made by the campus to the Qa- acquire the tools to be at their most ef- things out. this initiative to wider society. tari society. fective in making those contributions,” “But I must say that our students “Thanks to the vision of H H Sheikha “I also take pride from the impact said Dr Nonneman. and alumni, are one of our greatest ac- Moza bint Nasser, we have been able we’ve been having in the broader com- “Armed with a Georgetown degree complishments, and one that just con- to do the original research in this field munity. Our resources, generously sup- in one of four majors — International tinues to give. Our alumni – including that was non-existent before, and that ported through Qatar Foundation, al- History, International Economics, Inter- through Georgetown’s new GCC alum- was necessary to begin developing the low us to provide educational oppor- national Politics, and Culture and Poli- ni club – are providing valuable ca- required pedagogy and teaching ma- tunities to adult learners, by holding tics — our alumni can take on a wide reer development and networking op- terials for this crucial group of learners: Community Classes in a range of inter- range of tasks: all of them are trained portunities, and they are already hav- this is really about the youth of Qatar esting topics,” said Dr Nonneman. across several disciplines and must ing an impact in diplomacy as well as and the region,” said Dr Nonneman. “Also we have purposely made show excellent numeracy and literacy across private, public and non-govern- The research achievements of SFS- our library, comprising over 90,000 skills, as well as strong analytical and ment sectors. And our students are Q’s faculty is essentially considerable. physical items and more than a critical thinking. They have an under- leading the way in community serv- Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF) 1,000,000 digital books, journals standing of how economies and socie- ice and research, producing insightful has awarded SFS-Q researchers more and periodicals, into a resource for ties work and they bring to this an abil- papers and winning awards along the than $8m in grant since 2007. That the community at large: it has been ity to grasp the global as well as the way,” he said.