Empire State University’s Center for International Education awarded grant for DEI Education in Lebanon

(SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY – SEPTEMBER 5, 2024) Empire State University’s Center for International Education has been awarded a grant by the Public Diplomacy Section of the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, Lebanon titled “DEI in Lebanon, A Cross Cultural Dialogue.” SUNY Empire faculty and professional experts will provide transformational seminars on topics related to diversity, equity, and inclusion for students at the American University of Technology (AUT) and the American University of Science and Technology (AUST), our partner universities in Lebanon, throughout the 2024-2025 academic year.

Jeannine Mercer, academic program director for the Center for International Education’s Lebanon Residency Program, said stigmas associated with topics on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) have caused a lack of public forums in Lebanon on neurodiversity and gender equity and inclusivity. 

“’DEI in Lebanon, A Cross-Cultural Dialogue’ aims to tackle and discuss topics on diversity, equity, and inclusion with university students and educators that may be too culturally sensitive for the Lebanese to address alone, considering the many different powerful religious and political groups in Lebanon,” Mercer said. “Such topics may challenge the ideology of these groups, and as a result, schools and organizations in Lebanon lack the ability to fund these types of awareness campaigns.”

Mercer said recent economic crises and political tensions have limited funds available for governments and private schools to provide awareness campaigns or infrastructure related to DEI campaigns. Additionally, Mercer said rising tensions in the Middle East have resulted in less overall funding for NGOs and organizations that can promote DEI themes.

“The Lebanese institutes of higher education seek to be progressive and to bring the best opportunities for education and global awareness so their students can succeed in life and in their careers,” Mercer said. “They are interested in engaging in activities with Empire State University on topics such as neurodiversity and female inclusivity and equity, so that they can spread the message and implement processes and policies which reflect current trends.”

The Fall 2024 term will focus on neurodiversity in higher education. The sessions will focus on American cultural practices and trends led by Anamaria Ross, lecturer, and Noor Syed and Lauren Allen, who lead the Center for Autism Advocacy: Research, Education, and Supports (CAARES) at SUNY Empire. These sessions will help participants understand how to recognize and accommodate neurodiverse students and employees, with the help of high school guidance counselors from Northern Lebanon and relevant NGOs.

“This will be the first intervention of its kind in Lebanon – especially at the university level,” Nay Hinain, director of Student Affairs at AUT, Lebanon, said. “Even within psychology departments across universities within Lebanon, there is no actual training on best practices for interaction with neurodiverse individuals. Also, we hope that this initiative will rectify the cultural rejection of mental health issues in Lebanon on a larger scale and provide psychoeducation for those who aren’t so knowledgeable about the issue.”

The Spring 2025 term will focus on women’s issues with discussions, seminars, workshops, and a public panel presentation led by Jennifer Mincin, associate professor, centered on the challenges and opportunities of female empowerment in Lebanon. The seminars will train educators and students on how to integrate women and marginalized individuals into organizations and groups given the legal discrimination many women experience in Lebanon.

“This will be a tricky subject to navigate, considering the strong religious and cultural beliefs that reinforce laws that favor men, and the aim is not to unearth cultural norms,” Mercer said. “The hope is that these conversations will spark excitement that will enable Lebanese society and leaders to develop their own strategies for increasing female inclusivity in education, politics, and other aspects of society.”

SUNY Empire students will have the opportunity to participate in these activities virtually, providing a cross-cultural educational opportunity without leaving home.

“Virtual exchange activities, such as this one, have been shown to help students develop the global competencies that are so important in today’s workplace,” Lorette Pellettiere Calix, co-PI and lecturer, said. “We hope this specific exchange with Lebanon will help our U.S. students better understand and lose their fear of people from this often-misunderstood region of the world. Our U.S. students who plan to work professionally in the area of neurodiversity will benefit from learning the different cultural perspectives related to neurodiversity, helping them be aware of those issues when working with anyone from another culture. All students can benefit from understanding other perspectives on gender issues and appropriate ways to interact with women from another culture as they will encounter people from other cultures in their workplaces and daily life.”