US Educators Build Bridges of Understanding
- Pipeline
- Saudi Aramco News
- Sponsored Tours
Author: Stephen L. Brundage
Released 2 July 2005
Angela Cain, Khieta Davis, Jerome Hoynes, Linda Hammon, Joan Johnson, Sally Farr, August Plock, Emory Calhoun, Antoinette Whytoshek, Charles Mihle, Jimmy Newman, Kelly Convery and John Etheridge
Photograph by Aramco ExPats
ARAB NEWS (SAUDI ARABIA), DHAHRAN, 2 June 2005 — “Some people say the oceans separate us,” Yusof Rafie, Saudi Aramco senior vice president of Industrial Relations, told a group of visiting American educators. “But I believe they connect us and bring us together.”
For 10 days, the people of Saudi Arabia and the American teachers built new bridges across those waters as they toured the Kingdom, learning about the Saudi educational system, the country and its people during a tour organized by the Institute of International Education and Saudi Aramco.
The group of 16 teachers traveled to Shaybah in the Rub’ Al-Khali, picnicked on the Gulf shores near Al-Aziziyah, rode camels outside of Riyadh and shopped in Old Jeddah. Along the way, they visited Saudi schools, from Dhahran Ahliyya to Dar Al-Hekma Private Women’s College in Jeddah, and they learned about the country’s rich heritage and culture.
“Each province was completely different. We learned so much in Dhahran, Riyadh and Jeddah — everything just came together,” said Jimmy Newman, a social studies teacher with the Pflugerville (Texas) Intermediate School District.
Many of the teachers didn’t know what to expect from their visit. Despite some negative reports about Saudi Arabia in the American media, they put their preconceptions aside and replaced them with personal experiences.
“The thing that surprised me the most was the warmth and hospitality of the Saudi people across the board,” said Jerome Hoynes, a social studies teacher at Glenbrook North High School in Northbrook, Illinois. “The perception often portrayed by the United States media is very negative. It doesn’t look at the common ties we have and the friendships we have with Saudis.”
“I was humbled by the way they seemed to take us into their hearts and families,” said Emory Calhoun, a social studies teacher from the Ideal Academy Public Charter School in Washington, D.C.
“We support and applaud all your brave efforts to create bridges of understanding between our two cultures,” Khalid I. Abubshait, acting executive director of Saudi Aramco Affairs, told the educators.
The teachers arrived at a time when Saudi Arabia is undergoing the greatest changes since the first American oil explorers helped create the company that has become Saudi Aramco.
“Those very early Americans probably never imagined the extent to which Saudi Arabia would evolve and change over the years,” Abubshait said. “If you look around you here, you will see some of the change of which no one ever dreamt.”
One of the most notable changes is the entry of Saudi women into the work place.
“I’ve learned that despite the obscurity of the identity of women, when they took off their abayas in the company of us women it was so powerful,” said Khieta Davis, a social studies teacher at Flower City School in Rochester, New York. “They were very articulate, creative and insightful.”
The teachers met young women all across the Kingdom whose passion for knowledge was inspiring.
“From what we saw, the educational system for women was superb, especially in Riyadh and Jeddah,” Newman said. “In Jeddah, the women were on fire for education. You could see what was going on there. I was very impressed by what’s going on in the private schools.”
Some explored the identity of Saudi women even more. “I decided to wear a full hijab for the whole day,” said Kelly Convery, a social studies teacher from St. Peter Prince of the Apostle School in San Antonio, Texas. “I decided to do it so I could better explain it to my students. It’s such a focal point for so many people outside Saudi Arabia. It was really interesting to see the reaction. There were so many things I realized from wearing it all day long. It gave me a new perspective about the women.”
It was a time for many new perspectives.
“I was in the Peace Corps 35 years ago in Iran, and I’ve been in several countries, but this surpasses all of those put together,” said John Etheridge, a social studies teacher from Pharr-San Juan-Alamo North High School in Pharr, Texas. “I could have never imagined having an experience as life-changing as this one was.”
The organizers were pleased with the trip.
“This is a wonderful, wonderful group of teachers,” said Nancy Overholt of the Institute for International Education. “They’re really superb. They’re the kind of people we want to have teaching the next generation and the kind of people we want to come as citizen diplomats to Saudi Arabia. Every day, they get into a time machine, and they travel to the future with their young people.”
The time travel went both ways.
“My most memorable and emotional moment was being on a bus going out of Riyadh to a ranch, and when we made a turn, there were these incredible people on camels,” said Barbara Ford-Foster, a library media specialist from Lucy Ellen Moten Elementary School in Washington, D.C. “The only way I can express it was that it was like having one foot in history and the other in today’s world. Every time I think about it, I just well up and get emotional. I can’t even explain it to you. It was beautiful.”
As the teachers prepared to return to the United States on their last night in the Kingdom, many expressed hope that some day they would return. “One of the goals for the trip was to build bridges, and I think the best way to build bridges is to open the lines of communication,” said Rachele Esola, a librarian from St. Patrick High School in Chicago.
“It’s been an incredible experience, and we made some wonderful contacts. We met a young woman in Jeddah, and she and her friends wanted to make a library. I’d love to come back and help.”
“Inshallah, I’ll be back,” said Calhoun. “I don’t know what the future holds, but I would love to come back to Saudi Arabia. I don’t want to lose the friendships I’ve made here.”
“I’m volunteering, and I know the other two teachers from Chicagoland think that we could have an outstanding program for them,” said Hoynes. “We were excited about creating linkages between students. We have genuine contacts now with people who sincerely want to have communication between Saudi youngsters and American kids. I would urge someone to sponsor a trip for Saudi educators to visit America. So many Americans don’t know about Saudi Arabia. Bring over a group of 20 Saudis, and we’ll extend a tremendous welcome to them in Chicago and Washington. It would be a great trip.”
“I’d come back in a minute — just give me that visa,” Hoynes said. “They say it’s coming. I think everyone in our group is watching closely with fingers crossed that the forward-thinking people we’ve met on this trip will have success moving the Kingdom forward in a positive way.”
Perhaps more than accentuating the differences between Saudi Arabia and the United States, it spotlighted the similarities.
“On the political questions, I find that my students and myself feel the same about some issues the same way that people do here,” Etheridge said. “We want the Saudis to know that many of us — millions of us — are on their side. They are not alone.”