Tuesday, October 15, 2002

WRITER: Alan Flurry, (706) 542-1653, aflurry@uga.edu
CONTACT: Takoi K. Hamrita, (706) 542-1973, thamrita@engr.uga.edu

UGA PROFESSOR AWARDED GRANT TO ESTABLISH PARTNERSHIP WITH THE UNIVERSITY SYSTEM OF TUNISIA

ATHENS, Ga. — A grant of nearly $300,000 to establish a partnership between the University of Georgia and the University System of Tunisia has been awarded to Takoi Hamrita, associate professor in UGA’s department of biological and agricultural engineering. The grant was awarded by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the U.S. Department of State, with matching funds from UGA and the government of Tunisia.

Hamrita, a native of Tunisia, is the project director and catalyst for the grant, which involves the participation of UGA faculty from the Institute of Higher Education, the Fanning Institute of Leadership, the International Office of Agriculture, the Office of Instructional Support and Development, and from the department of animal science.

The partnership between UGA and the Tunisian university system was established through L’Institut Supérieure de Comptabilité et d’Administration des Entreprises (ISCAE). It will address the need to develop college and university leaders in the field of Tunisian higher education who are comfortable with and capable of moving effectively within the rapidly changing environment of global higher education. The grant will focus on the field of higher education leadership and management concentrating on such topics as strategic planning, curriculum development, university structure and governance, financial management, institutional research and other topics that may emerge from the on-site needs assessment.

"I am excited about this opportunity to work with a diverse and distinguished group of people at UGA on a project that is close to my heart. This is a chance for me personally to give something back to Tunisia and to create new ties between our two countries, between America and the Arabic/Muslim world, at time when it is so important an issue that speaks to our shared future," said Hamrita.

The 2000 World Bank and UNESCO Task Force Report on Higher Education in Developing Countries notes that "higher education has never been as important to the future of the developing world as it is right now. It cannot guarantee rapid economic development but sustained progress is impossible without it."

Thus the partnership’s goals are the improvement of Tunisian secondary education so that its colleges and universities can realize their full potential in promoting social and economic development in the country. The project is designed to develop current and future leaders for Tunisian higher education administration and faculty by mutual design of a comprehensive professional development curriculum and personnel exchanges between the universities and countries. Activities will be conducted in four phases over the three-year life of the project. Over the long term, the professional development seminars and activities of the partnership will provide a philosophical and operational foundation for the establishment of a culture in Tunisian higher education that values the importance of lifelong learning as a basis for social and economic improvement.

Hamrita is a Lilly Teaching Fellow and a member of the UGA Faculty of Engineering. She has been awarded grants from the NSF for new engineering instruction techniques.

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