By Hira Nafees Shah
Nearly 100 alumni of Community College Initiative program with the Chief Guest U.S Deputy Special Representative for Pakistan and Afghanistan Beth Jones
Mehbooba Irshad, a hardworking nurse from Chitral was the first female from her family permitted to study in the United States. During her one year of study at Greenwich Technical College, she learned about the healthcare system in America.
But all was not smooth sailing, because while she was bolstering her credentials as a nurse, her husband was in Pakistan looking after their children.
And despite having to make more personal sacrifices, Irshad did not give up her quest to serve humanity, even after returning to the country. Now she is working as the nursing supervisor at the Capital Development Authority, where she is well loved by her patients.
Irshad and nearly 100 other Community College alumni with their own inspirational tales, gathered in Islamabad February 28 to March 2, 2014 for the inaugural reunion of their exchange program organized by the Pakistan-U.S Alumni Network and U.S. Embassy Islamabad.
During the three day event, the working professionals shared information about their experiences in the U.S and what they were up to after returning to Pakistan.
“My Community College experience was wonderful,” said Sindhu Rustamani Baloch, a teacher who studied Human Resource in the U.S. “I found myself in America and realized my individuality.”
Another alumnus Sajeel Shahid received a diploma in Business Management. He said his exchange experience was life changing.
“My Community College experience changed my ideology about life. I realized that earlier my opinion about America was based on generalizations,” he said. “I also learned the importance of volunteerism during my time in the U.S and now devote my energy to carrying out volunteer work for the Christian community in Pakistan.”
The importance of this people-to-people contact in forging better ties between the two countries was also stressed on by other attendees at the reunion.
“What joins Pakistanis and Americans is stronger than what divides us,” said the chief guest at the occasion, U.S Deputy Special Representative for Pakistan and Afghanistan Ambassador Beth Jones.
U.S Deputy Special Representative for Pakistan and Afghanistan Ambassador Beth Jones
Giving back to the society is an important component of the Community College Initiative program in which young Pakistani professionals are given an opportunity to earn a diploma in the following fields: Agriculture, Applied Engineering, Business Management and Administration, Media, Tourism and Hospitality Management, Public Safety (Rescue/Disaster Management Services) and Early Childhood Education.
Many alumni of this exchange program have carried out wonderful work for the betterment of Pakistan after they return home.
“I am impressed by the work that CCI alumni do for their communities,” said U.S Embassy’s Assistant Cultural Affairs Attaché Jennifer McAndrew, while highlighting success stories of two Community College participants Mohammad Amin and Ali Channa, both of whom are winners of the U.S. State Department’s Alumni Engagement Innovation Fund (AIEF).
McAndrew also introduced the Alumni Coordinators at the U.S. Embassy Islamabad and the Consulates, and the staff members at the Pakistan-U.S Alumni Network’s office at USEFP, while encouraging the newly returned grantees to become active members of PUAN.
Alumni networking during an energizer
During the reunion, the alumni networked with each other and made friends from different provinces and regions across the country. The event also featured thought-provoking panel sessions, vibrant team building exercises and invigorating cultural and musical performances.
An interactive session was conducted by USAID non-profit management experts Darlene Foote and Mark Parkison from the Office of Stabilization and Governance, in which they shared tips with the attendees on how they could set up their own non-profit in Pakistan.
Alumnus Ali Madad from Hunza who specialized in Tourism and Hospitality Management, was full of praise for the reunion. He said the function helped to build contacts between various batches of the Community College alumni, while commenting on the panel discussion which he had found the most useful.
“The USAID panel was the most inspiring session, as it provided clear cut directions on how to set up a non-profit, in order to enhance the quality of life of people,” said Madad.
“The session on social media was the most interesting, because now I can tell other people how to earn a livelihood through it,” argued Hussain Ahmed, a 2009 alumnus and an attendee from Sukkur.
The dialogue on social media included an impressive lineup of people such as renowned TV host and Black Box Sounds CEO Tauseeq Haider and Turab Gilani, IVLP Alumnus and Director Operations at White Rice Communications.
Nazir Sabir speaking at the Panel session on “Pakistan Tourism Today: Challenges and Opportunities”
The alumni hung on to every word at the session on tourism, which included Nazir Sabir, the first Pakistani mountaineer to have ever climbed Mount Everest. Sabir and other speakers lamented over the state of tourism in the country, while pointing out the great potential that Pakistan had as a sightseeing destination.
“Tourism can help break the cycle of terrorism by providing jobs,” said Aftab Rana, President Sustainable Tourism Foundation Pakistan.
Cultural and musical performances were also a part of the function. The CCI grantees had a blast dancing with the Assistant Cultural Affairs Attache Jennifer McAndrew to the songs by a band from Hunza called “Sado-e-Pomir.” A Nescafe Basement Band “Keeray Makoray” also provided an unusual eclectic mix of tunes at the reunion.
Assistant Cultural Affairs Attache Jennifer McAndrew dancing to the tunes of “Sado-e-Pomir” with CCI alumni
But enjoying themselves and meeting friends was not the only thing on the minds of all the participants. Many of them were also pondering over how they could make use of the information they had received at the reunion.
“I am thinking of applying for an Alumni Small Grant and will concentrate on a project on health, either related to women issues or something on administering polio drops to underage children,” said Farkhanda Yasmeen, a nursing instructor from Faisalabad.
Apart from a presentation on how to apply for Alumni Small Grants, the reunion also featured a session on Fulbright Scholarship Opportunities, to enable the attendees to start preparing for their futures.
“I believe I can make use of the information provided by the Fulbright panel, as I think I can achieve something substantial by getting this scholarship,” said Abdul Basit, a 2012 alumnus who studied Electrical Engineering in the U.S during his Community College experience.
On the final day of the event, a team from the Islamabad-based Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) led a series of teambuilding activities, where participants gained new leadership skills to improve their organizations. A variety of creative exercises taught the alumni skills such as negotiation, consensus building, collaboration, active listening and strategic leadership.
Team-Building exercise at the CCI Reunion
Finally a lunch at the picturesque and traditional Des Pardes in Saidpur Village culminated the reunion and the alumni set off for their homes with fond memories of the event.
View a photo album from the reunion at:
https://secure.flickr.com/photos/109908453@N05/sets/72157641803480765/
