Marywood’s mission statement is an extensive, thorough explanation of the intended goals for its students. Its last goal is to “educate global citizens to live responsibly in an interdependent world.” President Lisa Lori plans to expand on that belief.
During the first weeks of October, Lori, alongside Dean of the Reap College, James Eckler, and Assistant Dean of Global Initiatives, Jessica Hess, attended the graduation ceremony of Marywood’s partner university, the Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport (AASTMT). Fifty-one Marywood students graduated at this ceremony. Marywood has been attending these graduation ceremonies since the beginning of the dual program. A majority of these students learned virtually through Marywood.
Farah Ibrahim was a part of Marywood’s “1 + 1” program, where students from AASTMT study abroad at Marywood for one year and another year at their home institution. She graduated in December 2024, but joined the October graduation ceremony in Alexandria. Now, Ibrahim works here at Marywood as an assistant in the International Program Department.
“Egypt, it’s not about self-study. No, you go to the course, you go to class, and then they give you every single thing in detail. So, having this experience, it’s more self-taught,” Ibrahim said.
This current dual MBA program with the Arab Academy is the only one available, allowing students to conduct more targeted research on a personalized path. This “1 + 1” program was added as an addendum in 2023.
Hess also comments on Egypt’s culture: “I was told Egyptians never sleep, and as a New Yorker, they say New York never sleeps, but they were right. It’s kind of morning till night, filled with cultural activities.”
Marywood has previously partnered with the Arab Academy, offering only an MBA and PhD program.
During the visit, Lori signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with His Excellency Dr. Ismael Ghaffar, the president of AASTMT. This MOA discusses plans to offer possible undergraduate programs in architecture, nursing and business with a supply chain logistics focus for Marywood students.
Another program that may be offered is a three-week immersion program. For AASTMT students, they would attend Marywood over the summer. For Marywood students, a three-week immersion program would be offered in January. Students would start this trip in Aswan and travel down the Nile River, ending in Cairo, while visiting Egypt’s landmarks.
“I’m hoping for January 2026; it may not happen till January 2027, but it’s going to probably be in the January time frame,” Lori expects.
This program would teach its students virtually from Marywood’s main campus in Scranton.
“Once we have that presence there, then we would potentially be able to expand that into sending domestic students to Egypt, or we could do a faculty-led program that could participate in the Arab Academy program,” Eckler explains.
His Excellency Dr. Ghaffar and his delegation will come to Marywood to finalize the MOA in December of this year.
“Once we roll out the three-week immersion program, I just hope the students take advantage of it. Don’t be afraid,” Lori adds.
To check the latest updates about this upcoming opportunity, check Marywood’s Study Abroad website.
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