Foreign delegates visit ACC, learn about college

Eight delegates from North Africa and the Near East visited ACC on Feb. 16 and 17 to explore the college's curriculum. They focused specifically on programs such as nursing, renewable technology, and women in green jobs.

The representatives – educational administrators from Morocco, Libya, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and Palestinian Territories – were selected by the U.S. Department of State's International Visitors Leadership Program to study community colleges and vocational education in the United States.

"The concept of a community college does not exist in any other part of the world, so this is a unique concept they're being exposed to here," said Pamela-Jean Mohamed, the associate executive director of international programs for the International Hospitality Council of Austin (IHCA).

"They're looking at starting community colleges in their countries to service the gap between students who finish high school but don't qualify to go to a university, as well as students who maybe need a little extra time or really have no desire to get a college degree," she said.

The hope, according to Mohamed, is that their countries will adopt a community college system to offer more educational opportunities to students.

"The U.S. is trying to get the countries to give an educational, vocational background to these students so that they can have certificates and have careers that they can be proud of and to see the professions as honorable," she said.

During the delegation's two-day visit to Eastview, Riverside and Rio Grande Campuses, college administrators spoke on topics such as career and job placement services, transfer issues, and success initiatives, as well as the college's vocational programs. The group also took tours of the school's electronics and applied technology and health sciences departments.

"Community college is a very unique system that you only find in the U.S.," said Stephanie Amundson, director of international programs at ACC.

In order to provide insight into the system, Amundson said the college aimed to make presentations visual and hands-on.

"We did a lot through multimedia and very visual presentations. We wanted to make things come alive, so watching students in a classroom working on different robotics systems or making sculptures made it more personal, and they could meet and talk with people. And that's also part of the cultural exchange that you want a group like this to have when they come to the U.S," said Amundson.

For the past 50 years, delegates from countries around the world have visited the U.S. through IHCA to study various aspects of American culture. Austin is often a key destination for groups studying community colleges, according to Mohamed.

"Because ACC is the eighth largest community college in the country, it has the jobs and the legacy of programs. It also has up-and-coming programs like the women in green jobs program," said Mohamed.

Austin was the last stop for the delegation's two-and-a half-week journey across the country. The representatives also visited the University of Texas and Hendrickson High School in order to study the connection between ACC and four-year universities and local high schools.

"We've had groups like this in the past, and we hope that there are more in the future," said Amundson. "It's a wonderful way to bring Austin to the world and the world to Austin."