CAMPUS NEWS

Ground Breaking Ceremony for the New Teacher Education Building by the United States

Pakistan celebrates the graduation of the first-cohort of new teaching degrees

Mansehra, November 12, 2012 – The United States reinforced its long-term commitment to advancing education in Pakistan through the groundbreaking for a new, $1.5 million Faculty of Education building at Hazara University in Mansehra. “This new faculty of education building will go a long way toward helping Pakistan improve the quality of education in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa”, this was stated by the Vice Chancellor of Hazara University, Prof. Dr. Syed Skhawat Shah while he led the groundbreaking ceremony today in Hazara University.

Vice Chancellor Prof. Dr. Syed Skhawat Shah awarded degrees to 49 students from the Regional Institute of Teacher Education in Abbottabad who have been awarded Associate Degrees in Education after successfully completing two years of studies. These two-year degrees were introduced to Pakistan by the Higher Education Commission (HEC) with USAID support, along with a four-year Bachelor’s Degree in Education. USAID helped design and introduce these degrees in order to increase the quality of teacher preparation at universities throughout Pakistan.

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission Director Jock Conly congratulated the graduates through a special message saying, “The United States government is deeply committed to helping Pakistan develop strong educational institutions. Together with the Government of Pakistan, the United States is working to improve the quality of education throughout the country. A good teacher can unlock every child's potential and this building will help Hazara’s teachers prepare their students rise as far as their hard work and initiative will take them.”

Over the next two years, USAID will provide $15 million for the construction and rehabilitation of seven Faculties of Education buildings across Pakistan. More than 2,000 students and 100 faculty members will use these buildings every year, including the recipients of the new ADE and B.Ed. degrees. Teachers will also receive continuing education in the new, U.S.-funded facilities that will help train teachers working in some of the nearly 500 schools that the U.S. has helped build in Pakistan since October 2009.

U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Senior Education Advisor, Muhammad Tariq Khan representing the Mission Director Jock Conly and Vice Chancellor Prof. Dr. Syed Skhawat Shah led the groundbreaking ceremony. “The United States government is deeply committed to helping Pakistan develop strong educational institutions,” remarked Tariq Khan. He added,“Together with the Government of Pakistan, the United States is working to improve the quality of education throughout the country. A good teacher can unlock every child's potential and this building will help Hazara’s teachers prepare their students rise as far as their hard work and initiative will take them.

Tarek Selim, Chief of Party for the USAID Pakistan Reconstruction Program (PRP) told that the faculty of education building being constructed at the Hazara University will have 16000 square feet covered area, having six class rooms, multi-purpose hall for hundred people, learning resource center, two laboratories, a seminar room and ten rooms for faculty. He said that building will also have twenty postgraduate rooms besides a dean office, administration room and faculty lounge. “This building, to be completed by end of the coming year, will accommodate three hundred students and has been designed to resist earthquakes besides being environmentally sustainable and energy efficient.” Tarek told the journalists.

NUML Delegation visits Hazara University

Campus Report - A high level delegation from National University of Modern Languages (NUML), Islamabad visited Hazara University on Sept. 12 to search avenues for mutual research and academic collaboration between the two institutions.

Vice Chancellor, Prof. Dr. Syed Sakhawat Shah welcomed the guests and discussed different areas of   bilateral cooperation in teaching and research. The Vice Chancellor appreciated the efforts of

NUML in promotion of 27 modern international languages and assured the guests of his university full support and cooperation to work on joint ventures.

The delegation included Brig. (r)  Saeed Akhtar Malik, Registrar, Dr. ShahzaraMunawar, Dean Faculty of Advanced Integrated Studies and Research (FASIR), Athar Rashid, Assistant Professor, Faculty of English Language, Literature & Applied Linguistics. Col.(r) Javid, Director Acadamics, Dr. Fazal-e-Raziq, Director Libraries.

Athar Rashid, coordinator of the visit, thanked Hazara University for extending every possible support in organizing the visit. He expressed the hope that Hazara University would reciprocate the call of NUML and pay a visit of the varsity soon to materialize the very objective of the initiative.

Dr. Arif, QEC, briefed the delegation about various development projects and plans of the university. Mr.Fazal-e-Raziq, Director Libraries, paid a visit to the central library of Hazara University and met the staff. He discussed various issues with the incharge of the library and presented his services for the up gradation of the library on modern lines.

Later on, the guests visited Museum where Muhammad Arif, Assistant Director, briefed them about various sections of the museum and showed them different antiquities collected during different surveys of Hazara Division and other parts of the country.

Prof. Syed Shaukat Ali, head department of Communication and Media Studies (CMS) invited the guests to visit the department and Hazara University Broadcast Academy (HUBA). They visited Campus Radio FM 98.6 and office of the Campus Observer; newspaper published by the department. Prof. Shaukat Ali lauded the keen interest of the academicians and administrators of the NUML to develop and strengthen ties between the two universities. Prof. Shaukat apprised the group that CMS department intended to establish a language center to equip its students with different important international languages in near future and said that NUML could help in this regard. The delegates pledged every possible support in this regard and said their university was ready to provide expertise in various languages especially Chinese and French. The staff of the campus radio briefed the guests about various sections of the radio station and its function. The staff arranged a panel interview for the guests.

The group also visited pheasantry of Hazara University and took keen interest in different pheasants.