that its benefits will last. It will

tremendously affect my career,

as it has greatly affected my

opinion about the American

people.

Fella Benabed

I was selected by the US em-

bassy in Algiers to be one of the

18 participants in the Study of

the United States Institute

(SUSI) on Contemporary

American Literature, hosted by

the University of Louisville

(Kentucky) from June 17 to July

30, 2011.

From the first day until the last,

both faculty and staff ha worked

hard to offer us the best possi-

ble experience in the USA. The

organization of the Institute was

perfect; every possible question

that the participants could ask

was answered in a detailed bro-

chure that we were given upon

arrival.

The seminars on contemporary

US literature, based on intensive

reading and rich discussions,

were intellectually challenging.

They were always related to the

other arts, like painting, cinema,

and music, providing us with a

comprehensive view of contem-

porary US culture. The meeting

with publishers, poets and nov-

elists was also a special experi-

ence which allowed us to see

the literary works from differ-

ent perspectives than the only

one offered by a book.

During the seminar, we also had

the opportunity to travel to

different US cities, like San Fran-

cisco (California), Santa Fe

(New Mexico), Cincinnati

(Ohio) and Washington D.C.

We visited sites related to the

contents of our seminars; we

met writers and professors who

live and/or teach in those cities;

we had, of course, plenty of

time to visit sites of individual

interest.

One of the major benefits of the

Institute was meeting partici-

pants from 18 different coun-

tries, of different faiths and

tongues, with Americans from

different backgrounds. Our peaceful coexistence and fruitful

collaboration for six weeks has

fostered our understanding of

each other‟s culture and per-

sonality, and I personally made

my best to be a good cultural

ambassador of my country in

the United States of America.

From this firsthand experience,

my understanding of US litera-

ture and culture is much deeper

now, and it will certainly have an

impact on my teaching and re-

search, as I returned home with

many ideas and documents con-

cerning future syllabi, confer-

ences and publications.

The wonderful experience is

now over, but like other partici-

pants in the program, I am sure

The SUSI Experience

DEPARTMENT OF STATE

October 2011 Volume 2, Issue 20

El-Djazair Alumni Newsletter

Inside this issue:

The SUSI Experi-

ence

1

SILA 2011 2

PAO Visits Oran 3

IRC’s 100th Member 3

EducationUSA Ad-

vising Center

4

F. Banabed Awarded with

SUSI certificate by K. Orchin-son (SUSI Program Officer).

SUSI participants 2011 .

The end of the month of Sep-

tember witnessed one of the

major events of the Algerian

academic year, the 16th Annual

Algiers International Book Fair

better known as the „Salon

International du Livre d’Al-

ger’ (SILA). This event is more

than appreciated by the Alge-

rian population from all parts of the country and all fields as it

attracts not only students but

researchers, professionals,

parents, children and book

authors. The U.S. Embassy in Algiers

hosted a booth at SILA as it is

considered one of the coun-

try‟s greatest outreach oppor-

tunities.

The book fair drew a crowd of

over 1 million visitors, and the

Embassy‟s booth was consis-

tently packed with people ea-

ger to learn more about the

U.S. Embassy programs in Alge-

ria. This was the Embassy‟s second

participation in the fair and was

aimed at advertising the new

Information Resource Center,

its American Corners, ex-

change programs, educational

advising services and alumni

activities. The booth featured

“mini” IRC and American Cor-

ners, where visitors were able

to explore the various kinds of

books available at these Ameri-

can Spaces. The Embassy‟s staff

and volunteers, and even the

American Corner coordinators

from Oran and Ouargla were

on hand to answer questions.

Cultural Affairs Specialist Nadia

Ouhenia held information ses-

sions on the Fulbright and

Hubert Humphrey programs.

Education Advisor and Alumni

Coordinator, Abderrahmane

Boussoufa conducted im-promptu advising sessions with

more than 400 Algerian stu-

dents eager to find out how to

pursue their studies in the

United States. Special guest, Dinaw Mengustu,

American writer, spoke during

SILA and presented his works

to the Algerian public and

made many conferences and

interviews to promote Ameri-

can culture. The Embassy also used the

booth as an opportunity to

advertise its virtual presence, with laptops available for visi-

tors to check out the Em-

bassy‟s website and Facebook,

Twitter, and YouTube pages

right at the booth. Visitors

were able to “like” the Em-

bassy‟s new Facebook page and

sign up for the IRC‟s email

distribution. Bookmarks con-

taining information on the Em-

bassy‟s various social media

sites. Photos from the book

fair were posted daily on the

Embassy‟s Facebook page, and

the Educational Advisor ran a

daily Facebook trivia contest

where winners came to the

booth to claim their prize, an

EducationUSA t-shirt.

Through the number of visitors

and the greater interests

showed by the Algerian public,

SILA has, undoubtedly, become

one of the major outreach

tools used to promote pro-

grams and different opportuni-

ties available to the Algerian community.

A.B

SILA 2011

Page 2 El-Djazair Alumni Newsletter

U.S. Embassy booth, SILA 2011.

Educational Advisor’s Corner.

Writer, D. Mangustu posing with an

EducationUSA t-shirt winner.

U.S. Ambassador, H. Ensher visiting the

booth.

A view of the U.S. Embassy booth.

Public Affairs Officer, Tashawna

Bethea, and the Cultural Affairs

Specialist, Zahira Amarouche,

traveled to Oran on September

7 for the Access Graduation

Ceremony at Sibawaih Lan-

guage School in Oran, Algeria.

This visit is the PAO‟s first visit

to the western city. During her visit, the PAO met with the

director of the school and with

the Access school teachers.

The PAO reiterated the basic

principles of the Access pro-

gram and the importance of

English as a tool to communi-

cate the students‟ ideas, cul-

ture, and contributions to soci-

ety.

The Access Program is the

Department of State‟s most

successful and noted English

language program. The pro-

gram started in 2004 at Si-

bawaih Language School. Si-

bawaih also serves as a TOEFL

Test Center. The Access Pro-

gram provides a foundation of

English language skills to moti-

vated high school students

from disadvantaged back-

grounds through after-school

classes and intensive summer

course.

Skills gained through the pro-

gram lead to better employ-

ment and higher educa-

tion opportunities for alumni.

Several of the graduates from

Oran have participated in

Model UN, Fulbright, NESA,

and the Algerian Youth Leader-

ship Program.

During the same visit, the new

PAO in Algeria, Tashawna Be-

thea, also visited the American

Corner located at the Univer-

sity of Oran Es-Senia. This visit

was also an opportunity to

meet with the American Cor-

ner Coordinator, Fatima Kazi-

Aoul, and AC volunteers to

discuss the programs and suc-

cesses of the corner.

The American Corner is a

dedicated information space that helps to introduce visitors

to the American culture, the

AC provides a multifunctional

platform for public diplomacy

programs and offers access to

print, multimedia, and other

materials. The partnership with

the university helps to engage

with students, professors, and

community leaders.

A.B

shared cake with the 100th

member and some IRC visitors

who happened to be in the

right place at the right time.

The IRC announced its new

membership program at the

Algiers International Book Fair

in late September. That adver-

tising proved successful, as the

IRC has been bustling ever

since the fair ended.

On October 24, 2011, three

short weeks after initiating its

membership program, the IRC

reached its 100th member. The

IRC and PAS staff marked the

occasion by surprising the lucky

member with gifts and an im-

promptu party. Deputy Chief

of Mission Elizabeth Aubin gave

Radhia Hadji, a university stu-dent from Batna, a selection of

IIP “Outline” series books and

an EducationUSA t-shirt, along

with her new membership

card. PAS staff greeted and

PAO Visit to Oran

IRC’s100th Member

Page 3 Volume 2, Issue 20

PAO, T. Bethea poses with graduating Access students.

PAO meeting with the AC Oran staff and

volunteers.

DCM, E. Aubin and IRC’s 100th mem-

ber, R. Hadji

DEPARTMENT OF STATE

arship availability. Each of these five Advising Centers is funded

by EducationUSA and located

in private schools. These

schools are, Algerian Learning

Center, Berlitz, In-Tuition,

Language Services Institute and

Transfast. These centers offer

full and free access to the Edu-

cationUSA website, U.S. educa-

tional institutions information

and standardized tests prepara-

tion material (TOEFL, SAT and

GRE), and individual face time

On October 15, 2011, Greta

Holtz, Deputy Assistant Secre-

tary for Near Eastern Affairs,

paid a visit to EducationUSA

Advising Center located in the

American Learning Center, one

of the private schools partner-

ing with the U.S. Embassy.

Greta Holtz is responsible for

coordinating and supporting

Public Diplomacy activities in

the region, however, her visit

to Algeria was to support the

efforts of the Public Affairs

Section at the Embassy in Al-

giers and meet with Govern-

ment Officials in Algeria to

express the US Government's

commitment to continued

cooperation. The Deputy As-

sistant Secretary, Holtz, was

accompanied by the Deputy

Director of NEA/PPD Ana

Escrogima, Lavenia Holland,

and Sheila Coleman.

The EducationUSA Advising

Center is one of five advising

poles and offers a regular out-

reach opportunity for the Edu-

cationUSA Adviser, equipped

with computers and advising

material for students, to share

knowledge about academic

opportunities and exchanges,

including financial aid and schol-

with the advisor himself. Greta Holtz showed a great

interest in the explanations

given by ALC management on

the Advising Center but also

on the greater interest of the

Algerian public in learning the

English Language. She asked

many questions about the num-

ber of students and their level

and insisted that more efforts

should be done to respond to

these expectations.

Deputy Assistant Secretary Visits EducationUSA Advising

Center.

U.S. Embassy Algiers

PAO, T. Bethea and DAS, G. Holtz listening to ALC General

Manager, H. Chaib.

U.S. Embassy Algiers

U.S.Embassy Algiers-Alumni & Education Advising

U.S.Embassy Algiers Access Program

US Embassy Algiers

STATE ALUMNI

EducationUSA

Alumni Coordinator/Educational Advisor

Boussoufaa@state.gov

Visit the new Facebook page created to provide you with direct information on the U.S. Embassy‟s

activities, communities, culture and news. Check out:

U.S. Embassy Algiers

A New Facebook Page in Town.