Session Description: Morocco has always been able to catch the attention of travelers, explorers, and learners for its diverse cultural profile, geographic allocation, foods, and languages. The story of Morocco has been told by historians, explorers, journalists, and Moroccan immigrants themselves.

Some Moroccan immigrants suddenly become language teachers, intercultural mentors, and advisors in global education, leaning on their expertise as educators, but the majority of these migrants become intercultural educators just by crossing the borders.

The processes of sharing language and ‘culture’, food and stories with students, and host communities has been a daily practice for Moroccan migrants in Europe and North America.

Meanwhile, things are changing in Morocco while migrants (like us) are busy working and adjusting to their new environments. How do we keep the story alive, and relevant, when realities keep shifting in our countries of origin while we try to stay true to the essence and stories we teach and share.

Presenter Bios: 

Jamila Chahboun: Jamila Chahboun is a Senior Lecturer of Arabic at the Department of Middle Eastern Studies at Dartmouth College and co-advisor of the Arabic Language Community-Global village at Dartmouth. She holds a Master’s degree in Social Justice in Intercultural Relations from SIT Graduate Institute (School for International Training), Brattleboro, VT.  She also holds a BA in English Linguistics from Ibn Tofail University in Kenitra, Morocco.

Jamila served as a language instructor and a Cross-Cultural educator and language instructor at the Center for Cross-Cultural Learning in Rabat, Morocco. She worked as a Program Coordinator for SIT Study Abroad, Elderhostel, and the Experiment in International Living (EIL).

In 2003, Jamila served as a Fulbright Scholar where she taught Arabic at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She also worked as an Arabic instructor for undergraduate students at Marlboro College, Marlboro, VT, and at the SIT Graduate Institute in Brattleboro, VT where she helped in redesigning the Arabic language program.

Jamila has been working as a consultant and curriculum design specialist at SIT Study Abroad assisting to conceptualize and design SIT Study Abroad Arabic language programs in North Africa and the Middle East. She is a member of the Institute of Study Abroad (IFSA) Middle East Advisory Committee (MEAC) at Butler University in Indiana where she helps review Middle East Study Abroad programs and Arabic language curricula.

Jamila has been serving as an applications’ reader with the critical language scholarship (CLS), a Department of State cultural and educational exchange program. She is a member of the Middle East Studies Association (MESA) and has presented on topics related to languages and dialects in the Middle East and North Africa.

Jamila lives with her husband, Mokhtar, and their daughter in West Lebanon, NH.

Dr. Mokhtar Bouba: Dr. Mokhtar Bouba has over 20 years of experience with designing and facilitating study abroad and experiential learning programs in Morocco. He holds a Ph.D. in leadership studies and education from Franklin Pierce University in New Hampshire. His work focused on the dynamics of image and image negotiation in Sahara Desert tourism. He has written and lectured about online education, cross-culture, tourism, Amazigh (Berber) culture, current issues in North Africa, and arts. He is also an artist, educator, and indigenous methodologist. Dr. Bouba also specializes in online pedagogies and education technology.

Before assuming his role of Assistant Professor and Co-Chair of the Intercultural Service, Leadership and Management program at the School for International Training Graduate Institute (SIT). Dr. Bouba was the instructional technologist for World Learning academic programs, supporting LowRes and, online and on blended programs. He had a leading role in the design and implementation of SIT’s Master of Arts in TESOL (online) low-residency program.

Recent study abroad programs he has led include a field course, Morocco Tourism, Space and Sustainability, offered to SIT Graduate Institute students in VT. He has served as an Academic Director with SIT Study Abroad in Jordan and as a coordinator and program development specialist at the Center for Cross-Cultural Learning (CCCL) in Rabat, Morocco. He designed and directed many exchange programs including programs with the Experiment in International Living and Rhodes Scholar.

He has advised SIT students and Fulbright scholars and taught Tamazight (Berber) and Arabic at Peace Corps, the Center for Cross-Cultural Learning in Morocco, and online. He has been an Arabic instructor at SIT Graduate Institute, where he helped re-design the Arabic language program for graduate students.

Dr. Bouba is working on a book project titled “Dynamics of Image and Image Negotiation in Moroccan Sahara Desert Tourism”, which is about the ethics and politics of representation of the Sahara and its people. He is currently a lecturer in the Middle Eastern Studies Department at Dartmouth College.

Co-Sponsored by: The Roukema Center for International Education, the George T. Potter Library, the Provost’s Office, and the Global Indigenous Network.