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WILLIAM PATERSON UNIVERSITY PROFESSOR SPENDS SABBATICAL TEACHING IN UNITED ARAB EMIRATES Tina Lesher, a professor of communication at William Paterson University in Wayne, is spending the spring 2001 semester as a visiting faculty member at Zayed University, an all-women's institution in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a small country on the Arabian (Persian) Gulf. Lesher, who is currently on sabbatical, is teaching introductory communication courses in the Department of Communication and Media Science at the university's campus in Abu Dhabi, the country's federal capital. The university, which opened in 1998, also has a campus in Dubai. Because UAE natives, called nationals, only comprise about 20 percent of the country's population, the ruling family has launched a strong education initiative. "The education of women is a key part of the strategy," Lesher explains. "Until recently, women were not educated, and many of my students here tell me their mothers cannot read." All students at Zayed have laptop computers, and classrooms are wired for Internet, library and database access. Classes are taught in English, the business language of the Emirates; students take several courses in English and computer science before entering a major. Courses meet five days a week from Saturday through Wednesday; Thursday and Friday are considered the weekend. The students are garbed in traditional Emirati dress: a long black, flowing robe called an abaya, and a head covering called a shaila. Many students also wear face veils. "Just several decades ago, this country was made up of Bedouin traders and pearling fisherman. And then came the oil. Today, many of my students come from wealthy families and they have traveled to different parts of the world," Lesher says. "It is so fascinating to see a culture in change." Lesher, who will remain in Abu Dhabi until late June, is penning an e-mail newsletter for her friends and University colleagues that describes her many experiences. "It has been a marvelous experience," she says. "I would recommend it highly to anyone." A resident of Westfield, Lesher joined
the William Paterson faculty in 1989. A graduate of Wheeling
Jesuit University, she earned her master's degree in journalism
from the University of Missouri School of Journalism and her
doctorate from the Rutgers University Graduate School of Education.
She is immediate past president of the New Jersey Press Women.
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