The Hala Salaam Maksoud Foundation for Arab-American Leadership is welcoming applications for its next intensive, 5-day leadership training seminars scheduled for Oct. 24-28, and Nov. 14-18, 2007, in Washington, DC. Applicants for both seminars are encouraged to apply as soon as possible.
Applicants should send a letter of interest explaining their desire to become community leaders or activists, a CV and a writing sample or any other relevant material to:
The Hala Salaam Maksoud Foundation 815 Connecticut Ave. NW Suite 200 Washington, DC 20006
There is no charge for the training sessions, which are held in Washington, DC, but participants are responsible for their own travel and accommodation. The training will be led and coordinated by the Hala Foundation's Program Director, Dr. Hussein Ibish.
Participants are asked to commit to attending the full five days of the program and a refundable deposit may be required.
Applicants should be young Arab-American professionals who have completed their education and have already begun their professional careers, or those in the final stages of a Ph.D. program. They should have a demonstrable commitment to advocacy on behalf of Arab-American concerns, and a desire to devote substantial time and effort to leadership on behalf of the community.
The Leadership Training Program is designed to create a national network of highly trained, informed and focused young Arab-American professionals equipped to take on the advocacy and organizational efforts required for community leadership.
The Leadership Program provides extensive training in:
* Command of the Issues: mastery of both information and arguments * Presentation Skills: making the case effectively * Interpersonal Skills: making friends and influencing people * Organizational Skills: mobilizing the community * Collaborative Skills: building effective teams * Coalition Building Techniques: finding unexpected allies * Networking: building a national network of trained activists * Continuous Improvement: developing long-term relationships with trainees
Feedback from participants in previous leadership training seminars:
“As a journalist, I found the Hala Foundation Arab-American Leadership Training Seminar a priceless and unparalleled wealth of information on all things concerning Arab America.
The five day seminar offered an in-depth look at every hot topic concerning our community-from the Patriot Act to Palestine---and managed to do so in a fair and balanced manner. Each session was filled with fresh perspectives on timely and controversial issues and each new debate was augmented by reams of painstaking research. By the week's end, we'd honed the most effective and compelling ways to discuss our community's issues with the rest of America. The Hala Foundation is the first real training ground for Arab-American advocacy, and already, our future looks brighter.“ Lorraine Ali, Newsweek"Like its namesake, the Hala Salaam Maksoud Leadership Training Program is innovative, progressive, and inspiring. The major issues facing Arab-Americans are tackled in-depth in a comfortable and stimulating environment comprised of accomplished co-participants, impressive guest speakers, and Hussein Ibish, a remarkably powerful and distinguished voice in Arab-American advocacy. It's well worth shuffling your schedule around to get the week off. If you're serious about working for the Arab-American community, and joining a growing network of forward-thinking people committed to progress for Arabs, apply for this program."
Farid Farid, MD, Columbia University Medical Center
“I found the training sessions at the Hala Foundation to be one of the most intellectually stimulating experiences I've had in some time. Dynamic speakers, fascinating topics and an inviting environment are some of the factors that made this experience worthwhile. Already, I have been able to take what I learned in Washington and apply it to my classes and my own research.“
Professor Dave Zoby, Casper College
“This was by far the most effective leadership training I have ever received. It was absolutely worth juggling my schedule and sacrificing my precious few days off because the skills and network I developed there will last a lifetime. This is a genius endeavor – it is groundbreaking, cutting edge, and brilliant, much like its namesake.“
Maysoon Zayid, Comedian and actress
“The Hala leadership program is a must for any Arab-American who is serious about making a difference - as a leader - in our American social or political life. I gained the most from Dr. Ibish's recommended counterarguments to fight back media and so-called "expert" commentators' false comments about Arabs and Muslims.“
Amir Ahmed, International Assignment Editor, CNN
"My week at the Hala Foundation training was one of the most valuable and inspiring of my professional career. I was given access to our community's sharpest minds and most accomplished leaders. Even more important, the learning doesn't end when you leave Washington. I'm now lucky to be a part of a growing network of Arab Americans from all ends of the political spectrum unified in our dedication to the empowerment of the Arab American community."
Rebecca Abou-Chedid, Government Relations Specialist, Arab American Institute
“It is by far the best training of its kind that I have ever received. I don’t think it is an exaggeration to say that, if offered widely, this project could have a significant impact on the quality of Arab American activism in this country. The seminar’s underlying rational and methodic approach is badly needed to rehabilitate the often emotional and loosely argued case of Arab Americans.“
Ammar Askari, Ph.D., President, ADC Wisconsin; community education administrator, Marshall and Ilsley Bank
“I am fortunate to have been afforded the opportunity to engage in sessions that were rejuvenating on a professional, political and even spiritual level. I made new friends and saw old ones in a different light. The fact that we could converse, discuss and debate a wide variety of issues over dinner and coffee for two to four hours following eight-hour intensive training sessions speaks volumes. It was truly a remarkable experience on many levels and I am honored to have been a participant.“
Engy AbdelKader, attorney and author of “A Muslim Woman’s Guide to Her Rights“
“Loved it, loved it, loved it. It's a testimony to the Program's unique approach that, after being brought together for a week of intense dialogue on the most difficult issues facing Arab Americans, we each left determined but also inspired and uplifted. The week was as much about grasping a hard situation as it was about discovering ways to address it--not as remote, besieged individuals, but as part of an active, committed collective that, despite internal differences, reaches out, and supports each other. Incredibly, in one fantastic, boogey-down, get-your-soulmates-on week, the workshop provided the tools necessary – i.e. knowledge (including an encyclopedic amount of information, as well as valuable lessons imparted by those long-active within the community), skills, contacts, encouragement and support - to develop that attitude.“
Kristin Shamas, University of Oklahoma
“The Leadership Training Program exceeded ALL of my expectations. We were encouraged to think for ourselves and to act on our goals in a proactive, effective manner to benefit the Arab-American community as a whole. To potential participants: Please take advantage of this opportunity!"
News 
intensive, 5-day leadership training seminars scheduled for Oct. 24-28, and Nov. 14-18, 2007, in Washington, DC. Applicants for both seminars are encouraged to apply as soon as possible.