Aug. 28, 2006

Contact: Gordon Ovenshine 724-738-4854; gordon.ovenshine@sru.edu

SRU TO BEGIN INTERNATIONAL ALUMNI SPEAKERS SERIES SEPT. 7

SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. – Mohammad Nasib, a Slippery Rock University graduate working to promote peace in Afghanistan, will deliver “Afghanistan Today” at SRU on Sept. 7, the first speaker for the university’s new “International Alumni Speaker Series.”

Free and open to all, the 7 p.m. lecture is in the auditorium of the new Advanced Technology and Science Hall, to be followed by a showing of the film “Kabul Transit.” A 2006 release, the movie looks at the city impacted by nearly three decades of war andfollows city residents in the course of their daily lives. There is no charge.

In addition, Nasib will receive SRU’s first Distinguished International Alumni Award at the President’s Gala in Pittsburgh on Sept. 9.

Nasib, who graduated summa cum laude from SRU in 1992 with a degree in public administration and international comparative politics, will talk about his experiences at SRU and how they molded his life and work in Afghanistan.

 “At SRU, I was treated very well, received help when it was necessary, was encouraged to get involved in discussions and counseled academically and socially,” Nasib said.

Nasib currently serves as managing director for the Welfare Association for the Development of Afghanistan, a non-profit organization in with a primary focus on civic education, peace building and democracy. WADAN has also drug rehabilitation centers in Paktia, Kandahar and Helmand provinces.

            Born near Tora Bora, Nasib moved to Pakistan after the Soviet invasion, he came to SRU on a scholarship.

           Pam Frigot, director of SRU’s Office of International Services, said the newly developed International Alumni Speakers Series will annually bring two alumni a year back for classroom and campus presentations as well as student and faculty meetings.

           “It will help current international and domestic students make connections,” she said, adding SRU has 1,800 international alumni. “Most of the international alumni graduated in the 1990s or later and are now at the point in their careers where they’re accomplishing great things. We want them to come back, to reflect on their Slippery Rock University education and what it means to their careers, and to inspire our current students and staff to do great things.”

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