IYLEP Blog Contest: The land of dreams

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Zainab Jassim (center right) and fellow IYLEP students with UMass staff member, Mohammed Elghoul

Alumni of the 2013 Iraqi Young Leaders Exchange Program reconnected this winter in Erbil. Alums from both the High School and Undergraduate programs gathered to reflect on their experiences and participate in workshops and panel discussions that built upon the skills students developed last summer in the U.S. Meridian invited IYLEP alumni to submit a blog post describing their personal experience and growth with the program. We selected the winning entries to post on The LEAD.

The land of dreams. That’s what goes through anyone’s mind when he or she arrives in the USA. The IYLEP was our own, unique experience in the USA. To be there as one hundred students in an exchange program was the most wonderful chance in our lives. Everyone told me that I was so lucky because I was accepted from the first time I applied. I took my acceptance as a great opportunity to see a new world, to know, learn, and participate in teamwork one way or another. From the first time we met our friends, professors, and mentors, I was so happy because I had a lot of American people around us so I could communicate with them all the time in English, learn from them, and tell them about our amazing culture. The thing that I really loved about Americans is that they are kind, helpful, and really open-minded so they can accept any person from any culture.

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Meridian International Center from the Eyes of an Intern

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Meridian Interns Sarenna Cech and Elizabeth Westbrook with Meridian employees

For the past semester, I have been extremely fortunate to intern in the GlobalConnect department of Meridian International Center. While I am still a bit in denial about the fact that the semester is almost over, this post will be an opportunity to reflect over the past couple of months and give my thoughts about interning at Meridian. First and foremost, for anyone who is interested in applying to intern in one of the many departments at Meridian International Center, I recommend it wholeheartedly. This internship has been a fantastic opportunity: I have been introduced to great people from...

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Learning to Network through IYLEP

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IYLEP 2013 Reunion Participants with Meridian Team Members

Since coming back home from USA at IYLEP 2013, I have been involved with IFMSA-Iraq, or Iraq branch of the International Federation of Medical Students’ Associations (IFMSA). The IFMSA was officially established in 1951 after the end of World War II. It currently maintains 114 National Member Organizations in 108 different countries so far, and its main goals are divided according to the work of its 6 committees (Public Health, Medical Education, Professional Exchange, Researches Exchange, Human Rights and Peace, and Reproductive including AIDS).

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Young Iraqis Reconnect in Erbil

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Opening Remarks

Marhaba from Iraq!  Meridian staff is on the road again, this time in Erbil located in the Kurdistan region of Iraq.  It is claimed that Erbil is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the World.

Meridian is implementing a two 2-day leadership programs with alumni from the Iraq Youth Leadership Exchange Program (IYLEP).  The first, focused on reuniting participants from the high school program will take place February 5-8, and the second, reconnecting participants from the university program will take place February 12-15.

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