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Letter from ECA
Dear BIP Alumnae:
The term "alumnae"
is derived from the Latin verb alere, which means
"to nourish." Thus, alumnae are women who
have been nourished by their alma mater, their "nourishing
mother." Now I would hardly argue that MEPI BIP
is a nourishing mother; however, I believe many of
your skills, ideas, and ambitions have been nourished
as a direct result of the MEPI BIP experience.
I hope you embrace the idea
of alumnae and alma mater and the wonderful notions
it conjures up. What a great way to view yourself,
an alumna of MEPI BIP, a woman nourished by the experience
of such a program.
As alumnae of your alma mater,
the MEPI U.S. Business Internship Program, not only
do you benefit from the experience, you must share
your experience and nourish others. This nourishment
can take form in numerous ways, from teaching your
colleagues the skills you learned on your program
to sharing your experience as alumnae to the soon-to-be
alumnae returning home from their FY05 MEPI BIP experience.
Many of you have been nourishing
others with stories and examples of your experience
since the day you returned (or even before) and some
are just beginning to do so. Whichever your case may
be, keep up the good work and be sure to assist the
U.S. Embassy and AMIDEAST in welcoming the newly returned
MEPI BIP II women home at the end of March.
Laura Alami
Program Officer
Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA)
U.S. Department of State
AlamiLT@state.gov
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BIP
Profile: Amel Benameur |
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Amel
Benameur working at Manheim, Atlanta, GA
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A
nurturing atmosphere, cutting-edge management
research—and used cars? "I was surprised,"
says Amel Benameur of her experience with Manheim
in Atlanta, Ga. "It's a very supportive and
challenging environment."
The whole Middle East Partnership
Initiative Business Internship Program, in fact,
has been "far beyond my expectations,"
Benameur comments. She has been active in product,
marketing, and distribution management roles within
multinationals in Algeria for almost a decade,
and for her the MEPI-BIP opportunity came "at
the perfect time."
"I was searching for some
new challenges; I wanted some change in my professional
life. It was time for me to move to a higher level,"
recalls Benameur. "I was thinking of ways
to step forward…but still…in order
to get there and succeed, I needed guidance, some
kind of coaching, and some kind of training."
Continue...
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About
BIP News
BIP News
is a forum for the BIP alumnae community to express
views, share experiences and stay connected. Published
quarterly, BIP News is sponsored by the Bureau
of Educational and Cultural Affairs, U.S. Department
of State and produced by AMIDEAST.
How to
participate in BIP News:
Submit your alumnae
updates, professional achievements, community activities,
points of view and recent photos to Lia Hutton at
lhutton@amideast.org.
Submission guidelines:
Submissions may be edited for
style and language. Not all essays/comments submitted
will be printed. All submissions must include your
name and contact information including email address.
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About
MEPI
The Middle East
Partnership Initiative (MEPI) is a U.S. Presidential
Initiative founded to support economic, political, and
educational reform efforts in the Middle East and champion
opportunity for all people of the region, especially
women and youth. The initiative strives to link Arab,
U.S., and global private sector businesses, non-governmental
organizations, civil society elements, and governments
together to develop innovative policies and programs
that support reform in the region.
About the
Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, U.S. Department
of State
The Bureau of Educational
and Cultural Affairs (ECA) fosters mutual understanding
between the United States and other countries through
international educational and training programs. The
bureau does so by promoting personal, professional,
and institutional ties between private citizens and
organizations in the United States and abroad, as well
as by presenting U.S. history, society, art, and culture
in all of its diversity to overseas audiences.
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