universities are near collapse and the life of a scholar is quite a dangerous one. That is why I applaud the Scholar Rescue Fund of the Institute of International Education for planning a massive operation to rescue Iraqi scholars. Plans have not yet been finalized but the fund hopes to offer renewable awards to as many as two hundred senior scholars, most of them professors, in order to allow them to teach and conduct research at institutions throughout the Middle East and North Africa. Moreover, according to an article in Inside Higher Ed,
through the use of distance learning technologies, the professors will be able to connect with their students back in Iraq while working with students from the respective host countries and displaced Iraqis living throughout the region.
The idea seems to be to save the scholars but not deprive the students left behind of an education. We’ll see if it works. It will be wonderful if it can, but Iraq has had serious infrastructure problems since the invasion in 2002, so it is anybody’s guess. But let’s hope for the best.]]>