Metro State has received an $85,500 Group Project Abroad Fulbright award for four Metro State faculty members and nine teachers from the Jefferson County School District to hold a month-long seminar in Egypt.

Ali Thobhani, interim director of international studies, wrote the proposal and is the project director.

The four Metro State faculty members are Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice and Criminology Allison Cotton, Visiting Assistant Professor of Art Christine Dupont-Patz, Assistant Professor of Women’s Studies Arlene Sgoutas and Assistant Professor of History Paul Sidelko. They, along with Thobhani and the Jeffco teachers, will spend June 28-July 31, 2008 in Egypt studying the culture.

“We’ll have lectures, field trips and individual projects,” Thobhani said. “We’ll be interacting with Egyptians from all walks of life.”

After they return, the group will meet monthly through the fall 2008 semester. “We’ll increase their knowledge of Egyptian culture on site, and then improve their teaching of that knowledge through the monthly meetings,” Thobhani explained.

A longtime faculty member at Metro State, Thobhani has had five similar Fulbright programs funded since 1985: two to Kenya, one to Ghana and two others to Egypt.