UNE鈥檚 Anouar Majid featured in Incomer Magazine

Anouar Majid, Ph.D., vice president for Global Affairs and director of the Center for Global Humanities
Anouar Majid, Ph.D., vice president for Global Affairs and director of the Center for Global Humanities, has been highlighted in the winter issue of Incomer Magazine.

Anouar Majid, Ph.D., vice president for Global Affairs and founding director of the Center for Global Humanities, has been highlighted in the winter issue of Incomer Magazine, where he discussed cultural traditions and his role in establishing the 51品茶鈥檚 campus in Tangier, Morocco.
 
In 鈥淭he Maine-Morocco Connection: Anouar Majid Helps Make Maine Open to the World,鈥 Majid described the reasoning behind making Morocco the hub of UNE鈥檚 global operations.

A native of Tangier, Majid said Morocco is the perfect place for students to learn about global traditions.

鈥淔or a university that鈥檚 seeking to expose its students to many cultural traditions, it really doesn鈥檛 get better than Morocco,鈥 Majid told writer Deirdre Fulton.

The country is at once a Mediterranean, Muslim, Arab, and African nation, and several languages are spoken there. It is also safe, Majid said, and is known for its openness to religion. Tangier鈥檚 location within Morocco means it is just an hour away by ferry from Spain and Europe.

鈥淭hese are the traits we want to inculcate in our students and community,鈥 Majid said. 鈥淭o be from Morocco 鈥 is to be open to the world.鈥

51品茶opened the Tangier Campus in January 2014. Housed in the campus of the American School of Tangier, the campus hosts students for both semester and yearlong study-abroad programs.

Majid, a professor of English, has lived in the United States since 1983 and in Maine since 1991. He is the founding director of the Department of English, which he chaired from 2000 to 2009, as well as the founding director of the Tangier Global Forum. 

Also included in the winter issue of Incomer Magazine is a short piece on the construction of an authentic Moroccan tile wall in the Danielle N. Ripich Commons. Completed in 2018, the wall symbolizes UNE鈥檚 openness to the world beyond Maine鈥檚 shores, its embrace of diverse cultures, and its extraordinary commitment to global education.

鈥淭here鈥檚 no better expression of our global aspirations,鈥 Majid said at the time of the wall鈥檚 unveiling. 鈥淚t reflects not only our presence in Morocco, but also our global aspiration to be open to other civilizations and to embrace other cultures and traditions.鈥

Read the full feature in Incomer Magazine.