LAU Responds to the Needs of Private and Public Institutions in Lebanon
The university pursues its academic mission with both private and public sectors through two separate agreements.
Following a series of initiatives to help advance the country, LAU continues in its endeavor to meet the needs of academic, corporate and governmental institutions. To that end, the Continuing Education Program (CEP) has partnered with MetLife Insurance to train the company’s staff, while, in another signed agreement, the University Enterprise Office (UEO) has committed to an academic engagement with the Lebanese State Security Directorate.
“LAU, like any leading university, has a commitment to the generation, dissemination, and application of knowledge be it through research, teaching, or service,” said LAU Provost George K. Najjar. “And one of its defining features has been its engagement with and service to the community.”
CEP’s role has been to marshal all LAU Schools and maximize the university’s community engagement in promoting adult education, professional development, applied research and impact creativity. To date, CEP has devised several tailor-made training workshops and seminars for a range of industry sectors, from banking, financial and academic institutions, hospitals, NGOs, to Ministries of the Lebanese Republic.
Together with MetLife Insurance, CEP will now be offering a set of interactive workshops that foster the financial expertise of the company’s officers. Implemented over three days of five hours each, the sessions will target financial principles required for professional growth and customer satisfaction, providing participants with the tools necessary to apply financial concepts to authentic situations. Upon completion of the workshop requirements, MetLife officers will receive a certificate of participation.
“CEP’s collaboration with a company of the stature of MetLife is an asset to both institutions,” said Mona Majdalani, assistant provost for Academic Affairs and professor of Mathematics Education. “They share a common vision; that of change. CEP’s change is translated in quality professional development program offerings, while for MetLife it is in the investment in education for their staff members and the expectation that they will keep up with the times.”
Meanwhile, and through UEO, LAU has signed an agreement with the Lebanese State Security Directorate, whereby the university provides members and officers of the Directorate and their families with academic financial assistance in the form of reduced fees for postgraduate studies in all disciplines.
The agreement for academic cooperation was signed by the Director-General of State Security, Brigadier General Tony Saliba, and LAU President Joseph G. Jabbra during a ceremony held at the headquarters of the Directorate in Ramlet el Baida, attended by Deputy General Director Brigadier General Samir Sinan, leaders from the university and a number of officers.
“Our meeting is an act of building and integration,” said Jabbra in his address. “It is aimed at building the nation and the people through this agreement which provides the officers of the Directorate what they seek in the field of specialized studies in order to meet the challenges of today and the requirements of globalization of tomorrow.”
LAU will help advance the Directorate’s priority to raise the level of performance and professionalism through graduate academic programs that the Directorate’s officers and members will join at LAU as part of the signed agreement.
“The security and intelligence required to safeguard the State call for an umbrella of science and culture that will strengthen the national message it upholds,” said Saliba. “We found this in our agreement with LAU, namely the opportunity to harness the best scientific and academic know-how to serve our nation and better protect our citizens.”
This is the latest of several partnerships undertaken by the university to empower its society and help build a modern state. Other such initiatives with the Lebanese General Security Directorate have included a cooperation agreement, executed by UEO as well, whereby the university provides members and officers of the Directorate and their families with academic financial assistance in the form of reduced fees for postgraduate studies in all disciplines; a three-phase leadership training program implemented by LAU’s Outreach and Civic Engagement unit (OCE) in conjunction with the Hariri Foundation for Sustainable Development; and a training course in gender-based violence, conceived and conducted by the Institute for Women’s Studies in the Arab World.
“The university has the honor to be the army of education, knowledge, and science for the guardians of our country,” said Walid Touma, the director of UEO and executor of the agreement. “It is our privilege to empower, educate, and serve those who have the capacity and fortitude to assist in building a better nation for us and our children.”
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