Press and Events 2009
English Access Microscholarship Graduation Ceremony At Ras Al Khaimah Men’s College Auditorium
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
One hundred UAE national high school students from Ras Al-Khaimah and Fujairah were recognized for successfully completing the English Access Microscholarship Program sponsored by the U.S. Embassy to the UAE and the U.S. Department of State.
In a ceremony held April 29, 2009 at the Higher Colleges of Technology Ras Al-Khaimah Men’s College, H.E. Minister of Education Dr. Hanif Hassan Ali and Ambassador Richard G. Olson, Jr. presented the students with graduation certificates and congratulated them for their achievement. Ambassador Olson also thanked the parents of the graduates for the support and encouragement they have given their children in pursuing the study of English.
The English Access Microscholarship offers secondary school students from across the UAE the valuable opportunity to improve their English language skills through special individual scholarships for English study. English Access Microscholarship Programs have provided over $ 400,000 (AED 1.5 million) in scholarship annually.
For the first time, the scholarship was offered for two academic years and this is the first group to complete the two years. The program funded 200 extra hours of classes taught by qualified native speaker English teachers for two academic years. The scholarship enables UAE students with limited access to English language training to improve their language skills and compete with other students to join reputable universities in the UAE and overseas.
As part of the course, the students were offered the opportunity to use the language to communicate in English speaking environments. Meaningful opportunities to practice their newly-learned skills included field trips and guest speakers. These trips included visits to the U.S. Embassy in Abu Dhabi and the U.S. Consulate General in Dubai, guest speakers, as well as visits to American college fairs and American cultural events like the Pine Leaf Boys Cajun Music Band.
Schools that participated in the program include the Noura Bint Sultan Secondary School for Girls and the Tunb Secondary School for Boys, both in Ras Al-Khaimah, and Dibba Al-Fujairah Secondary School for Girls and the Mirbeh Girls School for Basic and Secondary Studies, both in Fujairah.