Published: February 2008
Arabic, the most popular non-Romance language among undergraduates, is the fastest-growing language program on campus. In three years student enrollment has jumped from 15 to 160. Atef Ghobrial of the Slavic and Eastern language department, who teaches some 50 beginners this year, says enrollment has risen not only because of a desire to understand Arabic language and culture in the aftermath of 9/11, but also because Arabic skills make students “more marketable.” He reports that private European and American companies, the FBI, and the U.S. Department of Defense have employed his former pupils. Above, Ghobrial teaches a class on January 25 in Gasson 307.