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Fulbright Recipient from Pratt Institute Visits Dar al-Kalima University 
Art and Design Education Chair and Professor Aileen Wilson of Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York has recently arrived at Dar al-Kalima University for a Fulbright Specialist Program. The prestigious United States Department of State program sends diverse, highly experienced, well-established faculty members and professionals representing a wide variety of academic disciplines and professions to serve as expert consultants at academic institutions abroad for two-to-six weeks. 
This is the third such award for Wilson, who has come to Bethlehem for almost three weeks to work with faculty members at Dar al-Kalima University’s Department of Fine Arts. Her research interests focus on the education of artists and designers and their role in contributing to a creative economy. 

Long before Professor Wilson became an American professor, she was raised in Scotland. She earned her Bachelor in Fine Arts at a small art school in Northern Scotland and then her Masters of Fine Arts in printmaking in London, England. Professor Wilson soon began teaching art with underserved communities such as the homeless, elderly, and disabled. This work fueled her and motivated her to study the use of art as an economic and educational engine in society. 
Professor Wilson chose to partner with Dar al-Kalima University because of its deep ties with the local community and high potential for mutual interest. She has a special place in her heart for smaller art schools, as they remind her of her own educational experience in Scotland. The inherently personal aspect of tight knit educational communities such as Dar al-Kalima University speaks to Professor Wilson, as she appreciates the value of schools being completely embedded in their place. 
After two weeks here, Professor Wilson has been impressed by the students and classes alike. She has spent much of her time sitting in on intriguing class discussions on topics such as community art and the social responsibility of artists. The agency and resourcefulness of Dar al-Kalima University students has surprised Professor Wilson, in their compulsion to produce art with intentional materials and meaningful mediums. Students’ internationalism and the professional feeling of art studios felt familiar and welcoming to her. Dar al-Kalima University stands out to Professor Wilson as an incredibly positive place for young people.
She has also observed how many of the faculty at Dar al-Kalima University act as professionals, students, and practitioners; a model directly in line with her own Pratt Institute. Learning alongside committed practitioners is a beneficial experience for students, Professor Wilson believes, in that they are familiar with roles in the professional field following graduation from the university. She has also begun to consider ways to further connect her own Pratt Institute with Dar al-Kalima University. Exchanges, modeling pedagogical structures, visits, are all possibilities to be explored. She has most enjoyed her time getting to know the students of Dar al-Kalima University and is grateful for the opportunity to build relationships and connections across the art world.