The enduring Moroccan-American relationship spans centuries. Over the years, numerous joint projects, agreements, and initiatives have been undertaken to strengthen these ties.
Notably, one such initiative is the Moroccan-American Commission for Educational and Cultural Exchange (MACECE), which focuses on fostering cultural and educational exchanges between the peoples of both nations, setting the stage for deeper connections.
MACECE recognizes the revelation that language acquisition and culture are fundamentally intertwined, particularly in today’s interconnected world. As such, to better grasp the commission’s goals and missions, we interviewed Dr. Rebecca Geffner, its Executive Director for the Kingdom.
MACECE is a binational commission, which was established by a treaty between the U.S. and Morocco in 1982. “As part of our mission we oversee the Fulbright program in Morocco, which is the flagship international program of the U.S. Department of State,” Dr. Geffner stated.
The Fulbright program was established back in the 1940s and exists in 160 countries all over the world.
It is an international exchange program offering professionals, scholars, and students the opportunity to study, work, and conduct research overseas.
The initiative, with commissions in 49 countries, including Morocco, seeks to promote intercultural communication and cross-cultural exchange.
“We currently cover 14 programs annually under the Fulbright umbrella, and these programs are for Moroccans to travel to the United States for study, research, teaching, and professional development, and also for Americans to come here for the same purposes. Every year we send between 60 and 70 Moroccans to the U.S. and receive about 30 Americans here in Morocco,” she elaborated.
“Probably one of our most popular programs is the study-grant program, which opened for applications in February and closes on June 15(..). It is for Moroccan students to apply for up to a two-year master’s program in the United States at a U.S. university,” Geffner pointed out.
She elucidated that the scholarship encompasses all financial aspects, including tuition, airfare, living expenses, health insurance, and materials.
As a means to underscore the significance of Arabic language acquisition and instruction, MACECE has introduced the Foreign Language Teaching Assistant (FLTA) program.
The FLTA program endeavors to encourage the acquisition of Arabic among American university students who are non-native speakers.
Both public and private Moroccan English instructors are eligible to apply to teach Arabic for one year, with public school educators submitting applications through the Moroccan Ministry of Education, and private institution teachers applying directly to MACECE. Successful candidates among the applicant pool will also have the opportunity to engage in non-degree studies, enrolling in a minimum of two courses per semester at an American academic institution.
The initiative enables them to refine their pedagogical skills in a new setting while also immersing themselves in an exclusive cultural environment through in-person interaction with new individuals from diverse backgrounds.
The Head of MACECE applauded this unique program, stating, “This is a wonderful opportunity for cultural immersion, increasing English language proficiency, and obtaining exposure to the educational system in the United States, which in many ways is quite different from what we experience here.”
Similarly, the commission sponsors initiatives which enable Americans to participate in opportunities in Morocco. Among these initiatives, the English Teaching Assistant (ETA) Program stands out.
This program offers American university graduates the opportunity to teach English in Moroccan higher education institutions. “They are spread across different faculties around Morocco and teach various English courses including grammar, phonetics, and history,” Geffner added.
For her, it is “…a great opportunity for Moroccan students to be exposed to a native speaker in their classrooms.”
The executive director elaborated on MACECE’s offerings, highlighting opportunities such as the U.S. Scholar Program, which enables American professors to take part in teaching or research projects in Morocco.
These opportunities are open to researchers from a wide range of disciplines including arts, history, culture, and sciences, among others.
MACECE also promotes reciprocal programs for Moroccan academics to pursue research in the U.S., promoting mutual academic interactions.
When asked about the cultural values that MACECE seeks to promote through its programs, the director emphasized that culture is at the center of the programs, while stating, “Cultural exchange is a big part of the Fulbright program . . . We find that it’s an important program for both governments to really promote the mutual friendship that has been lasting since the founding of the United States.”
Geffner recalled the friendship between the two nations. “As you know, Morocco was the first country to recognize the United States, and that friendship has continued for two centuries (..). This diplomacy and friendship we have is really important,” she stressed.
Geffner also emphasized the significance of cultural exchanges, focusing on the interactions. “People-to-people exchanges; that’s where it all starts.”
She highlighted how these exchanges enable Moroccans to share their traditions, culture, and community with Americans who may not be familiar with Morocco. Similarly, Americans get the chance to share values emanating from their diverse communities and traditions with Moroccans.
Dr. Geffner then went on to emphasize the role of participants as cultural ambassadors, as they represent both countries. “One of the important things we look for is their ability to be what we call cultural ambassadors, because we want to have the best representations of both the United States and Morocco during the exchange program,” she pointed out.
Morocco encourages language acquisition and global openness through the recent English teaching reform, which involves the implementation of the foreign language in the first and second year of middle school.
Geffner affirmed MACECE’s support for this reform and its pivotal role in fostering English language proficiency in Morocco. She outlined several key strategies employed by institutions to achieve this objective.
MACECE ensures that all its programs for Moroccans mandate a certain level of English proficiency as a prerequisite. Additionally, participants benefit greatly from immersive experiences in the U.S., where they spend up to an entire academic year within American communities, leading to significant improvements in their English proficiency. Furthermore, scholars and researchers gain exposure to scholarly work and publications during their time at U.S. universities, resulting in marked proliferation of their publications.
Along the same lines, hosting American educators in Morocco exposes Moroccan students to native speakers through programs such as the ETA, where assistants are fully immersed in public universities, teaching English daily for an entire academic year.
Sending Moroccan teachers to the U.S., even though they primarily teach Arabic, places them in a 100% English-speaking environment, with this immersion leading to substantial improvements in their proficiency levels upon their return to Morocco.
Looking to the future, the director reiterated the program’s commitment to advancing its goal of encouraging cross-cultural understanding in the years to come. She spoke about considerations of sustainability, funding, and the expansion of scholarship opportunities.
The programs of exchange between Moroccans and Americans, of course, necessitate financial support.
Efforts are underway to explore diverse funding sources to ensure sustainability and to potentially broaden program offerings. “We, of course, want to be able to offer more scholarships to more Moroccans and that takes money (..). So we’re looking at different funding sources for the future to promote that,” the director revealed.
The significance of person-to-person interactions in fostering understanding and overcoming various difficulties–including those of a political, economic, and governmental nature–were also highlighted by the speaker.
“I see Fulbright and I see MACECE certainly doing a lot in the future, continuing to look for ways to sustain our programs and also add to our programs and scholarships and go forward,” she stated.
In conclusion, MACECE’s chair called on everyone to visit MACECE.ma website and engage with social media platforms to learn more about grantees, alumni experiences, and success stories.
We had the privilege of meeting one of the Fulbright recipients who shared with us her experience with the program.
PhD Fadwa Chaker, Fulbright Alumnus 2007-2009 – MBA, at Duke University, U.S., recounted her journey. “I hold a degree in computer science engineering and I used the Fulbright program to develop my skills in management because I wanted to learn more about it and to develop my potential in the field.”
For Chaker, the exchange program is not only about education but goes beyond. “The Fulbright program is great because it’s not just about earning a degree and having access to knowledge.”
She continued, “You know, knowledge is accessible everywhere today, just by enrolling in an online course, but you cannot meet the right people at the right places.”
With remarkable clarity, she went into the varied patterns of cultural exchange facilitated by the program, clarifying its significant impact. “When you meet Americans, you explore a new culture… You learn from them, they support you, they host you, and they welcome you.”
Chaker, who is also an entrepreneur, offered a reflection on her transformative Fulbright program, highlighting the true spirit of her time abroad in a worthy experience. According to her, “When you are inspired by people, when you are empowered by a system, and when you come back home, you want to take that back to your country, to give back. You want to empower back, and you want to inspire back.”
“You find a system there that takes you and brings you up. And that’s the real advantage of the experience,” she continued.
Influenced by encounters with notable academics and intellectuals throughout the program, the Fulbright alumnus embarked on a doctoral studies journey with a strong desire to contribute to the development of education in Morocco.
Fadwa’s Fulbright experience also served as an inspiration for her to empower education in vulnerable areas in the Kingdom, especially for less fortunate students. “Education is really the foundation of development…whatever inspiration you had, you want to take it home and bring it back here.”
She has also devoted herself to social and volunteer work. “I created my NGO, and today we build schools in rural areas (..). We try to empower those kids to guarantee high-quality education and to level up their abilities.”
Finally, the graduate praised the overall adventure she experienced while in the United States and applauded the program not solely for its academic or cultural purposes, but also for the personal development opportunities it provides. “The Fulbright program is more than just technical knowledge, really. The experience is about making you grow as a person and taking responsibility to give the best of yourself to your country and people.”