Introduction
Aaron and Dee are the two newest US-based coordinators hired bythe Academic Leadership Center (ALC) in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia(KSA). Their primary task is to help the ALC identify credentialedfemale lecturers and presenters from the United States toparticipate in training workshops and leadership forums foraspiring faculty in the KSA higher education system. However, thecurrent political climate is creating some cross-culturaldifferences and personal assumptions about the venue that aremaking it difficult for them to find speakers willing to considerthe opportunity.
Background on KSA Higher Education
The KSA has long been established as an oil country, and much oftheir economy is driven by the production and sale of oil, makingit a commodity-based economy. Realizing that the long-termsustainability of this model would eventually put the Kingdom inpotential jeopardy, King Abdullah created a vision for the countrythat centered on moving the nation to a knowledge-based economy.The 2007 King Abdullah Project for General Education Developmentwas a $3.1 billion project (Asharq Al-Awsat, 2007). His successor,King Salman, supported King Abdullah’s vision and propelled itforward with the nation’s blueprint for growth, which hecharacterized as a “pioneering and successful global model ofexcellence” (Saudi Gazette, 2016, para. 1) in Saudi Vision 2030 –the country’s plan for the future. The themes of the vision are:(a) an ambitious nation; (b) a vibrant community; and (c) athriving economy (Saudi Gazette, 2016, para 20). With a new focuson a knowledge-based economy, King Abdullah turned his attention toeducation in KSA. Two significant factors were at play. First, thephysical structure of institutions of higher education wereexpanded and upgraded. Most of these institutions were constructedwith separate but equal campuses for women. And second, theestablishment in 2005 of a national scholarship to educate Saudimen and women at Western universities. By 2007, approximately 5,000students took advantage of the scholarship in the US (GeneralAuthority for Statistics [KSA], n.d.) and 89,423 by 2014 (WorldEducation News & Reviews, 2014). The modern higher educationsystem in the KSA is relatively new; in fact, only threeinstitutions of higher learning are more than 50 years old. And,about 63% of the public universities were created in the past 15years (Global Penn State, n.d). In 2008, the KSA housed 24government-supported institutions of higher education (not countinginstitutes), and by 2017, that number grew to 37 (Buller, n.d).With the onset and growth of colleges and universities within theKSA came a need for training. Within the KSA, law prohibitsexpatriates from holding key positions such as Dean or VicePresident (Vice Rector). These government-sponsored positions mustbe held by Saudi nationals. Clearly, with the rapid growth ofcampuses across the nation, those individuals moving into suchpositions from the faculty ranks needed to have resources forprofessional development and training in the business of highereducation administration. In 2009, the Ministry of Higher Education(now, the Ministry of Education), sponsored the development of anewly formed ALC, modeled largely off the American Council onEducation and Universities of the United Kingdom. The ALC wasspearheaded by a team of leaders at King Fahd University ofPetroleum and Minerals, in Dhahran, under the leadership of HisExcellency, Dr. Khaled S. Al-Sultan. The vision of the ALC was “tobe a leading centre in the region for the advancement of leadershipin higher education institutions” (Smith & Abouammoh, 2013, p.40). The early programs of the ALC focused on such topics as: TheEssential Academic Leader; Introduction to Academic Leadership;Advancing Undergraduate Education through Best Practices inTeaching and Learning; and Advancing Professional Developmentthrough Best Practices in Leadership and Administration. Today, theservices of the ALC have grown to include: training andconsultation to potential leaders of higher education; directconsultation service to sitting university leaders; an emergingnational faculty mentorship program (spearheaded by the onlyfull-time Western ALC female faculty development trainer); researchstudies related to KSA higher education; a training-thetrainerprogram; and full-blown leadership forums and symposia, of whichthe first was for women (on which the male forum was modeled).
Background on Women in the KSA
The KSA remains an enigma in terms of women in society. Askwomen there how they feel, and you will get mixed answers. Manywant the right to drive a car, while others say, “Why would I wantto do that, when I have my own driver? Wouldn’t you want someone tohelp you load your strollers and groceries and pick you up at thefront door in the rain wherever you are shopping?” They have apoint. Some women are angered when Western women judge them asoppressed. This is a mistake often made in the midst ofconversations – one to be avoided. Tribal values are very muchrevered and regarded, and many Saudi women see those values as partof their heritage. Western ways are exactly that – the ways ofWesterners.
Interestingly, however, as the world’s most gender-segregatednation, there are changes underway. The social–political landscapeis slowly shifting. In just 2015, women gained the right to vote;and, in 2013, King Abdullah appointed 30 women to sit on the highShura Council (formally called the Consultative Assembly of SaudiArabia), the governing body that advises the King. Amid thesechanges, however, limits are real. Under the conservative Islamicstate, for example, women still have male guardianship. Thisguardianship dictates if women can open a bank account, travel, getmarried, work, or have access to healthcare. In addition, women arenot allowed to try on clothing in the mall. They must makepurchases and take them with them. Disrobing in public, even behindclosed doors, is a great risk. You may remember that when the KSAsent its first female athletes to the London Olympics, criticsdenounced the competitors as prostitutes. So, yes – women stillface limits to their freedom in the KSA.
While these limits seem far removed from what one experiences inthe United States and other Western cultures, there are certainoutcomes we can only dream about. For example, women in the KSA arepaid the same wage for the same work as their male counterparts.Additionally, women are given more rights in terms of family andmonetary support. Unlike years of back payment in child support inthe United States, such an outcome does not happen in the KSA. Thelaw demands women and children are provided for by men, and men areheld to that with unwavering expectations. And, just like men,women are educated for free by the government.
Before 1960, there was no public form of education for women inthe KSA (Al-Rawaf & Simmons, 1991). In 1970, 795 men and 13women graduated from a university in the KSA compared to 21,229 menand 21,721 women in 1999 (Baki, 2004). In 2015, the number of womenenrolled in higher education for a bachelor’s degree was estimatedto be 551,000 compared to 513,000 men (Saudi Gazette, 2015).
Shortly after its beginning, the ALC strategically hired Byron,a male US coordinator, to work for the Center. Byron’s job is torecruit speakers for the various programs, help identify the yearlyagenda of workshop topics, and develop curriculum to be deliveredduring the seminars. Byron was responsible for recruiting both themen and women facilitators for the workshops.
In 2015, the ALC hired an additional male coordinator from theUS, Aaron, to assist with the development and strategy of newemerging programs. And, shortly thereafter, the first US female ALCcoordinator, Dee, was hired. Aaron and Dee worked together on thenew programming to include the first ever national women’sleadership forum held in Riyadh.
Together, Aaron and Dee began working on identifying women tospeak at the programs. Often, the ALC desires speakers fromwell-known top-ranked US universities. And, the women need to havestrong backgrounds in academic administration, teaching, andleadership. Practitioners are preferred to theorists, and most needto have served at the level of Dean, or higher. Prior to eachworkshop or forum, Dee and Aaron schedule a conference call tobegin brainstorming about identifying women who might be a good fitfor the topics being covered, in addition to the other criteriajust mentioned. Usually, a list of anywhere between four to 10women are identified. For a traditional workshop, only two womenare required to participate as facilitators, but for a forum, thenumber ranges anywhere from four to six. Because the women musthave approximately one week of availability in order to attend,many promising candidates are unavailable. After the recruitingcalls are made, the list of potential candidates quickly dwindles,and often, a new list needs to be generated.
The workshops are two days long, and the two speakers rotatetheir groups in a single city so that each group gets eightsessions over the course of the two days. When the two days areover, the presenters move to another city for another two-dayworkshop. The on-the-ground time is usually five days – fourworkshop days and one travel day between workshops. Two additionaltravel days are required to get back and forth from country tocountry. A forum has a much broader range of activity, hence, theneed for more presenters. The forum usually consists of an openingsession, a panel discussion with the presenters, a case studyacross the four days, and a more traditional workshop setting,including different topical sessions presented by the lecturers.The case study is assigned to groups, and they work during theevenings to present case findings during the final day of theforum.
After this initial inquiry, the candidates typically respond inone of two ways. The first is that the individual being recruitedsimply indicates she has no interest in traveling to the MiddleEast. The other typical response is that the individual isinterested, but has concerns about going. At this point, Aaron andDee have their work cut out for them, particularly if Aaron (as aman) is trying to explain to the woman what the experience is like.Remember, in the KSA, women still cannot drive, must be vigilantabout not entering spaces occupied by men (such as elevators andairports or restaurants’ seating areas), and must wear thetraditional coverings to include the abaya (body) and hijab (head).The stigma associated with these diverse viewpoints is oftendifficult to overcome in the recruiting process; however, for womenwho can tolerate these constraints, the international experiencegained is invaluable.
Furthermore, as might be imagined, the media depiction of theMiddle East does not inspire women to want to travel there. Often,there is just an initial divergence in terms of personal beliefs,since many high-powered higher education female leaders have gottenwhere they are because of their strong advocacy for women’s rightsand their own determination to not be a victim of the proverbialold boys’ network.
Once the candidate agrees to participate, she is nominated tothe ALC, and her qualifications are vetted by a committee.Sometimes, the candidate is not accepted, and Aaron or Dee must goback to the drawing board to find another candidate from an alreadyslim list of potential candidates.
Identifying women who would be good candidates as speakers for aworkshop or forum in the Middle East is challenging. The recruitermust have a deep “Rolodex” and find appropriate candidates to meetthe criteria of the ALC in terms of home institution, position andexperience.
Once the list is generated, the challenge remains to engageinterest on the part of the lecturer. However, the work isgratifying, advances women in global higher education, and offersan opportunity to advance one’s professional international re?sume?– often a game changer in being selected for high-powered positionsin the hiring process. Frequently, the women who are interested inpossibly attending are torn about whether to go. They havehesitations because of personal belief systems and pre-conceivednotions about the Middle East as depicted by the media.
Question:
Discuss the factors that influence a female employee to acceptan overseas assignment like this. What recommendations would youmake to ALC to enhance the job performance of the femaleexpatriates working as faculty trainers in the Kingdom of SaudiArabia?
