U.S. Embassy Hosts “Landmarks in American History and Politics” Seminar

July 13, 2006
No. 20/06

Addis Ababa (U.S. Embassy) -- The U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa, under the auspices of the Public Affairs Section, hosted a five-day seminar on American Studies titled “Landmarks in American History and Politics” July 10-14, 2006. The seminar, organized in collaboration with St. Mary’s University College, brought together 50 high school teachers from ten regions in Ethiopia, including the Dire Dawa and Addis Ababa Administrations.

In his keynote address at the opening of the seminar, the Acting Deputy Chief of Mission of the U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa, Mr. Kevin Sullivan, said the seminar would strengthen knowledge of the United States among a critical group of educators.  The participants were welcomed by Ato Wondwossen Tamirat, President of St. Mary’s College.

The seminar was conducted by Professor Charles Hubbard, Senior Fulbright Scholar and Professor of History and American Foreign Policy and Director of the Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum in Harrogate, Tennesse, USA. Professor Hubbard, who has taught various American History courses at undergraduate and graduate level for the past twelve years, gave lectures on such topics as American Geography and Demography, Colonial America and the Declaration of Independence, History of African-Americans Slavery and American Civil War, Constitutional Issues and Political Implication of the American Civil War, U.S. Democracy, and the Cold War. 

The purpose of the seminar was to acquaint Ethiopian high school teachers with U.S. history and culture that has been missing in Ethiopia for over three decades. It provided an opportunity for the participants to engage in the study and discussion of important topics in American history and politics, and gain experience in the interpretation of significant historical facts. By providing participants with exposure to U.S. history and politics, the seminar attempted to help them examine some of the challenges to democratic governance and development, and increase mutual understanding between the peoples of the two countries. 

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