Launched in October 2006, Discovery is an independent, semester-long, extracurricular program of leadership learning activities designed for public university students in Egypt. The Program is administered by the Institute of International Education (IIE) Center for Leadership Excellence based in Cairo in partnership with Keys to Effective Learning and Creative Encounters. The Program’s development and pilot semesters were made possible through a generous grant by the Ford Foundation Regional Office in Cairo.

The Program enables students to assume leadership roles with confidence and act as student role models at the university and community levels and within the national and global arena. Participants are introduced to a framework for understanding leadership that involves:

• Mission-based leadership revolving around a passionate commitment to a specific cause and vision;
• Values-based leadership revolving around the identification of core values on an individual and broader cultural and organizational context; and
• Results-based leadership involving the ability to execute a plan of action to achieve results.

Discovery currently serves students in the greater Cairo area from Cairo University, Ain Shams University, Al Azhar University and Helwan University. Up to 35 students are selected each semester through a competitive nomination and application process that reaches a diversity of faculties and departments at each of these universities.

Discovery is designed around an experiential and participatory model to encourage students to take responsibility for their own learning, reflection, critical thinking and activism. The aim is to nourish the students’ “discovery” of leadership through an exploration of their own interests and aptitudes and exposure to diverse fields and individuals. Over the course of the semester program students participate in:

• A two-day team building retreat hosted at the Vodafone training facility in the Smart Village to teach group leadership dynamics, trust and networking skills;
  
• Leadership skill building sessions conducted at the IIE Center in Cairo;
  
• Dialogue with “leaders in action” through field trips and panels of guest speakers; and
  
• Service learning group projects and community service.
  
  

IIE is seeking partners to sponsor the continuation of Discovery Program semester iterations in Cairo and the expansion of Discovery to other locations in Egypt and the Middle East North Africa region. If you or your organization is interested in supporting this important initiative, please contact us.