Kabul University Appreciation Letter From Dr. Maria Beebe

Center to Bridge the Digital Divide 2 August 2007 Annie Maclachlan School of Public Affairs Denver, Colorado Dear Ms Maclachlan, This letter is a summary of the tasks accomplished by Mr. Inayet Hadi during his independent study summer (May – August 2007) with the Afghan eQuality Alliances implemented by Washington State University here in Afghanistan. The Afghan eQuality Alliances is a multi-faceted initiative with the goal of “equal access to quality education and e-education resources.” To achieve this goal, one of the activities of the eQuality Alliances is the formation of a 21st Century Leadership Alliance represented by partners from India, Japan and the U.S. The alliance decided to help Kabul University establish an Institute for Public Policy and Administration. The initial activity of the Institute is the development and delivery of a Masters in Public Policy and Administration which was rolled out in February 2007. It was during this time that Mr. Hadi proposed that he work with us as an Afghan eQuality Alliances fellow. We outlined five tasks to be accomplished by Mr. Hadi during his independent study summer with the Afghan eQuality Alliances. These 5 tasks and what were accomplished are summarized below: 1. Research public administration reference materials for three courses (Public Administration: Theory and Practice; Public Policy Formulation: Planning and Analysis; Human Resources Management in the Public Sector). Mr.Hadi uploaded these materials on the e-Learning site at http://angel.uwc.ac.za. 2. Localize course materials for visiting professor. The visiting professor who taught the two courses while Mr. Hadi was in Kabul was an Afghan who already knew the context. Dr. Azizi taught Public Economics in June and Public Finance and Budgeting in July. Instead, Mr. Hadi localized the School of Public Administration Handbook and the thesis option guidelines for use by the Institute of Public Policy and Administration. 3. Provide one-on-one mentoring to graduate students. Mr. Hadi provided one-onone mentoring to almost all of 26 graduate students on the importance of keeping the public in mind when formulating or implementing policies. Mr. Hadi was

instrumental in assisting the Afghan students with use of APA in-text citation, creating a list of reference when writing a research papers. 4. Conduct small group discussions with graduate students. During his summer fellowship, the one-on-one mentoring was more important for the graduate students than small group discussions. Because all of the students were working professionals, it was difficult to gather them as a group. 5. Invite professionals working in the public administration sector to discuss relevant topics in public administration with graduate students. The tight schedule of working professionals who made up the masters degree cohort did not make this a feasible option. During the one-on-one discussions, Mr. Hadi was able to discuss development challenges in Afghanistan and how public institutions could address these topics. In addition to participation in the regularly scheduled classes, Mr. Hadi had the opportunity to attend various meetings with Afghan eQuality Alliances programs staff, including meetings at the Ministry of Higher Education on quality assurance and student information systems, Kabul Medical University on curriculum revision, and USAID Afghanistan on higher education projects in Afghanistan. The independent study summer program was beneficial for Mr. Hadi. In particular, the Masters students appreciated the interaction with a fellow masters student. The Afghan eQuality Alliances staff enjoyed their association with him. And, I am thankful for his generous spirit. I am sure that as he returns to graduate school, he will have more time to reflect on his experience and understand fully what he has learned from this summer experience. Best regards,

Maria Beebe Chief of Party, Afghan eQuality Alliances WSU Extension Center to Bridge the Digital Divide Chancellor’s Wing Kabul University