AUA Open Education Holds Community Meeting in Syunik

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GORIS, Armenia — On March 4, a community meeting was held at the American University of Armenia (AUA) Open Education (OE) Center in Goris, Syunik province. The purpose of the meeting was to present the Center’s annual plan for 2023, which duly considered the recommendations that community members had submitted following the community meeting in December 2022. Representatives of the Goris State University, Department of Culture of the City Municipality, Rehabilitation Center, Instigate Mobile, Impact Hub, and ContourGlobal attended the meeting. By implementing programs aimed at meeting community needs, OE strives to be community-friendly and have a positive impact in the regions.

OE is committed to filling knowledge and skills gaps in regional communities. To achieve this goal, it expends significant effort on defining the scope of its regional programs and enhancing cooperation with regional entities. With that objective, the December 2022 meeting had identified the specific community needs and developed the Goris OE program accordingly. Within that realm, and aside from raising awareness of courses that would be offered at the OE Center in Goris, opportunities were sought for collaboration with other educational institutions in the community and companies operating in the area. Subsequently, OE considered the suggestions shared by the community and accordingly aligned the 2023 plan, which was presented to the community by OE Director Anoush Yedigarian at the March 4 meeting. 

In 2022, the OE Syunik Center started offering General English courses to participants from local businesses, including many working in the hospitality industry. In 2023, these efforts will not only continue but will expand to include tailored professional development courses; 2023 will also be a year of close collaboration with the Goris Library in organizing joint activities and events with local educational institutions such as Goris State University.

“Our goal is to understand community members’ needs, identify target beneficiary groups, and develop programs based on their suggestions. This partnership is just the beginning, and we look forward to strengthening it further in Syunik,” remarked Yedigaryan.

The OE Center’s commitment to serving the needs of various segments of the local community is essential for the development of the region and for having a positive impact in the community. OE values the feedback of various community entities in the process of mapping the Goris program and delineating its proposed courses for the province. In response to the continuing hardships and challenges the region faces, OE has offered a variety of courses that were realized within the scope of the sponsored program made possible through the support of the Manoogian Simone Foundation, and in collaboration with ContourGlobal, the founding partner of the Center in Goris, and Goris Municipality which provided the space and covers cost of utilities for the Center. This partnership in Syunik is another step forward in furthering educational opportunities and initiatives to benefit the community.

Open Education (OE) is the non-degree educational program of the American University of Armenia (AUA), especially geared for meeting the educational needs of individuals from diverse backgrounds and professions, as well as governments and corporate organizations. OE offers a comprehensive range of courses and certificate programs, including language classes, test preparation courses, and a wide range of professional development training. Through its regional centers around Armenia, OE expands opportunities for locals to thrive and contribute to the development of their communities. Additionally, OE provides testing services on behalf of various standardized tests for college admission and exams for international professional certification.