Al-Quds Open University

Al-Quds Open University and Amman Arab University hold the Second International Conference on Social Responsibility in Universities


Published on: 05-11-2019

On Sunday, 3-11-2019, Al-Quds Open University and Amman Arab University inaugurated the Second International Conference on Social Responsibility of Universities,”Regulations and Commitment”,  which was held under the patronage of Prof. Amr Ezzat, the Secretary General of the Association of Arab Universities. The two-day conference was held on the campus of The Amman Arab University.

The conference was inaugurated by the Royal Jordanian and Palestinian National anthems, and was attended by Prof.  Mahmoud Abu Mowais, the Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research of the State of Palestine, Prof. Hamidi Al-Khamisi Assistant Secretary General of the Association of Arab Universities, Prof. Maher Salim, President of Amman Arab University, Prof. Younes Amr, President of Al-Quds Open University, Prof.  Abdul Rahim Hunaiti, Assistant Secretary General of the Association of Arab Universities, Prof.  Ahmed Nuseirat President of the Al-Isra University, Prof. Mashhour Al-Rifai President of Princess Basma University, Prof. Najib Abu Karaki, President of Al-Hussein Bin Talal University and Prof. Maher Al Wahabneh Secretary General of the Jordanian Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research.

Prof. Maher Salim, President of Amman Arab University and Chairman of the Higher Steering Committee of the Conference welcomed the attendees "the concept of social responsibility is beyond doing charity or donations, it is a behavior that is adopted in order to carry out one’s duties towards society, and it is part of the practice of real citizenship. It intersects with the concept of national responsibility that manifested in Palestine to face the policies of occupation in closing universities, and intersects with the concept of national responsibility, especially the positions of His Majesty King Abdullah II in supporting Jerusalem and the Palestinian people and their leadership, Prof. Salim Said.

In turn, Prof. Younes Amr, greeted the Secretary-General of the Association of Arab Universities, the Palestinian Minister of Higher Education, the President of the Arab University of Amman, and the participants and researchers, thanked them for their presence and participation. Prof. Younes Amr highlighted the importance of the topic of the conference, "The social responsibility of universities, Regulations and Commitment," expressing his hope to come up with practical recommendations to be put into practice."

 

Scientific Sessions of the Conference:

Two scientific sessions were held during the first day of the conference.  The first session entitled: "The reality of the practice of universities for their social responsibility”. The session was chaired by Prof. Salem Sari from Saudi Arabia. During this session Dr. Abdallah Al-I’tibi presented a paper entitled:” The role of the deans of the faculties of Shaqra University in activating the community partnership: obstacles and ways of development”. “Prof. Isam Zabalawi, Mr. Chris Picone and Ms. Helene Kordahji presented a paper entitled “Higher Education Institutions and their Social Responsibility Role: A Case Study of the Australian College of Kuwait”. Dr. Mueen Nasraween, Dr. Ahmed Al-Khazaleh, Dr. Fouad Al-Jawaldeh, Dr. Taha Al-Khreisheh and Dr. Aref Al-Bakr presented a paper on "The Degree of Occupational Combustion and its Relation to the Social Responsibility of the Faculty Members in Private Universities in Jordan”. Dr. Khaled Mohammed Moftah, from Qatar, presented a paper on “Governance of Social Responsibility Practices in the Light of Shari'a Purposes”. Prof. Maher Lutfi Selimo, Dr. Hiam Al-taj and Dr. Rami Ibrahim Al-Shaqran, from Jordan, presented a paper on "The Degree of Transformational Leadership Practice Among Faculty Members in Jordanian Universities and Their Role in Promoting Social Responsibility from the Perspective of Post-graduate Students".Dr. Ayman Yousef and Ms. Shorouq Al-Hjjawi, from Palestine, presented a paper entitled: “An Evaluation Study on the Role of Palestinian Universities in Fighting Corruption”.

The second session was entitled "The Reality of the Practice of Universities for Social Responsibility and Legislation" chaired by Prof. Hosni Awad, Dean of Graduate Studies and Scientific Research at QOU, during which Dr. Samer Arqawi and Dr. Musa Ajouz from Palestine presented a paper entitled "The Contribution of Higher Education Institutions to Sustainable Development through Social Responsibility". Prof. Zarzar Ayachi and Mr. Ghayyad Karimh from Algeria presented a paper entitled "The Importance of Social Responsibility of the University and its Role in Serving Algerian Society". Ms. Amani Yassin presented a Paper on "The Role of Palestinian Universities in Tulkarm Governorate in Serving the Community in light of their Social Responsibility". While Ms. Marwa Rashed Adra presented a Paper on "Administrative Transparency and its Impact on the Behavior and Efficiency of staff in Palestinian Universities". Prof. Ahmed Bayoumi, Prof. Magda Abou El Safa, Dr. Abdul Salam Bahgat and Dr. Abdelaziz Salem presented a paper entitled: "An Empirical Study from Sadat City University on the Role of Digital Transformation in Promoting the Social Responsibility of Egyptian Universities". Ms. Yasmin Abu Hilal presented a Paper on "the Reality of the Practice of Universities for their Social Responsibility from the Point of view of teachers of sociology and community service in Palestinian Universities" and Prof. Sahar Abdel Sattar Imam, from Egypt, presented a paper entitled: "The Legal Clinic is an Effective Step Towards Enhancing the Social Responsibility of Universities".

During the second day, three scientific sessions were held: The first was entitled: "The Reality of Universities practicing their social responsibility". Prof. Mahmoud Al-Wadi chaired the session. During which Prof. Islam Abdul Hafeez Mohammed Amara and Prof. May El Sayed Khalifa, from Egypt, presented an exploratory study on "Evaluating the Psychology Lab in Universities from the Students' Perspectives and Modern Attitudes towards Social Responsibility". Dr. Khaled Attieh presented a paper on "The Role of Continuing Education Programs at the Arab American University in Palestine in Promoting Social Responsibility". Dr. Mahmoud Melhem and Dr. Noor Al-Aqra, from Palestine, presented a paper on "The extent of commitment of Palestine Technical University (Khadouri) to its social responsibilities from the views of its employees". Dr.  Mutee’ Al-Shibli, from Jordan, presented a  paper on “The Role of Business Incubators in Supporting and Developing the Marketing Capabilities of Entrepreneurship in Jordanian Universities (Case Study: Amman Arab University Incubator”) Finally, Dr. Tarek El Mabrouk, from Palestine, presented a paper on "Social Responsibility as perceived by the faculty members of the Faculty of Administrative Sciences, Al-Quds Open University."

The second session was chaired by Dr. Bilal Sakarneh and was held under the title: "Stereotypes of universities in the field of social responsibility".  Dr. Itaf Mohammed Al-Zayyat, from Palestine, presented a paper on "The Social Responsibility of Universities in Palestine and its Role in Fighting Corruption". Dr. Fatima Al-Falah and Dr. Adel Alkouni Alba from Libya presented a paper on "Professional and Ethical Standards for the Proficiency of University Professor". Dr. Mervat Al-Husseini, from Palestine, presented a paper on "The Impact of leadership pattern on improving social responsibility in Palestinian universities: Transformational Leadership as a Model". Dr.  Majid Mustafa Mansour, from Palestine, presented a paper on "The impact of social responsibility on enhancing the image in Palestine Technical University / Khadduri from the viewpoint of its employees." Dr. Nabil Humaidan and Dr. Lina Al-Maharmeh, from Jordan, presented a paper on "The impact of the project-based curriculum on university student behavior in enhancing his role towards social responsibility". Dr. Iyad Abu Bakr from Palestine presented a paper on "The Role of Training in social work in promoting students' social responsibility: Field Training in Community Organization at Al Quds Open University as a Model". Dr. Ammar Fathi Ismail presented a paper on "The role of social responsibilities in universities in supporting sustainable development: An Empirical Study on Sadat City University".

In the third and final session, which was chaired by Prof. Ahmad Nuseirat and entitled: "The interest of universities in providing an environmentally responsible society". Dr.  Rehab Aref Al-Saadi, from Palestine, talked about “Scientific Productivity and its Relation to Academic Freedom as Recognized by the Teaching Staff of Palestinian Universities (Istiqlal University as a Model)". Prof.  Magda Abou El Safa and Dr. Ahmed Hamdy Sharshar and Dr. Abdul Salam Bahgat, from Egypt, presented "An analytical study of the criteria of accreditation of universities in the Arab Republic of Egypt to enhance the role of social responsibility of Egyptian universities." While Ms.  Iman Yahya Abu Aram presented a paper on "The Role of Palestinian Universities in Development and Popular Participation from the Perspective of Faculty Members". Dr. Munther Bishara Al-Suwailmi, from Jordan, presented a paper on "The Effectiveness of the Study of the Environment and Society Course in the Level of Environmental Awareness among Students of Al-Balqa Applied University and its Relationship to their Environmental Behavior". Dr. Ayed Al-Hmouz, presented a paper on "The role of Palestinian universities in spreading the culture of health awareness as perceived by students: a field study in Hebron". Dr. Mona Mohamed El-Sayed El-Haroun presented a paper on "The Role of Egyptian Universities in Developing Health Awareness among Students of the faculty of Education: A Field Study". Mr. Bashar Rawajbeh presented a paper on "The Role of Al-Quds Open University in Promoting National Belonging to its Students: Nablus Branch as a Model". Finally, Prof. Ismail Yousef Al-Afandi presented a paper on "Ways to activate the community partnership in the field of scientific research between universities and community institutions from the perspective of faculty members at Al-Quds Open University".

At the end of the conference, the participants recommended the inclusion of social responsibility in the university strategic plans and the development of performance indicators, so that there is a clear strategic tendency towards activating the community partnership.  The y also recommended setting  policies, procedures and standards for social responsibility in universities that commensurate with the culture and needs of society, creating a national and institutional legal framework as an umbrella for social responsibility, and enacting laws, legislations and regulations obliging institutions to participate in and support social responsibility.

Participants stressed the need to update the internal regulations, instructions, regulations and laws governing the work in universities to suit the need to activate social responsibility.

Participants called for developing the concept of social responsibility in universities from mere participation in charity, donations and voluntary campaigns to the actual contribution to sustainable development.

Participants also stressed the need to activate the community partnership between universities and community institutions, and work on proposing appropriate professional solutions to the economic and social problems facing these institutions.

Participants called for designing training programs to develop the capabilities of university leaders according to best practices of transformational leadership, enriching them with professional values ??and ethics, and encouraging faculty members to practice and apply them in their work.

Participants stressed the importance of intensifying interest in scientific researches that address social issues and contribute to solving the problems faced by the community and its various institutions, and to develop incentive programs for them.

Participants called for the establishment of specialized joint social responsibility funds in universities to be funded by contribution of community institutions to support activities, programs and projects related to social responsibility.

They also called for enhancing the spirit of social responsibility among the leading cadres in universities, encouraging it to be considered as one of the responsibilities of the executive management and under its supervision, and for enhancing the role of the media in spreading awareness of the importance of social responsibility for universities and their proper principles and related fields, and the return on the institutions leading them and the society.

Participants stressed the importance of strengthening the governmental role in directing funding towards the developmental aspects of the social responsibility programs offered by higher education institutions, and separating charitable activities from them. In addition, implementation.

Participants also called for enhancing the culture of creativity and innovation so that universities become business incubators for small projects, inventions and discoveries, and organizing exhibitions to attract donors, calling for more conferences related to social responsibility in universities.