2020-2022: Moroccan Virtual Exchange Project


Moroccan and American flags against white clouds in blue sky

Hassan II University of Casablanca and Kennesaw State University held a webinar event to kick off for their Women’s Leadership Virtual Exchange program on Oct. 28, 2020.

Scroll down to watch the video of the project launch webinar.

Women’s Leadership through Virtual Exchange: Youth Sharing Digital Stories (WLVE)

This initiative engages 100 undergraduate and graduate students from Hassan II University Casablanca with 100 undergraduate students from Kennesaw State University in a unique cross-cultural virtual exchange experience focused on better understanding women’s leadership through research, analysis, and digital storytelling. The virtual classroom-based project will collect biographical stories of successful women leaders in both countries written by the students and publish them online on Bokeh Focus.

The project provides participating students with a better understanding of the challenges and obstacles that exist towards increasing women’s rights and leadership roles in society. Students not only gain a learning experience around the topic of women’s leadership, but they also advance their abilities to work in international and intercultural contexts as they develop the intercultural competency needed in today’s global society.

Students who successfully complete the project will receive a Certificate of Completion from the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) CIFAL Atlanta Office in recognition of their effective international collaboration, intercultural competence, teamwork, and problem-solving skills on issues such as achieving gender equality that are directly related to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Below are links to the student projects.

Women Leadership Profiles: The Definition of The American Dream by A Woman In Technology by Carlos Alfaro

Women Leadership Profiles: A Woman Leader Changing The World by Yesenia Chavarria

Women Leadership Profiles: A Woman of Science and Technology by Chessa Birrell

Women Leadership Profiles: The New Generation of Women in Tech: Meet Sarah Gaines by Cameron Hurdle

Women Leadership Profiles: Healing, Empowering, and Justice by Cassidy Valbrun

Women Leadership Profiles: A Leader From Birth by Jayde Scogin

Women Leadership Profiles: Never Stop Following Your Dreams by Vaso Poulokefalos

Women Leadership Profiles: Small Town Leaders with Big Impact by Dionna Russell

Women Leadership Profiles: First Chairwoman of Alabama Tribe by Kaylee Salter

Women Leadership Profiles: Many Hands Make Lighter Loads by Jessica Strickland

Women Leadership Profiles: An American Hero by Della Sanford

Women Leadership Profiles: Survivor, Mother, Principle, and Activist Jennifer Laughridge by Maddie Hughes

Women Leadership Profiles: The Potential Within, Jacquelyn Ponder by Ciana Bruce

Women Leadership Profiles: Missionary Gussie Breedlove by Stephanie Breedlove

Read about our day-to-day initiatives

The Project Launch Webinar Video

The WLVE project is supported by the Stevens Initiative, which is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, with funding provided by the U.S. Government, and is administered by the Aspen Institute. The Stevens Initiative is also supported by the Bezos Family Foundation and the governments of Morocco and the United Arab Emirates.

World map in dark blue with Kennesaw, GA and Casablanca, Morocco shown in red dots, titled Women's Leadership through Virtual Exchange
Click the map to read the Steven’s Initiative article about the exchange between Kennesaw State University and Hassan II University of Casablanca.

Bokeh Focus, as the official publishing partner for the Morocco project, will publish the written stories, photo essays and video stories of the students on our Instagram @Bokeh_Focus and this website. Our affiliated publications, Youth Today and the Juvenile Justice Information Exchange (JJIE) will also share social media posts on their Facebook and Twitter about each student’s work.

Follow us @Bokeh_Focus where you will find all the Moroccan Virtual Exchange Project stories and galleries and see all our new content. 

Do you think your photo essay, photography, or art is what we are looking for at Bokeh Focus? Tag your pix on Instagram with @Bokeh_Focus (remember the underscore!) or contact us using this email form.