Overview

What do you do when a flood closes campus one day before 12 teenage students and 3 chaperones are scheduled to arrive from 6200 miles away? You relocate, of course!

As a consequence of the flood, the inaugural session of Between the Lines debuted not at the University of Iowa, but at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), which generously provided dorm and class space at almost the last minute. Instructors Iman Humaydan and Dunya Mikhail conducted Arabic-language workshops in the mornings, while instructors Daniel Khalastchi and Anjali Sachdeva conducted English-language seminars in the afternoons. Students were able to try their hand at fiction, poetry, nonfiction, translation, and even playwriting.

The participants, who hailed from Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Israel, and the Palestinian Authority, and many of whom had never been to the United States before, got to experience much of what Chicago has to offer during the summer, including the Chicago Cultural Center, Millennium Park, Art Institute, Shedd Aquarium, Adler Planetarium, John Hancock Center, Navy Pier, and the Magnificent Mile.

2008 Anthology

Between the Lines Anthology, June 27, 2008

 

Shared Experiences

Between the Lines participants sit at a table as they are welcomed by Christopher Merrill
Two Between the Lines students sit with Iman Humaydan and share a laugh.
Between the Lines participants sit in a circle having a discussion in instructor Dunya Mikhail's class.
A picture of the Chicago skyline as viewed fromt he Museum Campus.
Instructors Anjali Sachdeva and Daniel Khalastchi lecture outdoors at the Museum Campus to students who sit listening.
Two Between the Lines students study a piece of writing.
nstructor Anjali Sachdeva compares Arabic and English texts on a whiteboard
Between the Lines participants and instructors Lisa Schlesinger and Christopher Merill stand in a room conducting a playwriting workshop.
Three Between the Lines students pose for a photo while riding the "L" train in Chicago.
The Between the Lines class of 2008 pose for a phots with chaperones, faculty, and IWP staff.