Rula Quawas

Dr. Rula Butros Audeh Quawas (25 February 1960 – 25 July 2017) was a Jordanian academic, known for her advocacy for women's advancement in Jordan, and the first academic to introduce courses on feminism at the University of Jordan.

Rula Quawas
Born(1960-02-25)25 February 1960
Amman, Jordan
Died25 July 2017(2017-07-25) (aged 57)
Amman, Jordan
NationalityJordanian
Alma materUniversity of Jordan, University of North Texas
OccupationEducator

Biography

Quawas was born on 25 February 1960 in Amman, Jordan.[1] She attended Al Ahliyya School for Girls in her youth, where her mother was a teacher.[1] She earned her B.A. in 1981 and her M.A. in 1991 from the University of Jordan while simultaneously teaching at high schools in Amman.[2][3] She went on to earn her Ph.D. from the University of North Texas.[4]

She returned to Jordan to the University of Jordan where she taught for over twenty years.[3][5] She was the first professor to teach feminist courses in the English Department.[4][6] Quawas founded the university’s Women’s Studies Center in 2006,[1] serving as Director from 2006 through 2008.[3] She also founded the Knowledge Production Unit at the Jordanian National Commission for Women.[7] She was the Dean of the Faculty of Foreign Languages at the University of Jordan from 2011-2012.[3] She was a Fulbright Scholar in Residence at Champlain College in Vermont during the 2013–4 academic year.[8]

In 2009 Princess Basma conferred Quawas the Meritorious Honor Award for Leadership and Dedication to the Empowerment of Jordanian Women. She was a nominee for the U.S. State Department's International Women of Courage Award in 2013.[8]

Quawas died on July 25, 2017 in Amman, Jordan, at the age of 57, due to complications of a biopsy.[1]

Controversy at the University of Jordan (2012)

Quawas started her position as Dean of the Faculty of Foreign Languages at the University of Jordan in 2011, for what was meant to be a two-year deanship. However, halfway through her contract, she was dismissed by the University's president after defending students' rights to produce a video in her Feminist Theory class responding to campus sexual harassment.[9] She learned of her dismissal not from the university administration, but local media. She was allowed to continue to teach after her removal as dean.[1]

By some accounts, Quawas "became a household name in the country" following this controversy.[7] Her early dismissal resulted in domestic and international outcry, including by the Middle East Studies Association of North America and many individual scholars around the world.[1][9][10]

Select Publications

Bad Girls of the Arab World. Yaqub, Nadia and Rula Quawas (editors). Austin: University of Texas Press. 2017.[11]

The Voice of Being Enough: Young Jordanian Women Break Through Without Breaking Down. Quawas, Rula (editor). 2016.[12]

"'A sea captain in her own right': Navigating the feminist thought of Huda Shaarawi." Quawas, Rula. 2006. Journal of International Women's Studies 8(1): 219-235.

"Pinched lives and stolen dreams in Arab feminist short stories." Quawas, Rula. Journal of International Women's Studies 15(1): 54-66.[13]

References
  1. Sweis, Rana F. (2 August 2017). "Rula Quawas, Champion of Women's Advancement in Jordan, Dies at 57". The New York Times. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  2. Sabbagh, Amal (April 2018). "Rula Quawas 1960–2017". Review of Middle East Studies. 52 (1): 168–170. doi:10.1017/rms.2018.19. ISSN 2151-3481.
  3. Sabbagh, Amal (2018). "Rula Quawas 1960–2017". Review of Middle East Studies. 52: 168–170. doi:10.1017/rms.2018.19. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  4. "Dr. Rula Quawas". FemTales. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  5. Tabazah, Sawsan. "Rula Quawas' posthumous book urges end of women stereotypes". The Jordan Times. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  6. "Fight for freedom and equality: the heart of battle". Hybris Media. 2017-06-06. Retrieved 2020-12-11.
  7. Barghouthi, Hani (26 July 2017). "A Tribute to Dr. Rula Quawas". 7iber | حبر. Retrieved 2020-12-11.
  8. "Remembering Dr. Rula Quawas – A Fulbright Alumna and a Lighthouse for Women's Rights". www.fulbright-jordan.org. Retrieved 2020-12-11.
  9. "Harassment on campus: Jordan Dean ousted after exposé". Al Bawaba. Retrieved 2020-12-11.
  10. زيدان, محمد (2012-12-03). "رولا قواس vs أمجد قورشة". 7iber | حبر (in Arabic). Retrieved 2020-12-12.
  11. Bad girls of the Arab world. Yaqub, Nadia G.,, Quawas, Rula (Rula Butros Audeh), 1960-2017 (First ed.). Austin. 27 September 2017. ISBN 978-1-4773-1335-0. OCLC 974992296.CS1 maint: others (link)
  12. Deeb, Zaina. "Launching of "The Voice of Being Enough" | FemTales". Retrieved 2020-12-11.
  13. "Rula Quawas". scholar.google.com. Retrieved 2020-12-11.
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