Building Capacity? Civil Society Education in Lebanon's Institutions of Higher Education

Authors

  • Thomas W. Haase Sam Houston State University
  • Tania Haddad American University of Beirut

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18666/JNEL-2015-V5-I4-7030

Keywords:

civil society, Lebanon, curriculum, Nonprofit Academic Centers Council, nonprofit education

Abstract

Civil society organizations are perceived to be vehicles for social change. In Lebanon, there are concerns about whether such organizations, known formally as associations, have the capacity to bring about constructive change. These concerns relate to the constraints that associations must overcome: an uncertain regulatory environment, unsuitable governance structures, and organizational management deficiencies. We investigated whether Lebanese universities advertise courses that would expose future civil society professionals to the knowledge and skills needed to address such constraints. Using course data from 43 certified institutions of higher education, we report on the findings of a content analysis of the advertised courses in relation to the National Academic Centers Council (NACC) curricular guidelines and the organizational function framework for nonprofit education (Wish & Mirabella, 1998; Mirabella & Wish, 2000). The findings indicate Lebanese universities provide students with conceptual introductions to civil society. However, as a whole, Lebanese universities do not appear to provide students with courses that contain the necessary knowledge to strengthen the capacities of associations. 

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Published

2015-10-15

Issue

Vol. 5 No. 4 (2015)

Section

Articles

License

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