American University of the Middle East – Eqaila

I am writing to you in regards to the termination of my position as EPP instructor at the American College of the Middle East (ACM) in Kuwait, in the hope that this letter might provide me and my former students with some answers and closure as to why the faculty believed it was in the university’s best interest to end my contract so abruptly, in the middle of the academic semester. This has undoubtedly had a negative effect upon the students.

While it is true that the employment contract stated that I may be terminated at any given moment within the first 100 days of my employment, as these initial 100 days are a probation period, I still find it quite puzzling that my termination was actualised precisely on the 100th day. The reason that human resources gave me for coming to this decision, was vague and nonspecific, except that it was based on student feedback as well as classroom observation.

The reason why I am confused is due to the fact that classroom observations were conducted several times during my lectures by the American College of the Middle East’s dean, Dr. Rami Alkhudary. These observations were followed by feedback, also given by Dr. Rami, and while there was criticism, I truly believed that Dr. Rami was not disappointed with my teaching style and technique, disregarding the minor issues which he touched upon. These issues were addressed promptly, and included the fact that he would like me to be more “active” in class, in terms of not sitting at my desk as much, and moving around the classroom more.

In terms of student feedback, I am quite confident that my students did not have any complaints against me, as the relationship between myself and my all my students, without exception, was friendly, and the classroom environment was warm and welcoming. My students always gave me the impression that they felt relaxed and at ease in my presence, both inside the classroom, as well as when they interacted with me beyond the classroom. Had there been any cause for contention with regards to my relationship with my students, then I am fully unaware of it’s existence.

For the aforementioned reasons, I cannot come to a logical explanation as to why the university decided it was best to terminate my employment. This termination has been exceptionally disheartening due to several reasons. I signed my employment contract with ACM/AUM in November 2010, and was told that I would commence work in early January 2011. A week prior to this date, I was contacted by human resources and told that the commencement date was being postponed, and that they would like me to commence late January, 2011. I was contacted once again by human resources a week prior to this last date, informing me that I was not to commence work until February 2011, which became the actual date that I began work at ACM.

This makes it three months from the date I signed the contract, up to the date where I commenced work. During these three months, I received several employment offers, which I declined due to the fact that I believed ACM would be worth the three month wait, and would be the best choice for me. I had plans and hopes that I believed ACM would live up to, as the faculty, staff, and the university itself, felt like a nurturing work environment, promising the opportunity for further growth and development of faculty’s academic interests.

On the other hand, I accepted this position knowing full well ACM and AUM’s reputation for being disloyal to their academic faculty, as ACM and AUM are infamous for their faculty’s turnover rate. The number of faculty whose employment has been terminated since this institution was established three years ago far exceeds the number of faculty currently holding positions there. You can find many examples of ACM and AUM’s turnover reputation online, and one of these examples can be found by following this link :

http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?t=69602 .

Having a high faculty turnover rate will reflect negatively on the institution, and future students will undoubtedly be hesitant to enrol at ACM if faculty are being replaced halfway through an academic semester on a regular basis for no logical or obvious reasons, as is the case with this institution.

In closing, I am extremely disappointed that this has been the outcome of what I had expected, and hoped, would be a positive experience for me as a member of the institution’s faculty. On the contrary, it has been rather traumatic.