Riyadh | KSAALT TESOL

Safa’a AlEissa ~ seissa1@gmail.com

KSAALT – Riyadh Chapter Open House Meeting

There’s an old proverb which states, “From small beginnings come great things.”

The Riyadh Chapter of KSAALT TESOL had a modest but important start to the year

with its Open House meeting. The event was held on Saturday, October 24th, 2015,

from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm on the campus of Alfaisal University.

This free event marked the first activity of the academic year for the Riyadh Chapter.

The attendees enjoyed the chance to meet and greet over refreshments while

managing membership renewals or joining for the first time.

Riyadh Chapter Representative John Jordan opened the meeting with a welcome to

the 15 or so guests, and he shared the vision for KSAALT in Saudi Arabia and in

Riyadh for this year. Mark Murray, Executive Treasurer for KSAALT, was also on

hand. Mark explained KSAALT’s mission and mentioned the many volunteer

positions available.

The majority of the meeting was spent in round-table discussions. Participants took

turns sharing about their programs—both exciting things going on and challenges

they’re facing. The attendees also offered suggestions for topics, speakers, and

events for the Riyadh Chapter for the rest of the year. The groups then shared the

highlights of their dialogues with the entire group.

The general consensus at the end of the meeting: the participants and organizers felt

that the Open House was a constructive and cordial start to the year for the KSAALT

Riyadh Chapter. A debt of gratitude is owed to the friendly volunteers from Alfaisal

University who helped make the event go smoothly.