800 Year Old Iraqi University Receives One Million in Improvements
For Immediate Release
August 28, 2007
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Ancient University Opens Rebuilt Student Center
By Norris Jones
Gulf Region Division Centra
BAGHDAD, Iraq – Renovation work on
one of the oldest universities in the Islamic
world was completed this month in
Baghdad by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
(USACE).
Mustansiriya University, founded in
1234 by the Abbasid Caliph al-Mustansir,
is located on the east side of the Tigris
River near Sadr City.
Mohammad Attar, a 29-year-old civil
engineer who works for USACE, graduated
from Mustansiriya and says he is proud to
have helped oversee the $1 million in improvements
to the student center and soccer
field there.
The student center was burned and the
looted following the overthrow of Saddam
Hussein in 2003 and had been unusable
until this month. Historically it has been a
key structure on the campus, and Attar
remembers attending many graduation
festivities there when families and students
would gather to celebrate the special
day.
The project included new air conditioning
ductwork and chillers, new skylights,
roof repair, new marble interior walls and
floors, new plumbing and electrical wiring,
new doors and windows, plastering and
painting, and rebuilding the cafeteria
kitchen and dining area.
In addition, the university’s soccer field
was reseeded and an irrigation system
installed.
“Education is a priority for every Iraqi
family,” Attar explained. “We are taught
from a young age that through education
and hard work, anything is possible.
That’s the reason, despite two separate
bomb blasts earlier this year that killed
and wounded hundreds of students; their
fellow classmates still risk the journey
every day.”
He says helping with Mustansiriya is
definitely a highlight of the projects he
deals with. “Our efforts have made a difference
benefiting thousands of Baghdad
students,” he said.
He explained that in Iraqi culture, the two top educational choices are medicine
and engineering. He finds his work rebuilding
Iraq a very satisfying profession.
“We’re constructing new schools and
courthouses, installing water and sewer
lines, renovating hospitals, upgrading
electrical substations and networks, building
new fire stations and youth centers.”
Attar’s has a goal of returning to the
college himself someday to earn a Masters
Degree and is confident his children will
possess that same passion for learning –
“it’s a fundamental part of our Iraqi society.”
Editor’s