Education City is an initiative of Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development. Located on the outskirts of Doha, the capital of Qatar, Education City covers 14 square kilometers and houses educational facilities from school age to research level and branch campuses of some of the world's leading universities. Education City aims to be the center of educational excellence in the region, instructing students in fields of critical importance to the Gulf Cooperation Council region. It is also conceived of as a forum where universities share research and forge relationships with businesses and institutions in public and private sectors. Mozah bint Nasser Al Missned was a driving force behind the foundation and construction of Education City.

Schools[link]

Lecture halls at the Weill Cornell Medical College campus in Education City

The Liberal Arts and Science Building houses classrooms for multiple schools.

Six US universities, one UK university and one French university have branch campuses at Education City. They are:

• Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar School of the Arts (VCUQ). Founded in 1998, VCUQ has offered students the opportunity to earn a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree (4 years) in fashion design, graphic design, interior design or painting and printmaking as well as a Masters of Fine Arts in Design Studies (2 years).
• Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar (WCMC-Q). The Medical College was established by Cornell University in 2001 and offers a two-year pre-medical program followed by the four-year medical program leading to a Doctor of Medicine degree.
• Texas A&M University at Qatar (TAMUQ). TAMUQ was established in 2003 and offers undergraduate degrees in chemical, electrical, mechanical and petroleum engineering. As of 2011, it also offers a master's degree in chemical engineering.
• Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar (CMU-Q). CMU-Q has since 2004 offered undergraduate degrees in business, computer science programs, and as of 2007 an undergraduate degree in information systems. From Fall 2011, it has recently established a joint program with Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar offering Biological Sciences and Computational Biology.
• Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar (SFS-Qatar). SFS-Qatar has, since 2005, offered a four-year program leading to a bachelor's degree in foreign service.
• Northwestern University in Qatar (NU-Q) began degree programs in journalism and communication in Fall 2008.
• HEC Paris began offering graduate executive education programs for mid-career and senior executives in 2011.
• UCL Qatar arrived in 2011 and offers postgraduate degree programmes in the areas of archaeology, conservation, cultural heritage and museum studies.

It also has one Qatar university:

• Qatar Faculty of Islamic Studies (QFIS). It began in 2007 by offering a Masters degree in Islamic Studies.^[1]

In light of similar arrangements recently made between Abu Dhabi and institutions such as INSEAD, New York University and Université Paris-Sorbonne, observers have noted that while the oil-rich Persian Gulf nations may be using their wealth to buy prestige through these marquee universities, the presence of these Western institutions may have a liberalizing impact on the culturally conservative region.^[2][3][4]

Other educational centers located at Education City include:

• Qatar Academy. QA offers an international education for boys and girls from preschool to university entrance. Qatar Academy is fully accredited by the U.S.-based New England Association of Schools and Colleges and the Europe-based Council of International Schools.
• The Learning Center. This is a school for students who have average or above average potential but have experienced academic problems; it assists students in developing compensatory skills for their individual learning differences.
• Academic Bridge Program. Established in 2001, this center offers a university-preparatory program and aims to equip specially selected, top-caliber secondary school graduates for admission to degree programs of both Qatar Foundation's Education City campuses and other world-class universities.

Research and Industry[link]

Several centers based at Education City focus on science and research. These include:

• RAND-Qatar Policy Institute (RQPI), which complex policy problems and helps implement enduring solutions for clients across the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia.
• Qatar Science & Technology Park (QSTP), a state-of-the-art facility comprising 45,000 square meters of office and laboratory space. QSTP aims to fuel Qatar’s knowledge economy by encouraging companies from around the world to develop and commercialize their technology in Qatar, and by helping entrepreneurs to launch start-up technology businesses.
• Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF), which supports research that is in the national interest. It was established to provide opportunities for researchers at all levels, from students to professionals, in the private, public, and academic sectors. The first of its funding programs, the Undergraduate Research Experience Program, was launched in 2006.

Other Centers[link]

• Doha Debates, a public forum for dialogue modeled on the Oxford Union debates and broadcast on the BBC.
• Qatardebate, a youth civic engagement initiative which aims to foster a culture of debate and discussion in Qatar and the wider Arab World, creating 'debaters today, leaders tomorrow'.
• Al Jazeera Children's Channel (JCC), a pan-Arab youth television channel which aims to strike a balance between education and entertainment.
• Al Shaqab stud farm and equestrian academy
• Fitch studio, an extension of the Fitch London studio.
• Sidra Medical and Research Center, a teaching and research hospital scheduled to open in late 2012. Sidra will be the primary teaching venue for Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar.
• Qatar Computing Research Institute is a research center established in 2010, which collaborates with Carnegie Mellon University in the form of joint seminar series and joint projects.

Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development[link]

Education City is part of Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development, a private, chartered, non-profit organization in the state of Qatar, founded in 1995 by decree of His Highness Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani, Emir of Qatar. Under Qatar Foundation’s umbrella are Education City which comprises elite universities, several academic and training programs and Qatar Science and Technology Park which boasts more than 21 world class companies involved in scientific research and development. Qatar Foundation has also launched the World Innovation Summit for Education – WISE – a global forum that brings together education stakeholders, opinion leaders and decision makers from all over the world to discuss educational issues. The first edition was held in Doha, Qatar from November 16 to 18, 2009, the second from December 7 to 9, 2010. The third edition will be held from November 1 to 3, 2011.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Qatar Foundation
• Education City website
• Qatar Education City
• Qatar Science & Technology Park
• Carnegie-Mellon Qatar Campus
• Georgetown University Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service Qatar
• Northwestern University in Qatar
• Texas A&M Qatar Campus
• Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar
• Weill-Cornell Medical School in Qatar
• UCL Qatar
• RAND-Qatar Policy Institute
• In Oil-Rich Mideast, Shades of the Ivy League in The New York Times
• Asquith, Christina (June 1, 2006). "Accepted into Education City". Diverse Online. 
• Qatar's Science Revolution article on "The Science and Development Network (SciDev.Net)"
• Article about Education City in National Review (U.S. publication)
• College of the North Atlantic – Qatar
• World Innovation Summit for Education

Coordinates: 25°18′54″N 51°26′03″E / 25.315°N 51.43417°E / 25.315; 51.43417

Louis Theroux
Louis Theroux, 2009
Born	Louis Sebastian Theroux (1970-05-20) 20 May 1970 (age 42) Singapore
Residence	Harlesden, London, United Kingdom
Citizenship	British, American[1]
Education	Modern history (1st)
Alma mater	Magdalen College, Oxford
Occupation	Broadcaster
Known for	Documentaries Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends When Louis Met…
Religion	None (atheist)
Partner	Nancy Strang[2]
Children	2[2]
Parents	Paul Theroux, Anne Castle
Relatives	Marcel Theroux (brother) Alexander Theroux (uncle) Justin Theroux (cousin)
Website
www.louistheroux.com

Louis Sebastian Theroux (/θəˈruː/ LOO-ee thə-ROO;^[3] born 20 May 1970) is an English broadcaster best known for his documentaries in the television series Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends, his BBC2 Specials and When Louis Met.... His career started off in journalism and bears influences of notable writers in his family such as his father, Paul Theroux and brother Marcel Theroux. He currently works with the BBC producing his documentaries and popular TV series.

Early life and career[link]

Theroux is the youngest son of the American travel writer and novelist Paul Theroux (who is of French-Canadian and Italian descent).^[4] His mother, Anne Castle, was Paul's first, British, wife. His elder brother is the writer and television presenter Marcel Theroux.^[2] He is the cousin of American actor Justin Theroux. He moved to the UK when he was four, and was brought up in London.

Theroux was educated for a couple of years at Allfarthing Primary School then moved to Westminster School (where he was a friend and contemporary of the comedians Adam Buxton and Joe Cornish). Another of his contemporaries was Liberal Democrat politician, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg with whom he travelled to America.^[5] He then went to Magdalen College, Oxford where he gained a first class degree in modern history and was noted for his film reviews for the Grapevine magazine.

His first journalism job was at Metro Silicon Valley, an alternative free weekly newspaper in San Jose, California. In 1992 he was hired as a writer for Spy magazine. He was also working as a correspondent on Michael Moore's TV Nation series, for which he provided segments on off-beat cultural subjects, including Avon ladies in the Amazon, the Jerusalem syndrome, and the attempts by the Ku Klux Klan to rebrand itself as a civil rights group for white people. When TV Nation ended he was signed to a development deal by the BBC, out of which came Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends. He has guest-written for a number of publications including Hip-Hop Connection and he continues to write for The Idler.

Documentaries[link]

[edit] Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends

In Weird Weekends (1998–2000), Theroux followed marginal, mostly American subcultures like survivalists, Black nationalists, White supremacists and porn stars, often by living among or close to the people involved. Often, his documentary method subtly exposed the contradictions or farcical elements of some seriously held beliefs. Theroux himself describes the aim of the series as

Despite much call for a complete DVD set of Weird Weekends only selected episodes have ever been available for purchase.

[edit] When Louis Met...

In When Louis Met... (2000–02), Theroux accompanied a different British celebrity in each programme as they went about their day-to-day business, interviewing them about their lives and experiences as he did so. His episode about the DJ and charity fundraiser Sir Jimmy Savile When Louis Met Jimmy was voted one of the top fifty documentaries of all time in a survey by Britain's Channel 4. In When Louis Met the Hamiltons, the disgraced Tory MP Neil Hamilton and his wife Christine were arrested following false allegations of indecent assault during the course of filming. In When Louis Met Max Clifford, Max Clifford tried to set Louis up. However, it backfired when Max Clifford was caught lying, as the crew was still recording his live microphone during a conversation. After this celebrity series concluded, a retrospective was aired, called Life with Louis. He was meant to do a similar programme with Michael Jackson before Martin Bashir completed his documentary for ITV, but it was cancelled.^{[citation needed]}

Selected episodes of When Louis Met... were included as bonus content on a Best-Of collection of Weird Weekends. The entire series has never been released on DVD.

BBC Two specials[link]

In these special programmes, beginning in 2003, Theroux returned to American themes, working at feature-length, this time with a more natural tone. In March 2006, he signed a new deal with the BBC to make 10 films over the course of three years.^[6] Subjects for the specials include criminal gangs in Lagos, Neo-Nazis in America, ultra-Zionists in Israel and child psychiatry. A 2007 special, The Most Hated Family in America, received strong critical praise from the international media.

Books[link]

His first book, The Call of the Weird: Travels in American Subcultures, was published in Britain in 2005. In this book, Theroux returns to America to find out what has happened in the lives of some of the people he featured in his television programmes since he last saw them.^[2]

Personal life[link]

He lives in the London district of Harlesden with his partner, Nancy Strang, a TV director, and his two sons.^[2][7]

Awards and nominations[link]

1996 Emmy Awards[link]

Nominated: Outstanding Informational Series for TV Nation, the Michael Moore series to which he contributed.

British Academy Television Awards 2001[link]

Won: Richard Dimbleby Award for the Best Presenter (Factual, Features and News) for Weird Weekends

2002 Royal Television Society[link]

Nominated: Best Presenter for When Louis Met…

British Academy Television Awards 2002[link]

• Won: Richard Dimbleby Award for the Best Presenter (Factual, Features and News) for When Louis Met…
• Nominated: Flaherty Documentary Award for When Louis Met the Hamiltons

Journalists John Safran and Harmon Leon cite him^{[citation needed]} as an "important influence".

See also[link]

• List of TV Nation episodes

References[link]

External links[link]

• Theroux's website
• Louis Theroux at BBC Programmes
• Louis Theroux at the Internet Movie Database
• In Conversation with Louis Theroux at BAFTA - 19 February 2010
• Something weird about Louis Interview by Gyles Brandreth and published by the Telegraph (11 December 2001)
• When Amazon Met Louis Interview with Amazon.com
• Weird & wonderful Interview by Jeremy Taylor for bmi Voyager Magazine (November 2007)
• Masterclass with Louis Theroux Recorded at Docville Filmfestival (May 4th 2012)