The celebration will take place on Thursday, April 9 and Saturday, April 11 at the Woskob Family Gallery. 

Thursday, April 9 | 5:00–8:00 p.m.

5:00 p.m. Proclamation by the Mayor of State College, Ezra Nanes,

5:45 p.m. Talk by the novelist Ghassan Zeineddine (Oberlin College)

6:45 p.m. Performance by Malikat Dabke dance group

Saturday April 11 | 10:30 a.m.–4:00 p.m.

10:30 Screening of PBS documentary, The Arab Americans

Noon Introduction to the local Arab American community in State College and a talk on Arab food

1:00 p.m. Lunch at featuring Arab-inspired food with an oud performance by Kevin Sims, a faculty member in the School of Music.

2:00 p.m. Talk by the award-winning novelist and poet Laila Halaby

3:00 p.m. Short screening The Arab American National Museum

3:30 Practice calligraphy

The Arabic Language Program from the Department of Comparative Literature will have a table at the event. Cosponsors of the celebration include the College of the Liberal Arts, Department of Comparative Literature, The McCourtney Institute for Democracy, Center for Social Change and Belonging, Sparks Chair in Applied Linguistics, African Studies Program, Center for Global Studies and the Paul Robeson Cultural Center.