Haramaya University
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| Type | Public |
|---|---|
| Established | 1954 |
| President | Prof. Chemeda Finensa |
| Location | Haramaya, Ethiopia |
| Campus | Urban (Harar campus and Chiro campus), semi urban (Main campus) |
| Language | English |
| Website | www |
Haramaya University is one of the oldest universities in Ethiopia. It is located 5 km from Alemaya, a town in the East Hararghe Zone, about 17 kilometers from the city of Harar and 40 kilometers from Dire Dawa.
The university was founded with the help of Oklahoma State University (OSU), accepting its first students in 1954, and the new campus was opened in January 1958 by Emperor Haile Selassie. OSU's participation set a record for American technical assistance programs, with 60 professionals supporting the project at one time, but due to the lack of qualified educators this required a commitment to his endeavor from the University for several years; this degree of commitment was due to the personal support of the former OSU president, Henry G. Bennett.
Haramaya University was promoted from a college within Addis Ababa University to an independent university on May 27, 1985. For many years the university had been limited to only an agricultural curriculum, but in 1996 the university was given permission to open other faculties and departments.
The agreement, made on May 16, 1952 between the governments of the then imperial Ethiopia and the United States of America, was believed to have given rise to the present Haramaya University. After the historic document named "Agreement between the Government of Ethiopia and the Technical Cooperation Administration of the Government of the United States of America", Oklahoma State University embarked on establishing buildings and bringing in staff from abroad to run academic, research and extension programs in the Imperial Ethiopia College of Agriculture and Mechanical Arts.
With limited staff and facilities available, it was possible to handle only the junior and senior classes at Haramaya during the first year of its operation, and freshman and sophomore courses were given at Jimma Agricultural and Technical School. The four-year college program started at Haramaya campus in 1954/55 academic year. The first batch graduated with B.Sc. in Agriculture on January 16, 1958. The Emperor of Ethiopia, Hailesillasie-I was present at the graduation ceremony of the college.
The college, in addition to teaching activities, was a national coordinator of agricultural research and extension through the technical and staff support obtained from Oklahoma State University. Until 1963, the college was dependent on Oklahoma both administratively and academically; however, since 1963, after the first Ethiopian dean was appointed, the role of Americans was limited to advisory and technical supports. The college became a chartered member of Addis Ababa University following the contractual termination of Oklahoma State University in 1967. Consequently, it was named Alemaya College of Agriculture.
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Wikipedia