About me

❝If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his own language, that goes to his heart.❞

‒Nelson Mandela

IN THE UK FROM 2001 TO 2004

Hello, my name is Omran Elokshi, but my original family name is Akasha and I am originally from Libya. At this time of writing this page, I am about 35 years old and I have been here in England since Jan 2001, but I will be back home, Libya, as soon as I finish my study to live with my mother, father, and brothers as I miss them all. My current study at Salford University in the MA English/Arabic Translation program, I like this course as I do like all my tutors at the University, we are only Arabic-speaking students enrolled in this course from different Arab regions, and all of them are so friendly.

During my study in England, I moved around the country, but mostly in the north region. The best place where I found myself happy is called Scarborough. People in Scarborough are so friendly and nice too. I lived with a host family from Jan to June 2001. The family is called Hannam. Ken and Ann are a very nice couple. They live in a nice house close to my school, Anglolang Academy of English. Really, I cannot describe how this family is a nice one. They created a very positive image of the English family. I love this small town, Scarborough, with its nice romantic views and nice people too. From there, I moved to Newcastle but I did not keep any memory of it because I do not like it but do not ask me why.

From Newcastle, I moved to Bradford in September 2002 after being accepted into the MSc Computer Science program. The course was good, particularly in the Java language class. In this program, I have learned computer skills that were an opportunity for me in developing my knowledge about computers. At the university, I have been working as a team with a group of new friends. Helal is one of them whom I would rather call my brother with brother Fahad too. I spent almost 9 months on my diploma and then traveled back to Libya for my summer vacation.

Let me describe the city where I come from, it is Sebha which is located in the south of Libya. The climate there, most likely, is very hot in summer and very cold in winter. The population is over 100.000 but most of them came from different cities I am originally from Bany Walid which is located in the northwest of Libya that is about 180 k.m from Tripoli, the capital of Libya. 

I would like to add more about me for this year 2004. I have not been able to update my website for a holiday reason. This time, I am in Bradford to do my MSc dissertation in Computing. This week, 21 Feb 2004, I will be very busy working on my dissertation because I have to submit a part of it to Dr. Rob Holton very soon. I am thinking to design a web-based platform for teaching the English Language. This project is under study and might be arisen at the end of this year. 

Today is Sunday the 6th of June 2004. At this time, I am very happy after I succeeded in my master's defense in Computer Science at Bradford University. I am planning to go back home, Libya, to celebrate this with my family of this achievement and also to get married to someone whom I hope to spend the rest of my life with and whom I would like to make the happiest person on earth!

Today is Tuesday, the 22nd of June 2004. I am still in Bradford waiting for my graduation ceremony day which will be held on Wed 14 July from which I will be back home soon after. I went to Scarborough last weekend for a short visit to my former host family, Hannam. I spent a lovely time there, I met the lovely ladies Christine and Caron. I also met my best friend, Martin, with his lovely wife for almost three hours. He looks completely different after he stopped drinking alcohol. Ken, Ann, and I met the lovely family, Richard and Maxine, with their lovely son, Christopher. We had a great conversation in their house as we laughed too particularly about Richard's story about when he got on a camel in Tunisia. They had a romantic time there, but not with Richard's camel!

AT THE UNIVERSITY OF SEBHA

Well, I am back to updating my page; my last update was in June 2004. Now, we are in May 2005. I was very busy during the previous days. I started my work at Sebha University in the English Department last January. From now, I would be in touch with you regularly if I could despite the fact that the Internet is not good enough.

Hello again, today is the 15th of June 2006. I was not able to update my page for many reasons. First, the connection was very bad, but I think it is going to be better from now so on. Second, I was very busy with my students at Sebha University. My next plan is to search for a good wife who will share my life and who will be a mother to my kids.  At the university, I started my job teaching ESL students in the psychology and Engineering departments. I taught them for one semester, spring 2005.

Then, in the fall of 2005, I started to teach in the English department. I taught different courses: reading comprehension (third and fourth-year students); academic writing (third-year students); listening comprehension (first, second, and third semester); oral skills (third year); advanced oral skills (fourth year). Most of my students were hard-working students, I wish to see them all at advanced levels.

At the university, I spent three years from 2005 to 2008. At that time, we had different school systems. I had a chance to teach in both systems: Semester and year systems. I learned some good skills, but we need to work hard to improve the academic outcomes of our students. 

USA - WSU 2008 - 2014

At this time of the year, Nov 12, 2008, I am in Pullman, Washington state, willing to study for my Ph.D. at Washington State University. I arrived in the city on Monday, the 27th of Oct this year. I am still fresh to talk about the city, but it seems boring. The transportation service is not as expected. Having your own car is the best way to enjoy your life here. On Sunday, the 23rd of Nov 2008, we had a big birthday celebration for my 1-year daughter, Shahad. The party was nice, but our lovely family missed celebrating with us.

I was away for almost three years that I spent and am still in the USA. During this period of time, I get to know new people from America, a country that I've never thought to live in, but what I found is nice people, nice country, and nice weather too. Back in 2008 the year I arrived in the United States, it was a matter of luck to know such a great person that she later becomes my advisor. At the time of my arrival, I discussed my interest in the computer-assisted language learning program with Jeff Nelson at the Intensive American Language Center. He immediately directed me to Joy Egbert as one who shares the same interest as mine. From the first time I met her in her office, I felt like I am talking to someone whom I knew for a long time. She welcomed me, she listened to me to the end, she and I discussed different issues related to my study and my interest, and she then guided me through the application process. From the first moment I met her, she was friendly and kind which gave me an optimistic view of the American professors whom I had never met before. 

I started my Ph.D. program at WSU in spring 2009. The courses at the college enabled me to think in a different way because of the variety of the courses that I am required to take such as linguistics, technology, epistemology, globalization, statistics, children literature, research methods, second language theories, and more. 

These varieties helped me to learn from different professors in the college of education to name a few: Tom Salsbury, Jane Kelly, David Johnson, and Barbara Ward (who loves to read, read, and read and she is such a great person who shares the knowledge and who is always ready to help). What I like most about all my professors is that they have the knowledge to engage their students academically, socially, critically, and overall respectively. I have learned many new strategies and techniques that I definitely, Enshaa Allah, will use in my academic life. I am so lucky to shift from the British academic school to the American one as I am learning new experiences that I would never learn otherwise.

Back to my social life; during my summer courses with Dr. Joy Egbert, I have been awarded a nice gift from Allah, Saja, my second daughter. Saja was born while I am taking two courses with my lovely advisor, Joy Egbert, one of the experts in teaching English as a second language with technology. Saja means quiet, the last hours of the night before dawn. It is mentioned in the holly Quran (93: 2). I want her to be quiet and let me finish my Ph.D. quietly.

  My Ph.D. Graduation - May 2014

In spring 2014, I graduated from Washington State University ending the PhD journey that I started earlier in 2009. It was very nice to live and learn in one of the most advanced universities in the world, Washington State University. Following my graduation, we also welcomed our new baby girl, Kamla, I named her after my lovely mother (May Allah bless her and my father too, forgive them and grant them Jannah, Ameen). Although I successfully completed my degree, it is a bit frustrating and scary to go back home at this time because Libya was one of the Arab spring victims. As a result, our lovely country is now kidnapped by some militia groups with support from some other countries that have an interest in Libya. At this time of the year 2015, I am struggling for going back home because it involves some risks. In fact, it is not safe to go back home and my priority is protecting my children because they are more important than anything else.  

Feb 2020

It is the 21st of Feb 2020, I am still in Pullman, the lovely and largest city in Whitman county located in southeastern Washington State, the Palouse region of the Pacific. At this time of writing, I was looking for my old written journal to take some notes and send them to a friend of mine who requested such information about me. It was a great moment for me to read some information about myself some of which was written almost two decades ago! I had to share this with my child Saja who loves to read and she was so excited to find her name mentioned the moment she was born during my PhD program. At this time of the year, I am very frustrated about the future of Libya, the country is still kidnapped by some gangs and militias since what is called the Arab Spring 2011, but I would call it the Arab Nightmare. It was really a nightmare for all even those who had a dream to get a bright future but were under the influence of the media. Over there in the North African country, one of the biggest oil producers in the world, there is a big conflict between the locally elected parliament and UN selected government of Faez Alsaraj who was brought to Tripoli on a frigate in 2016 to solve the conflict and unite the country, but the reality is that he is an emissary that was sent to divide the country, unfortunately. Nothing has been done to rebuild the country after the NATO-supported war in 2011 except poverty, economic hardships, insecurity, kidnapping, and killing.

At this time, I am working at Pullman School District as an English Language Paraeducator to help K-5 acquire English as well as an Adjunct faculty at Washington State University. In addition, I am also working on my own business as a director of AETES to translate between English and Arabic as well as edit papers, usually, the work is done during the weekend. It is my pleasure to live in the city of Pullman, the city I would describe as nice as Scarborough in Yorkshire in the UK. I arrived in the city 12 years ago, it was not my plan to stay here that long, but it is the result of the Arab Nightmare that affected a large number of Libyan Students, like me, who were awarded scholarships from the Great Jamahiriya to help build their country, but instead, each is now just looking for a safe place to live, it does not matter what, where, when, who, it only matters that Let Me Stay Away from Libya. Every one of us has a large family somewhere in Libya, but no one can reach, help or do anything except wait for a real Spring to come, but nothing can be seen for the near future, we are still optimistic to have a great future for our children at least!