UNL welcomed visitors from the Embassy of the Sultanate of Oman in Washington, D.C., last week for a series of meetings and activities.

Talal Al-Balushi, cultural attaché, and Arwa Al-Ani, educational advisor were in Lincoln March 5-6. In addition to meeting with Chancellor Harvey Perlman, Al-Balushi met with UNL’s Omani students to welcome new arrivals to campus. He also conducted a short orientation and learned more about the student experience at UNL.

He also met with a number of UNL administrators and departments, including the Office of Admissions, Programs in English as a Second Language, and UNL Housing.

Before his assignment in Washington, Al-Balushi led the international branch of the Omani Research Council. While at UNL, he met with Vice Chancellor for Research and Economic Development Prem Paul and toured Nebraska Innovation Campus to explore new opportunities for collaboration in research.

Since 2012, Oman has sent about 3,000 students to the United States through its government’s scholarship program, and expects to send an additional 500 to 800 students a year.

UNL has about 120 Omani students, who have formed an Omani student organization. The group hosted Oman Night at the Nebraska Union on March 6 for other students to learn more about Oman and its culture.