NOTE TO STUDENTS: Before answering the questions, read the “Background” and watch the videos under “Resources”

1. The first paragraph of a news article should answer the questions who, what, where and when. List the who, what, where and when of this news item. (NOTE: The remainder of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)

2. When/how did Abdulaziz Alfallaj come to the U.S.?

3. a) When did Alfallaj obtain a U.S. private pilot’s license?
b) Why was his certificate revoked last year?

4. Why did a federal grand jury return a three-count indictment against Alfallaj?

5. What sentence does Alfallaj face on the charges against him?

6. Currently, foreign students must give fingerprints when applying for flight school.
a) Should there be a law banning non-citizens from attending flight schools in the U.S.? Explain your answer.
b) There was no mention in any news report as to why Alfallah wanted to obtain a pilot’s license.  Should foreign students be required to show a legitimate purpose for why they would need to obtain a pilot’s license in the U.S.? Explain your answer.

7. The news reports do not provide a photo of Alfallaj. No information on why he did not attend college with his wife - or whether he had a job or what he was doing while his wife has been going to college in Oklahoma for the past 6 or 7 years. Supposedly Saudi students (and their families) can receive up to a five-year visa. Alfallaj has been here almost seven years.
There is no information on how the Saudi government chooses the students they send to the U.S.  (The Saudi government pays tuition and expenses.)
Going forward, should the Saudi student visa program continue, or should the federal government put the program on hold? Explain your answer.

8. Mr. Alfallaj, who is from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia came to the U.S. in late 2011 on a nonimmigrant visa based on his wife’s status as a foreign student. The huge increase in Saudi students to the U.S. came about in 2005 after George W. Bush met with Crown Prince (now King) Abdullah; President George Bush made the agreement as a way to strengthen ties between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia in the wake of the 2001 terrorist attacks.
Universities support it because they get millions in foreign tuition. What do you think of this agreement? Does this program benefit the U.S. and U.S. citizens? Explain your answers.