Join us on April 2nd at 12 PM EDT for an engaging and solutions-oriented discussion about the challenges—and opportunities—that refugees and displaced students face 10 years into the Syria crisis. How do young Syrians look towards the future and how do programs like AECF and SYE put them on the path to success?
Lexi Shereshewsky is the founder and Executive Director of The Azraq Education and Community Fund (AECF). She was inspired to start the organization after spending time living and studying in Damascus, Syria in 2009 and 2010. In addition to her role as Executive Director, Lexi is a Marketing Manager for DailyMail.com. Lexi leads fundraising initiatives and works daily with AECF’s team on the ground to implement impactful programming for 250+ Syrian students.
Mohammed is a Lawyer & International Trainer/Lecturer and a social and human rights activist. In addition to his expertise in the field of law and international cooperation, he an academic, as well as practical background in the area of human & social development with a focus on refugees. Mr. Tarawneh graduated from the McCain Institute of International Leadership and specializes in leadership and development of communities affected by asylum.
Jessica Roy is the Digital Director of ELLE Magazine, where she oversees ELLE.com and writes and edits stories primarily about politics, entertainment, culture and global issues. She also studies Arabic and reports from the MENA region. Currently, Jessica is working on a book for Scribner about two American sisters torn apart when one follows her husband to Syria and joins ISIS.
Yasmin serves as a member of the leadership team and the head of SYE’s graduate program. She first became involved in SYE in 2018 as a mentor. Yasmin’s family immigrated to San Francisco from Damascus, Syria in 1994, and her family background has inspired her to be an avid advocate for Syria since her youth. She graduated from Stanford University in 2020 with a B.S in Biology and will attend the UCSF School of Medicine in the fall of 2021. She is interested in medicine and global health and hopes to work as a surgeon, researcher, and educator in the US and ultimately in Syria.
Monica has been involved in the field of higher education for over 10 years. She began her work as an EducationUSA Advisor for Syrian students in the U.S. Embassy in Damascus in 2010 and continued her work remotely advising Syrian students and refugees through 2017. During that time, Monica partnered with the Institute of International Education (IIE) to create the Syria Consortium for Higher Education in Crisis which provided more than $4.5 million in assistance to 333 Syrian students. After leaving EducationUSA, Monica led a college advising department in a private international boarding school in New York and most recently read 1,000 undergraduate applications as an External Admissions reader for UC Berkeley.