With the deafening sounds of sirens blaring all around me, I stood helpless in the hallway as the doctors rushed my “Teta” -Grandmother in Arabic- into the CPR room. That happened mere moments after our anticipated reunion after a year apart while I worked diligently towards my dreams in the United States. For those back home, my status was described as “Ghorbeh” - being away from one’s homeland. Ghorbeh eats away at those who choose to leave home and give up moments with their precious ones. Ghorbeh revisits me when I grieve over my Teta, and I cannot help but wonder— “Was my time away from home worth it?” As a Palestinian-Muslim woman growing up in Jordan, I faced a plethora of backlash when I asked to leave home. Pursuing a degree abroad was not a rational option for girls in my family. Teta, however, managed to change the course of my future. She was my best advocate, especially when it came to education. After endless debates, Teta convinced my family to let me follow my dreams. With her help, I was able to pursue a Biomedical Engineering Degree at Union College. As I prepared for my journey, I packed her passion for education and her dedication to empowering women. She made a difference not only in my life but in the lives of the women around her. She founded a school to provide women teachers with jobs and provide education to those in need. I carry her with me, constantly remembering the values she instilled in me at a young age and hoping to pass on her legacy of supporting and empowering women. She taught me that nothing is impossible. As an Arab woman, I struggled to fit in when I first moved to Union College. With time, I noticed other women undergoing a similar struggle, despite our differences in ethnicity or creed. I vouched to represent those women and fight for their rights on the College Board of Trustees, as the first international and the second woman to hold that student position. I dedicated my time to encouraging women to participate in similar roles. As a result, three of my successors on the board were women. Every day I venture with Teta’s tenacity and passion to lead a life full of purpose. A few weeks before her passing, I called her to share the new initiative I was leading on gender parity through a series of design thinking workshops. Our team’s mission was to construct a strategy to drive equity, inclusion, and economic access for women in the workforce. I adapted business-specific ideation tools to build exercises that allowed women to share stories and communicate needed changes. To create a safe and inclusive environment, I leveraged virtual whiteboard technology to provide real-time collaboration and anonymous participation. It was fulfilling to amplify the voices of these women and empower them to be part of the strategy creation. (link attached) Reflecting on the past seven years in the US, the impact I created and the success I achieved were worth the sacrifices I had to make, despite the Ghorbeh. Moving forward after finishing my MBA at Cornell University, I plan to lead digital product development initiatives to improve healthcare data management and access using AI. In the long term, I envision myself establishing a healthcare venture in the Middle East and pioneering the digital healthcare space. In addition, I want to extend my journey of empowering women and localizing talent in Jordan by launching an innovation center where women are educated and encouraged to pursue careers in technology and STEM.

With the deafening sounds of sirens blaring all around me, I stood helpless in the hallway as the doctors rushed my “Teta” -Grandmother in Arabic- into the CPR room. That happened mere moments after our anticipated reunion after a year apart while I worked diligently towards my dreams in the United States. For those back home, my status was described as “Ghorbeh” - being away from one’s homeland. Ghorbeh eats away at those who choose to leave home and give up moments with their precious ones. Ghorbeh revisits me when I grieve over my Teta, and I cannot help but wonder— “Was my time away from home worth it?” As a Palestinian-Muslim woman growing up in Jordan, I faced a plethora of backlash when I asked to leave home. Pursuing a degree abroad was not a rational option for girls in my family. Teta, however, managed to change the course of my future. She was my best advocate, especially when it came to education. After endless debates, Teta convinced my family to let me follow my dreams. With her help, I was able to pursue a Biomedical Engineering Degree at Union College. As I prepared for my journey, I packed her passion for education and her dedication to empowering women. She made a difference not only in my life but in the lives of the women around her. She founded a school to provide women teachers with jobs and provide education to those in need. I carry her with me, constantly remembering the values she instilled in me at a young age and hoping to pass on her legacy of supporting and empowering women. She taught me that nothing is impossible. As an Arab woman, I struggled to fit in when I first moved to Union College. With time, I noticed other women undergoing a similar struggle, despite our differences in ethnicity or creed. I vouched to represent those women and fight for their rights on the College Board of Trustees, as the first international and the second woman to hold that student position. I dedicated my time to encouraging women to participate in similar roles. As a result, three of my successors on the board were women. Every day I venture with Teta’s tenacity and passion to lead a life full of purpose. A few weeks before her passing, I called her to share the new initiative I was leading on gender parity through a series of design thinking workshops. Our team’s mission was to construct a strategy to drive equity, inclusion, and economic access for women in the workforce. I adapted business-specific ideation tools to build exercises that allowed women to share stories and communicate needed changes. To create a safe and inclusive environment, I leveraged virtual whiteboard technology to provide real-time collaboration and anonymous participation. It was fulfilling to amplify the voices of these women and empower them to be part of the strategy creation. Reflecting on the past seven years in the US, the impact I created and the success I achieved were worth the sacrifices I had to make, despite the Ghorbeh. Moving forward after graduating from Graduate School, I plan to lead digital product development initiatives to improve healthcare data management and access using AI. In the long term, I envision myself establishing a healthcare venture in the Middle East and pioneering the digital healthcare space. In addition, I want to extend my journey of empowering women and localizing talent in Jordan by launching an innovation center where women are educated and encouraged to pursue careers in technology and STEM.