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A Very Accomplished Alum!

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Photo: Dawoud gives a speech at his high school graduation.

While most YES alumni are very busy when they return to their home countries, Dawoud Zahran (YES 2011 – 2012, West Bank, hosted by AFS in Brodhead, WI) has perhaps been the busiest.

In the past few years Dawoud has been an active member in multiple institutions in Palestine and internationally, including fellowships at King’s College London and Brandeis University. Dawoud has also been part of multiple leadership and development summits around the world, and continues to contribute to youth development through various Palestinian and international organizations. He conducted educational sessions with more than 850 Palestinian and international students from Norway, the U.S, the U.K, and various other countries in the past five years. Dawoud has also attended conferences in Norway, the US, Morocco, and Cyprus.

Dawoud has a passion for public service that has helped him obtain a series of highly competitive scholarships and grants in the past four years from more than thirteen different institutions around the world. But he’s not resting on his laurels. Dawoud used his experiences on those scholarships to develop his political and organizational knowledge with two set goals in mind: to continue developing himself, and to develop specific sectors within the Palestinian community in the near future. Currently Dawoud is the founder of a start-up company which aims to expand unique services of international companies to Arab markets.

Dawoud says that the YES program was the step that got him closer to achieve his goals and set him on the right direction. It opened his eyes to a world of opportunities that can be found outside the boarders of his country, which he was able to bring back and apply. He came to understand the importance of cultural exchange. We are so proud that Dawoud is a YES alumnus and a very active part of our Alumni Network, and we foresee great accomplishments in his future.

Dawoud is a YES alumnus from the city of Ramallah and he served as the YES Alumni coordinator from 2014-2015. Dawoud is currently in his final year of his Bachelor’s degree studies at Tel Aviv University, majoring in Middle Eastern Studies.


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