Joining the ranks of more than 500 alumni of the U.S. Middle East Partnership Initiative Tomorrow’s Leaders (MEPI-TL) scholarship program, 35 graduates from LAU and 44 from the American University of Beirut (AUB) celebrated their achievements at a joint graduation ceremony on June 27, 2023 on the LAU Beirut campus.

Funded by the United States Department of State, the program has, since 2009, offered full tuition, leadership training and community service opportunities for academically excelling students from across the Arab World.

At the ceremony, U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Dorothy Shea encouraged the graduates to “seek out new experiences, challenge your assumptions, embrace diversity in all its forms, and never stop learning.”

Recognizing the efforts of the MEPI-TL teams at both universities, the ambassador thanked them for their shared commitment to education and youth engagement. She emphasized that these values are the reason why the US Government has invested more than $80 million in the Tomorrow’s Leaders Programs: the undergraduate (TLU) and graduate (TLG) scholarships, as well as the gender scholars (TLS) and the college-to-work pipeline (TLP) programs.

“We believe in this program’s power to transform, just as we believe in each of you as drivers of this change,” she added.

To that end, LAU President Michel E. Mawad urged the graduates to “let your actions be deeply rooted in the core values you have acquired: democracy, rule of law, gender equality, diversity, inclusion, helping others and serving society.” He hoped that the investment made in them will “yield plentiful returns, improve lives and kindle hope.”

Speaking about the program, Dr. Mawad said it has transcended its cognitive mission to become an experience for appreciating diversity, promoting teamwork, enriching humanity and finding fulfillment through giving. At both host universities in Lebanon, he added, the program is “a statement of resilience, sustainability and refusal to cave in to the crisis however mighty its winds.” 

For AUB Provost Zaher Dawy, who represented President Fadlo Khuri, “the MEPI-TL recipes of transformation – leadership, civic engagement, partnership, connectivity, solutions, stability and prosperity, among others – are embodied at AUB through aligned missions and shared values.”

Dr. Dawy highlighted several accomplished TL alumni who went on to volunteer, design and carry out impactful initiatives and businesses. He urged the graduates to be bold, innovate and create, and quoting US Chef and Professor Elizabeth Briggs, he said: “Chefs do not make mistakes – they make new dishes.”

The sentiment was reflected in the scholars’ speeches during the ceremony, as each shared their stories and how the program set them on a path to grow and push their limits academically, socially, emotionally and creatively.

AUB TLG valedictorian Jana Chazbeck expressed her gratitude for having learned how to “leverage every new skill acquired to make an impact in our society.”

Her peer, Balkis Chaaban, an international affairs graduate who spoke on behalf of the LAU TLG class of 2023, delved into the importance of human connections. As her field of study is directly linked to the plight of people during conflicts and humanitarian crises, she felt thankful that she learned to “select, nourish and maintain connections and relationships,” throughout the MEPI-TL program.

Between three internships, a semester abroad and volunteering as a tutor in public schools, LAU TLU valedictorian Hadil Hagar earned a lot more than a degree. “The deep debates and discussions have broadened my perspective and opened my eyes to the multiplicity of cultures and nations,” she said.

Nursing graduate and AUB TLU class speaker Joodi Mourhli reflected on the exceptionally challenging circumstances that had defined her cohort’s university years. “Our voice, willpower and perseverance on the streets, at vaccination campaigns and on fundraiser stands have allowed Lebanon to have life and truly have it more abundantly,” she said, thanking her peers for “proving that the most underprivileged can still be tomorrow’s leaders.”

Recalling these trying times, AUB MEPI-TL Executive Director Hani Hassan invited the graduates to revel in the well-earned celebration as “you had persevered tremendously, and we, in turn persevered because of you. Please recognize where you have been, what you persisted through, and recognize where you are today.”

LAU MEPI-TL Executive Director Dina Abdul Rahman used the example of MEPI-TL alumna Rasha Shalha to inspire the graduating cohort to keep persevering. She spoke about how Shalha, along with two young women, organized a music workshop for 15 juvenile inmates at the Roumieh prison.

“We are struggling with far too many issues and the world is in desperate need of solutions,” said Abdul Rahman, urging the graduates to “embrace the differences, have tough conversations and take action.”