Page 8 - 2017 Annual Report

AWARD REFLECTIONS
A NEW NARRATIVE
A bd Al-Rahman Traboulsi, a first-generation Syrian American,
traveled to Syria every summer growing up to visit his family,
learn Arabic, enjoy his aunt and grandmother’s cooking, and
become immersed in the local culture and community. It was,
by all accounts, his second home.
As the Syrian conflict began to escalate in 2012, his summer visits
became drastically different.
Soon, Abd Al-Rahman would find himself as a volunteer at Syrian
refugee camps and field hospitals—at only 17 years old. It was the
summer before his freshman year of college. Rather than enjoying
the excitement of this next stage in life, he was volunteering at one of
northern Syria’s largest hospitals.
“Due to the overwhelming need, I assisted with patient stabilization
in triage and sutured in operations,” Abd Al-Rahman explained. “I
learned that saving everyone’s life was not always possible.”
It was these experiences, though, that helped shape his
collegiate journey.
Abd Al-Rahman became intent on pursuing an academic and
career path dedicated to humanitarian causes. He knew he wanted to
channel his passions to foster innovative health care for those in need, competition for social entrepreneurship.
including displaced populations afflicted by conflict.
His goal was clear: rewrite the narrative for marginalized
communities. “The harsh reality of conflict and war, intertwined
with its effects on my family, really set my heart on humanitarian
medicine,” he said.
Abd Al-Rahman began to build the foundation necessary for a
medical career once he enrolled at The Ohio State University and
began studies as a biomedical engineering major.
Academically, he was a standout on campus. But personally, he
knew he was capable of more.
Determined to use his capacity to create change as a student, Abd Al- That I loved and cared for strangers, as I did my community.”
Rahman got involved with an OSU public health student organization
working to bridge the gap between medical and social care. His
involvement with the organization, ENCompass, helped to reinforce the
experiences he had as a volunteer in the refugee hospitals and clinics.
6 PHI KAPPA PHI REFLECTIONS
In 2015, Abd Al-Rahman returned to campus for his junior year
after spending the summer on another medical relief trip in Syria.
Using his experiences from that trip and those before, he delivered an
emotional TEDx talk, titled Syria’s Lost Generation, focusing on his
personal, firsthand accounts of the conflict and refugee crisis.
As his junior year at OSU progressed, he still felt a lingering
frustration from not being able to assist in relief efforts abroad while
focused on classes and coursework. It was this drive that led him to
establish a campus organization, Refuge, with two fellow students. The
organization was created with the mission to make higher education a
tangible reality for young adult refugee populations.
During its pilot year, the program assisted 12 refugee students.
“Seeing their faces when they went around campus and saw the
opportunities that existed made all the effort and time I had put in
worth it,” said Abd Al-Rahman. “Even if we help one person reach
higher education, our efforts are worthwhile.”
Since its creation in January 2016, Refuge has expanded its
board of directors, collected $10,000 in seed funding, established
501(c)(3) status, successfully opened two chapters at The Ohio
State University and the University of Cincinnati, and was
named as a semifinalist for the Hult Prize—the largest student
Abd Al-Rahman graduated from OSU in May 2017 with his
Bachelor of Science in biomedical engineering. He was named the top
Marcus L. Urann Fellow from Phi Kappa Phi and awarded $15,000
for his first year of graduate education.
After being accepted to every medical school he applied to,
including Harvard and the University of California, San Francisco,
Abd Al-Rahman chose Stanford Medical School to continue his
mission as a catalyst for change, influencing humanitarian policy and
cultivating an inclusive society.
“I want to be remembered for my character towards others: of
being, or always striving to be, generous, compassionate, and humble.