Achievements, appointments, events and member stories from the Society.
SAAS strongly objects to remarks by U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. claiming that Arabs do not produce science or literature, and calls on him to publicly correct them.
We are pleased to spotlight Ms. Malak Al-Rifai, a Syrian academic and professional from Daraa who works in judicial administration and support and in institutional process development in the United States.
Dr. Alaaeddin Alsbaiee, a founding member and former President of SAAS, and Professor William Dichtel of Northwestern University won the 2026 ACS Green Chemistry Challenge Award for their polyurethane recycling research.
SAAS welcomes Dr. Anas Al-Fattal, Associate Professor of Marketing at the University of Minnesota Crookston, as Vice President of the Society, drawing on his more than 20 years of academic and administrative experience.
SAAS welcomes Ms. Aya Bak Kanj, an entrepreneur and digital transformation expert, to its Board of Directors and announces her appointment as the Society’s Public Relations Coordinator in Syria.
SAAS announces the appointment of Dr. Ahmad Katsha, a professor and researcher with more than 20 years of experience in Japan and the United States, as Chair of its Board of Directors.
SAAS congratulates Dr. Alaaeddin Alsbaiee on his appointment as Associate Professor of Chemistry at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM) and thanks him for his service as the Society’s President.
SAAS congratulates Dr. Anas Al-Fattal on receiving tenure and promotion to the rank of Associate Professor at the University of Minnesota Crookston.
SAAS congratulates Dr. Mhd Hasan Almekdash on his promotion to the rank of Associate Professor at Baylor College of Medicine, effective June 1, 2026.
SAAS congratulates Dr. Reem Haikal, Professor of Law at Texas Southern University, on being voted “Professor of the Year” for the second consecutive year and on winning first place at the 2026 Research Week.
SAAS congratulates Dr. Alaaeddin Alsbaiee on new research, published in Biomacromolecules, on peptide-functionalized rosette nanotubes with promising uses in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.
SAAS congratulates member Dr. Dima Dira on receiving the 2026 NSF CAREER Award for her research project “AdaptTrust” on adaptive, trustworthy learning in smart sensing technologies.
Mr. Moses Chbib is a Cell & Gene Therapy Specialist at the NIH Center for Cellular Engineering, contributing to the manufacture of cell and gene therapies for early-phase clinical trials.
Dr. Sami Sbei is a Postdoctoral Researcher at Washington University in St. Louis who studies the neural mechanisms of chronic pain and chronic itch, including the role of opioid receptors.
The Syrian American Academic Society (SAAS) is pleased to invite you to a lecture titled “Transforming Learning: Building Better Education Systems” by Dr. Alia Hadid, the second webinar in our monthly series.
Dr. Hasan Aljabbouli is an Associate Professor at New York University whose teaching and research focus on machine learning and real-world data analytics applications.
SAAS proudly announces that its membership has reached 100 Syrian academics and researchers across North America.
SAAS extends its warmest congratulations and sincerest blessings to its members and to our community on the occasion of the holy month of Ramadan.
SAAS thanks everyone who attended Dr. Hasan Aljabbouli’s lecture “Artificial Intelligence Tools for Academics” and shares the recording with a summary of the AI tools presented for teaching, research, and administration.
The Universities of Aleppo and Damascus, in cooperation with SAAS, invite you to an online lecture by Dr. Hasan Aljabbouli on using artificial intelligence efficiently in teaching and scientific research.
SAAS welcomes Ms. Marcelle Shehwaro, a feminist activist and writer from Aleppo whose work centers on education initiatives, social empowerment, and human rights advocacy.
SAAS congratulates Dr. Laila Alhusini on earning her PhD in Media and Public Relations with distinction, with a dissertation on the role of local Arab media in the United States during the COVID-19 crisis.
SAAS welcomes Ms. Rasha Alrifae to its Board of Directors and announces her appointment as Head of the Coordination Office.
SAAS member Dr. Hasan Aljabbouli, Associate Professor of Computer Science at NYU, presents an online lecture on artificial intelligence in academic work and modern data science on January 19, 2026.
Dr. Anas Al-Fattal of the University of Minnesota Crookston presents an online webinar on January 25, 2026, on how AI can support the entire research process, from literature reviews to analysis.
Each month, SAAS will host a distinguished Syrian academic from a leading U.S. university for a live online lecture and open discussion with academics, students, and the public in Syria.
SAAS congratulates Dr. Nora Masri on beginning a postdoctoral research fellowship in cardiovascular medicine at Yale School of Medicine, supported by a National Institutes of Health (NIH) T32 fellowship.
On the anniversary of Syria’s liberation, SAAS honors the nation’s martyrs and reaffirms its belief that knowledge is the most powerful path toward building a new Syria of peace, justice, and equal rights.
Dr. Mhd Hasan Almekdash led a national study, funded by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, evaluating whether the VA Toxic Exposure Medical Evaluation Program speeds veterans’ diagnosis and treatment.
New research by the Society’s president, published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society (JACS), shows that hard-to-recycle plastics can be chemically recycled without expensive external catalysts.
SAAS is pleased to announce that 45 distinguished Syrian academics and researchers from across North America have joined the Society this week.
Dr. Laila Alhusini is a Syrian American journalist and media professional with more than 20 years of experience in print and broadcast journalism and a particular focus on fostering intercultural dialogue.
Dr. Saja Al-Zoubi is an economic development expert at Dalhousie University specializing in gender, forced migration, and development studies, with a focus on women’s empowerment in conflict settings.
