Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Meet my staff…

One of the best parts of my life in Doha is my amazing staff of CDAs (Community Development Advisors). Let me introduce you to them.

From left to right:

Amal is a strong willed, independent, mature leader. She is a senior at CMU and is considering going into student affairs. She typically has the same facial expression, so I have to ask her if she is happy – thankfully she almost always says yes! I am learning a lot from Amal and am so glad she is willing to teach me. She grew up in UAE, but is Omani. Her mother is Nigerian and her father is Omani. She has an amazing story.


Carla is a creative, free spirited, kind student. She is a junior at VCU with a talent for fashion design. She comes into every situation with a smile and empathetic eyes. She has a difficult building whose residents typically do not get involved. She does not let this frustrate her and she keeps planning great opportunities for her women. Carla grew up in Qatar but is originally from the Philippines.

Zahra is a soft spoken, but articulate, ambitious young woman. She is in her second year of pre-med and will begin medical school next year at Cornell. She is extremely intelligent, but she would never tell you that. She also has a difficult mix of residents who are mostly upper level medical students who just don’t have time to get involved. She had found a way to connect with residents personally and brings joy to her role as a CDA. Zahra is from Pakistan.


Dianna is a ball of energy that you feel enter the room before you even see her. She is always laughing and is truly happy with who she is and what she is doing. She is a second year students at Georgetown and is always excited to talk about what she is learning in class. She is younger than most of her residents, yet she has created an atmosphere were they trust, look up to her, and enjoy coming to her events. Dianna grew up in Saudi Arabia, but was born in the US to Chinese parents. She has this unique identity and seems to meld into all cultures at one time.

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