MEET Alumni Venture Lab
The success of MEET’s program model will ultimately be measured by the impact – economic, social, and political – that our alumni will make in their communities and across the region. MEET helps its alumni connect to quality higher education, jobs and professional mentors, and promotes alumni entrepreneurship. The newly created MEET Venture Lab is designed to foster bi-national business, technology, and social ventures. A bi-national group of alumni is developing an online educational platform mentored by Googlers in Tel Aviv. The group recently presented project milestones and received valuable feedback for the next stage of development.
Alumni Updates
Firas Basha
Firas is 22-year-old alum from Jerusalem. Firas entered MEET in 2004 – our first class ever! After graduating from MEET, Firas completed his studies in 2007 at Shu’fat High School, where he focused on scientific studies. Firas was then accepted to a very competitive medical program at An-Najah National University in Nablus. At An-Najah, he finished a Bachelor’s degree in biomedical sciences and is now working towards a medical degree (MD). Firas is currently in the second year of a three-year clinical training program and plans to become either a surgeon or an emergency room physician (or maybe both!) Firas hopes to pursue specialized training at Hadassah Hospital or at a hospital in the United States. Firas was recently selected for a two-month surgery and internal medicine clerkship this coming summer at Hadassah Hospital. Firas will be the first Palestinian student who studies in the West Bank to have been given this important opportunity.
Firas has told us that he is very proud to be one of MEET’s first alumni. He says MEET greatly impacted his life and taught him to always strive to adapt to difficult situations: “MEET taught me to see each single ‘problem’ as an opportunity to change something for the best. Life isn’t easy, and as we grow up our responsibilities get larger and larger… it’s true that you can’t always win, but don’t ever be paralyzed by the fear of failure because it doesn’t matter how many times you try, it only matters how strongly you finish.”
Sahar Bannoura
Sahar is a native of Bethlehem and graduated from MEET in 2009. Now a sophomore at Jordan University of Science and Technology, she is pursuing a BS degree in Medical Laboratory Science.
Sahar recalls her reaction upon hearing about MEET during a presentation at her high school: “I thought the combination of learning new things and meeting people from different cultures would be very valuable for my personal and professional development.”
Two years after MEET, Sahar’s intuition has served her well. “We got more than a glimpse of the professional world around us at quite a young age. MEET introduced me to many things that I wouldn’t have encountered within my school or community. It helped me gain notable communication and presentation skills that are indispensable for success in professional settings and in personal relationships as well. Overall, I got out of MEET some very strong skills and developed my personality while fully enjoying my time.”
Itay Flikier
Itay is 23-year-old MEET alum. Like Firas, he is from Jerusalem and joined MEET in 2004 and graduated with the first class of MEET students. Itay was interested in computer science and entrepreneurship from an early age. He was a manager of a team in the Young Achievement program in junior high school. MEET gave him the opportunity to continue developing his skill and passion for these subjects.
After graduating from MEET, Itay participated in the Asian Physics Olympiad, an annual science competition. Following his graduation from Leyada High School in 2007, he worked in a several high-tech companies, including Comverse. Itay then went on to study mathematics and computer science in Tel Aviv University where he served as the department representative in the student union and graduated in 2009. Itay is now completing his service in the IDF, working in a technological job.
Itay tells us that he is proud to be part of MEET family, a program that had a tremendous influence on his life. He says, “A lot of smart and strong leaders come to MEET every year, but MEET taught me that our real potential lies in cooperation with each other. That way, we will be able to emphasize our ability to impact and change the world. I’m looking forward to see the fruits that I and my MEET colleagues will bear.”
Calling all MEET Alumni: Get an update, then get involved!
The following is a letter to MEET alumni from Leemor Zucker. She would like to give you an update on the last Alumni Steering Committee meeting, inform you of the decisions that we made, and ask you to join with fellow alumni to become part of the Alumni Steering Committee where you will plan the future of MEET’s Alumni Network.
Dear Fellow Alumni,
On the 26th of October the first meeting to build the Alumni Steering Committee took place at Givat Ram campus. With high spirits and great enthusiasm for taking part in this important process, 11 brave Alumni from all across the years attended the meeting. Moran Chen, MEET’s Alumni Coordinator, opened the meeting by presenting us with two questions: “Why did each of you come to this meeting?” and “What do you think the Alumni Steering Committee is for?”. The answers were as varied as the number of alumni present, but a couple of ideas were heard more than once. For example, we all wished to stay part of the MEET family and find ways to give back. Also, we feel the Alumni Steering Committee should, and will, take great responsibility for planning alumni activities and deciding how to use the resources that MEET wishes to provide.
At the meeting we heard a short update about the alumni activities that have already started to operate. Please see these blog entries to read more about the MEET Alumni Accelerator Lab and the other Alumni Initiative Launches such as the Alumni Portal.
Talya Schwartz, MEET’s Program Manager, gave us an introduction to our tasks by presenting some additional questions to address in the process of building the Steering Committee. We proceeded with a discussion in which many questions and wishes were raised. We planned how to gather information, find out what alumni want, and how to achieve these things. We also discussed what MEET as an organization wants from the alumni and how to fit this with alumni desires. Finally, we discussed the role of the steering committee and how to define its mission statement, choose representatives, and determine a working method for the next 6 months.
At the end of the meeting we summarized the discussion and decided on next steps. We came to the following decisions:
- We would like to get as many alumni as possible involved in this stage of planning by having more alumni physically participate in the meetings or give their input in any way possible.
- We would like to take responsibility for running all meetings. So, for every meeting, a group of alumni will prepare the agenda for the next meeting and will be in charge of running it.
- Someone will take written minutes at each meeting so that anyone who was not present at the meeting will know what was discussed and what decisions were made.
Call to Action: We wish to use this as an opportunity to call all MEET alumni back home, to join us in this important challenge to build an Alumni Steering Committee for the alumni network—This committee will help to form OUR future as well as the future of the region.
We warmly welcome any comments, questions, or requests from every alumnus. Please feel free to contact me, Moran, or anyone else on the committee.
The Next Meeting: The next steering committee meeting will be held next Saturday, December 3, from 20:00-21:30 at the MEET office. If you would like to attend please contact Moran, but if you are unable to attend we are still interested in hearing your voice! Please send us your ideas!
Best regards and wish to see and hear from ALL of you soon,
Leemor
Contact us:
Moran Chen: moranchen@meet.mit.edu
Leemor Zucker: leelee737@gmail.com
Join the Alumni Accelerator Lab!
MEET changed you. How will you change the world?
About the Lab:
The MEET Alumni Accelerator Lab (the Lab) is an opportunity for small groups of alumni to apply their technology and entrepreneurial skills to gain advanced industry experience and make real economic and social impact. In addition to working with external clients, the Lab is also an opportunity for alumni to develop their own start-up ventures. MEET will provide workspace, training, mentorship, and even seed funding for bi-national teams of alumni.
Current Project Opportunity:
Google and MEET will be teaming up for the first Lab project for alumni. Most of the project details and design will be up to the MEET alumni team. The group will be accompanied by a professional mentor and submit milestones to Google for feedback throughout the process. The team will work independently and submit a completed product to Google by the end of the work period.
The Lab is also accepting applications from aspiring alumni entrepreneurs who have their own start-up ideas. These ideas may be focused on business, technology, or social goals. MEET will provide workspace, mentorship, network connections, and even seed funding to select alumni ventures.
What does it mean to be a member in the accelerator lab team?
If you are interested in taking part in this team please keep the following in mind:
- We are looking for alumni who are willing to be active and committed to the project consistently from beginning to end.
- Members must participate in regular team meetings in Jerusalem for the duration of the project (the frequency of the meetings will be decided by team members).
If you would like to register for the Accelerator Lab please send the information listed below to Moran Chen at moranchen@meet.mit.edu by Sunday, October 9th. If you have any questions please email or call Moran at 02-6272113.
Send Moran this information:
Name:
MEET class year:
Educational Institution:
Occupation:
1. Are you interested in (1) joining a project team for an external client; (2) developing your own start-up idea; (3) joining a start-up team, but don’t have your own idea; or (4) all of the above.
2. What do you hope to achieve through the Alumni Accelerator Lab?
I would like to participate in the accelerator lab and I understand the above explanation and requirements for the participation in the project.
2011 Summer Program Recap
Thanks to the hard work of our staff, MIT instructors, volunteers and supporters, the 2011 MEET Summer Program was a huge success! The summer program brought together over 100 Palestinian and Israeli students for 5 intensive weeks of advanced technology and business education, led by an impressive team of 14 MIT instructors. Highlights included an exciting field trip to Google, an “apprentice” business challenge hosted by Hewlett Packard (HP), and presentations of impressive, student-led technology projects, including the Y3 project with external start-up client called MuseTrek.
At the start of the summer we welcomed our new class of Year 1 students. The 44 students who began MEET this summer are an exceptionally strong group of individuals who were selected from a pool of over 600 applications. By the end of the summer these students, who began with little or no Java programming knowledge, had completed fully operational computer games with impressive functions and graphics. Year 1 students also took field trips to Animation Lab and the HP Headquarters. We are very impressed with our new students and can’t wait to see all they accomplish with MEET over the next two years.
As expected, Year 2 students excelled. Year 2 students proved themselves as young businessmen and women during this year’s Apprentice Event where they presented marketing plans to sell HP TouchPads to 50+ year-old Israelis and Palestinians. We would like to thank our topnotch panel of judges: Sandra Ashhab, MEET board member and Environmental Consultant; Assaf Harlap, MEET board member and Smart Brand Manager at Comobil Group; Eva Kedar, Management Consultant and author; Rahul Pasarnikar, Management Consultant at McKinsey & Company; Roi Carmel, Product Manager at HP, and Nechama Greenberg, a youthful representative of 50+ consumers. Click here to view pictures of the Apprentice Event.
Another highlight of the summer was a visit to the regional Google office! Along with Year 3 students, Year 2 students toured Google’s work and leisure spaces, spoke with staff, and sampled as much of Google’s famous free food as possible. Quote of the day: “Google is Disneyland for nerds!” (Marina Boursheh).
Year 3 students worked with a real world client called MuseTrek for their final project. MEET students developed applications that allow users to curate their own “treks” (tours) through cultural sites, cities, museums and other physical spaces. In addition to programming the technical back end of this project, Year 3 students also added content to the site by creating treks in places important to them in the region. Rounding out their summer, Y3 students organized a commencement ceremony at The Hebrew University attended by MEET staff, students, family members and MEET supporters. Click here for pictures of the 2011 Graduation. As alumni, our Year 3 graduates are excited to remain an active part of the MEET Network.
Huge thanks to our Summer Instructors from MIT: Anna Premo (who served as Head Instructor), Christy Le, Derek Stein, Eirik Bakke, Elena Agapie, Eva Khan, Emily Davidson, Evan Iwerks, Justin Sharps, Lorenzo Brown, Mark Wittels, Matt Landreman, Selim Temizer and Shelly Manbar. Check out their impressive bios here. We would also like to thank Dan Ramage, a former MEET Instructor, and Janet Zhou, who dedicated valuable consulting services to MEET staff and delivered excellent lectures at the summer Alumni Conference.
Finally, we would like to recognize our 2011 summer staff for their outstanding effort and professionalism: Talya Swartz, Mustafa Hussein, George Khoury, Liel Greenberg, Rafat Nd, Sadek Jabr, and Yohanan Hruschev. This summer the MEET Tenure Award, a new award given to individuals with three or more years of service to MEET, was presented to Anna Premo, Mustafa Hussein, Yohanan Hrusvhev, Rafat Nd and Ted Golfinopoulous. Congratulations and a big “thank you” to these five remarkable individuals!
Check out all the summer photos on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MEET.education?sk=photos.
More MEET @ MIT
MISTI MIT-MEET
MEET has formed an exciting new partnership with MISTI (MIT International Science and Technology Initiatives). MISTI is a program that connects MIT students with innovative internships and programs around the world. This partnership serves to further institutionalize MEET at MIT and will leverage MISTI’s considerable expertise and infrastructure in an effort to bring the best MIT students and alumni to the Middle East to work with MEET. MIT Professor Daniel Jackson, a longtime MEET supporter, has agreed to serve as faculty advisor to the partnership. More information on MISTI MIT-MEET is available on our MISTI website: http://mit.edu/misti/mit-meet/index.html.
2011-2012 Yearlong Program Launches and Student Council Elected!
The 2011-2012 Yearlong Program began on Sunday, September 11, 2011. The program kicked off with an address by CEO Zach Leverenz, Program Manager Talya Swartz, and Mentor George Khoury. Students were excited to see one another again and dive back into computer science and business instruction and projects. Over the course of the next nine months, students will build on knowledge gained from their studies during the Summer Program and will create technology projects with a social impact.
On the first day of the Yearlong Program, students elected the MEET student council for the 2011-2012 Program. Thirteen students presented themselves as candidates from which five were elected for positions. Marina Bursheh was elected as Head of Student Council. Additionally, four students were selected as council members: Yuval Yogev, Izz Abu Dakka, Liraz Jorno, and Lamis Ali (2 Girls and 2 Boys, 2 Palestinians and 2 Israelis). Congratulations to the new Student Council!
First Annual Alumni Conference
On July 21st 2011, MEET held the First Annual Alumni Conference. The Alumni Conference was attended by participants of the past 7 years of the MEET program. The daylong event featured a formal lunch, networking opportunities, the chance to meet the current MEET students and instructors from MIT and career development seminars. Alumni Conference seminars were specifically designed for MEET in order to make the most of our alumni’s unique skill sets. Seminar topics included social entrepreneurship, professional interviewing strategy, and negotiation tactics. Over the course of the day it was especially nice to see alumni and current MEET students interacting—hearing about the activities and accomplishments of alumni was inspiring and motivating for current MEET students.
Alumni Initiative Launches
MEET is very excited to roll out several new Alumni Network initiatives this year.
- Online Alumni Portal: The Alumni Portal will be an online information sharing resource for that will include job boards, information on applying to university, announcements of MEET alumni events and volunteer opportunities and will facilitate connections between MEET alumni, MIT instructors, staff and mentors.
- MEET Accelerator Lab: The MEET Accelerator Lab will provide a supportive environment for MEET alumni to lead their own technology projects. The Lab will provide professional workspace, focused trainings and mentorship to bi-national teams as they turn their technology project ideas into reality.
- Alumni Mentorship Program: Over the next year, MEET will develop a formalized structure to facilitate mentorship between MEET alumni and past instructors, and local leaders in the technology, business, and social sectors. We would also like to facilitate mentorship and networking between older and newer MEET alumni.
In addition to the initiatives above, MEET will be holding several Alumni Events throughout the year. These will include trainings, lectures, networking events and social gatherings. Moran Chen, MEET’s Alumni Relations Coordinator, is establishing an Alumni Network Steering Committee that will help identify Alumni Network priorities and plan activities. Please contact Moran at moranchen@meet.mit.edu if you are interested in joining the committee.
Alumni Updates
Ala’a Ali Siam
Ala’a graduated MEET in 2010. He was accepted to MIT and began his studies last month. He is planning to double major in biological engineering and materials science and engineering with a minor in public policy. Ala’a has combined these academic tracks in order to navigate the complex, but essential relationship between biotechnology and law and ethics. Ala’a believes that the combination of life sciences and engineering will be the basis of “new science” for the 21st century, and that this field will make breakthroughs of the same caliber that computer science has made in the late 20th century. Ala’a has also been admitted to work as a research assistant in the prestigious lab of Institute Professor Robert S. Langer. Dr. Langer is the most cited engineer in history and his lab at MIT is the largest biomedical engineering lab in the world… Congratulations on this great accomplishment Ala’a!
Ala’a told us that MEET helped prepare him for college life by encouraging a work hard-play hard mentality, teamwork, well roundedness, a curiosity in and acceptance of other people and a “nothing is impossible” outlook in life.
Helen Wexler
Helen Wexler, a 2007 MEET graduate, studies architecture at the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem. This summer Helen participated in the Sea Breeze Arts Festival in Bat Yam. She was selected for one of the 15 spots at the festival reserved for students and recent graduates of art and architecture school and was also the youngest of the 80 artists at the festival. After the festival, Helen took a short break to travel and spent the remainder of her summer interning at an architecture firm in New York City. She is currently living in downtown Jerusalem and back at school. Looking forward, Helen hopes to participate in more art exhibitions and complete more internships in architecture, art and business. She is also planning to be more involved with MEET, especially in helping to build the MEET Alumni Network.
Helen says to her fellow alums, “Best of luck with all of your various endeavors and I hope to see the MEET family together again soon! Hope to see many alums involved in the future!”
Subhi Beidas
Subhi is from the East Jerusalem/Ramallah area and graduated MEET in 2006. After graduating from MEET, Subhi received a full scholarship to attend the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago, where he is majoring in Electrical and Computer Engineering. Subhi returned to MEET in 2010 to serve as full—time summer staff. During this time he was an inspirational role model for Israeli and Palestinian students alike. In 2010, Subhi described his MEET experience this way: “Besides the technical and interpersonal skills I have acquired throughout the program, MEET has influenced both my college major, and what I aspire to become in the future. In addition, I had the opportunity to work at a mentor this summer for current MEET students, and it was great to give back to the program.” In early 2011, Subhi was selected for a highly competitive internship at Goldman Sachs in New York City. Subhi is interested in beginning his own business in Palestine and perhaps eventually entering politics.
Loujine Khoury
Loujine Khoury, a 2007 MEET graduate, is currently a senior at Bethlehem University majoring in Accounting, with a minor in Business Administration. This summer, she completed an internship in accounting and auditing at University of San Diego in California. For Loujine, this internship was a great experience, both personally and professionally. It gave her the opportunity to meet a lot of professionals in the accounting field while enhancing her auditing skills at the same time. Loujine’s plan after graduating university is to find an internship at a local accounting firm in order to further develop her skills and qualifications, and to eventually enroll in a graduate program in business administration.
Yohanan Hruschev
Yohanan, a member of MEET’s inaugural 2004 class, had dreams of becoming an entrepreneur. He excelled at the business curriculum during his time at MEET and following graduation, opened his own juice shop on Jaffa Street in Jerusalem with Mustafa, a Palestinian business partner. Yohanan and Mustafa fully owned and operated the shop before selling it in 2010. Yohanan then joined MEET as the logistics coordinator, where he worked to coordinate MEET’s complex student transportation system and create cost efficiencies. In 2011, Yohanan accepted a fellowship to IDC, where he is a MBA candidate. Yohanan says, “MEET has completely changed the way I see the world and what is possible. I now know so many people that I would have never had the opportunity to know otherwise.”
To All MEET Alumni:
We would love to hear from you! Please drop up a line to tell us about your greatest accomplishment since graduating MEET and to tell us what you are doing this fall. We will include it in subsequent newsletters. Share your news by emailing Moran Chen at moranchen@meet.mit.edu.
