Tamer is an Associate Professor of Science Education and the Chair of the Department of Education at the American University of Beirut (AUB). His primary area of research involves characterizing the cognitive underpinnings of scientific expertise, how scientific expertise is acquired and the implications of this for designing effective science instruction. In this work, he focuses in particular on the role that language plays in conceptual change.

Suzanne Abdul-Reda Abourjeili is specialized in Educational Sociology. Currently, she is Professor at the Faculty of Education at the Lebanese University. She’s currently President of the Lebanese Association of Educational Studies LAES that is a scientific NGO gathering 40 reputable Lebanese researchers and Faculty members from different educational fields and universities. Her research interests focus on school climate and change in education.

Basma holds a doctorate degree in primary education from the University of Leicester, UK. She is an educational consultant with over 25 years of professional experience in university teaching, research, teacher-training and working with children, community outreach and international consulting in Lebanon, UAE, KSA, Oman and Canada. Basma’s research and publications focused on the status of early childhood in the Arab countries.

Julia is an assistant professor in the Leadership for Educational Organizations program, School of Education and Human Development at the University of Colorado-Denver. She is dedicated to work on educational reform in Lebanon along with students and scholars from the region. Her research explores the social, emotional, and cultural dynamics of urban and rural educational settings and their effects on school climate and school improvement utilizing qualitative and mixed methodologies.

Salwa Ali is a graduate student in Science Education at the American University of Beirut (AUB). She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry in addition to a Teaching Diploma in Secondary Education from AUB. She is a member of the Initiation/Steering committee of GESN. Her current research focuses on the role of language of instruction in relation to conceptual understanding chemistry in multilingual settings.

Siline Itani earned a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education and a Teaching Diploma from Haigazian University. Her thesis focused on Academic Procrastination, Academic Self-efficacy, and Academic Achievement of the Lebanese Baccalaureate Program Candidates. She is currently a university instructor in the School of Education at the Lebanese International University (LIU).

Shaghig Chaparian has a Master’s degree in Science Education from the American University of Beirut. Her research interests are science education for informed and active citizenship and sustainable development. Shaghig is an instructor in the Education department at Modern University of Business and Science (MUBS) in Lebanon.

Stephanie Jureidini holds a Master of Arts in Educational Administration and Policy Studies from the American University of Beirut. She also earned a teaching diploma with emphasis on Early Childhood from Haigazian University. She is currently a second-year doctoral student in the department of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her research interests revolve around sustainable school improvement, building school capacity and building teacher leadership capacity.

Ghada has over 50 years of experience in the sector of education, non-governmental organizations, and community engagement. She joined International College as a member of the administration and Biology teacher. Her experience at IC and as a volunteer among other engagements, inspired her to setup MMKN (which means “it’s possible” in Arabic) in 2010 to help public school students. As the President and founder of MMKN, she continues her work to support the public school and all vulnerable students equally regardless of background, creating socially responsible citizens.

Rim Fathallah is a doctoral candidate in Curriculum & Pedagogy at the University of Toronto’s Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE). She explores peacebuilding and intercultural dialogue through design. With an undergraduate degree in Interior Architecture and a master degree in Art, Design and Architecture Education, she is interested in intersections between peace education, culture, identity, pedagogy and design education.

Emma Ghosn is a PhD candidate in Educational Leadership and Policy program at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE), University of Toronto. Her research focuses on social justice teacher leadership and specifically how teacher leaders in Canadian schools achieve social equity. She has worked with Lebanese and Canadian scholars and international organizations such as UNHCR on research projects about blended and fully online learning programs and teacher leadership and has published in international journals.

Sarah El Halwany is a PhD candidate at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE), University of Toronto. Her research interests include studies of affect and emotions in science education. Her dissertation explores affective politics of college STEM education. She is part of the STEPWISE project (directed by Dr. Larry Bencze) and contributed to development of curriculum materials that connect fields of science and technology to issues of social and environmental justice.

Lina gained her BS and teaching diploma from AUB. She has 12 years combined experience as a teacher and later deputy principal in an international school. Lina went on to complete her PhD in education in the UK and has since returned to the university she attributes her passion for teaching to: The American University of Beirut. She now teaches leadership, organizational management, strategic planning to graduate students alongside research responsibilities.

Dr. Yara Hilal holds PhD in Education from the University of Leicester-UK and a Graduate Diploma in Educational Leadership from McGill University-Canada. She has 14 years of practice in areas of teaching, instructional supervision, and principalship. Dr. Hilal is a faculty member of the Educational Administration and Policy Studies (EAPS) program in the Education Department at AUB. Her research interests lie in the area of school improvement, professional learning, teacher leadership, and reflective practice.

Fahd is a social entrepreneur, dedicating his time to a new initiative called Learning Land. It aims to connect educators along education ecosystem players across all Lebanon to accelerate their professional learning and advocate for enhanced school policies. Fahd is currently pursuing his master’s degree in Education Policy at the AUB. He is a part of the Social Entrepreneurs Collective at Teach for all and recognized as a Global Shaper by the World Economic Forum.