Rhonda Trad has a BA in Comparative Literature, and an MA from Georgetown University in Economic Development and International Studies.   She served as Programming and Development Officer at the Peace Corps, an international service organization funded by the United States, where she mainly focused on water/sanitation, disease eradication, and women empowerment projects. She then worked for United Nations Volunteers (UNV), an international organization fostering and developing volunteerism as a force for sustainable development.  She coordinated the United States’ funding to UNV, as well as American volunteer recruitment and placement in the program.   Rhonda later moved to Lebanon and worked in Management Consulting for Consulting and Development Services where she assisted on projects in the banking sector as well as in the manufacturing industry.   Rhonda moved back to the DC area in 2006, where she currently lives with her family. When she is not busy with her biggest challenge of all, raising 5 children, Rhonda is heading a variety of school committees, sitting on educational boards, and volunteering in organizations and centers in the area.

Dr. Sara attended medical school at the Faculté Française de Médecine (FFM) in Beirut and at Paris XI School of Medicine and obtained his Doctorate in Medicine in 1980. In 1980, he moved to New York City where he obtained and trained 3 American Boards: Internal Medicine, Hematology and Medical Oncology.   He is a Senior Attending Physician in the division of Hematology/Oncology at Mount Sinai-Roosevelt Hospital in New York where he is the Medical Director of the Chemotherapy Unit. He is also an Assistant Clinical Professor in Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York. In 2005, Dr. Sara and Fuad Sawaya established the Helen Sawaya Fund, in memory of Fuad’s wife, Helen who passed away of cancer. This program transformed the experience of cancer patients through art, music therapy, reflexology, a travel program and more.   Dr. Sara is the author of several articles in the field of hematology and oncology and in 2013, he co-edited the first textbook about “Music and Medicine: Integrative Models in the Treatment of Pain.” He is annually cited in the Hematology/Oncology section of "Top Doctors: New York Metro Area" by Castle Connolly and the "Super Doctors” edition of the New York Times Magazine. In 2003, Gabriel co-founded “Jamhour Alumni US” and was it’s President from 2006 to 2010.

Karim S. Trad, MD is American Board-certified in General Surgery and a Clinical Professor with The George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Sciences. He was born and raised in Beirut, Lebanon. He attended medical school at the Medical University of South Carolina, completed a six-year general surgery residency at The George Washington University and a fellowship in Endoscopic Surgery with Dr. Jeffrey Ponsky at Case Western Reserve.   Dr. Trad returned to GW as the Director of Surgical Endoscopy and headed the newly established Laparoscopic Surgery Program. Among many achievements, he is credited with performing Metropolitan Washington’s first Laparoscopic Nissen Fundoplication and with leading the area's first Laparoscopic Training facility at The George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Sciences.   In 1996, Dr. Trad returned to Lebanon to serve as Medical Director at Trad Hospital for almost 10 years.  Then, he came back to the United States and joined Dr. Daniel Turgeon in Reston's premier General Surgery practice, Reston Surgical Associates, which is now a part of The GW Medical Faculty Associates. Dr. Trad has served as Chairman of the Department of Surgery at Reston Hospital in Reston, Virginia, and is currently the Vice-President of its medical staff.

Mirwan Beydoun is a retired entrepreneur. He was co-owner of a US-based family business, marketing & distributing upholstery fabric.   Mr. Beydoun conducted market research & set-up distribution networks in the Middle East and Asia. He guided the distributors in the process of buying, inventory control & selling fabrics. Currently, Mr. Beydoun consults with former clients on an ad-hoc and volunteer basis.   Mr. Beydoun graduated in 1980 from the University of Pennsylvania, having majored in Finance & Management.

Nada Sara graduated from the Institut Sainte Anne de Besançon of Beirut in 1974.  She attended law school at the Université Saint Joseph (USJ) in Beirut where she obtained her degree in Lebanese Law and a Master’s in French Law in 1978. She then went back to school in New York – where she has been living since 1981 – and joined the LL.M program at Fordham School of Law, graduating in 2007.   Nada has been active to promote Lebanon, giving lectures to the French community of New York and presenting the UNESCO Lebanese sites to her fellow Lebanese across the US.  She also is a founding member of the Jamhour Alumni US association since 2003, organizing yearly reunions to gather alumni during a cultural and fundraising event.

Joe Manok is Director of Global Initiatives at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) with focus on the MENA region. Prior to joining MIT, Joe worked at the Development Office of the American University of Beirut (AUB) for more than ten years. Most recently he served as Associate Director of Development for Major Gifts and Advancement Services at the AUB New York Office.   In 2007, Joe received the AUB President's Service Excellence Award for outstanding service to the institution. In 2012, the Council for Advancement and Support of Education, District II (CASE II), an international association of 700 educational institutions, named Joe as their Rising Star.   Joe served as the Co-Chair of the Development Track for the 2013 CASE II Conference in Pittsburgh and the Co-Chair of the Program for the 2014 CASE II Conference in Baltimore. He was also a member of the Communications Committee of the Association of Fundraising Professional (AFP), New York City Chapter in 2012-13. He continues to volunteer with various nonprofits.

Rami Harawi is an investment professional and founder of Orion Advisory. Since 2013, Orion has been advising a group of private clients on structuring and managing a diverse portfolio of investments (real estate; private and public equities) in both emerging markets such as South Africa and Mozambique and developed markets such as the UK and the US. Prior to founding Orion, Rami worked as:   - An investment associate at Vantage Capital, a private equity firm based out of Johannesburg, South Africa. - A senior consultant at Booz&Co. (currently Strategy&), a management consulting firm. Rami covered the Middle East and North Africa. - An operations manager at General Electric in the USA.   Rami has a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, as well as an M.B.A. from the Stanford Graduate School of Business. In recent years, Rami and his wife have focused their efforts on supporting grassroots organizations that address issues faced by marginalized children in Lebanon, particularly refugee and migrant children. (agoraforgood.com/browse/funds/refugee_and_migrant_children)  

Michèle is an investor with Monk's Hill Ventures, an-early stage venture capital fund focusing on technology startups in Southeast Asia. She invests cross-industries in software-driven companies and works closely with entrepreneurs to help scale their businesses.   Prior to joining Monk's Hill Ventures in Hong Kong, Michele was an early employee at Udemy, the largest global online learning marketplace focused on lifelong education. Based in San Francisco, she helped grow the company and 5X revenues with a primary focus on content strategy and partnerships. Prior to joining Udemy, Michele worked in Google's New Products & Services team in London overseeing display advertising platforms for Europe and North Africa. She was also a Strategy Consultant at Oliver Wyman for telecommunication companies across the Middle East & Africa.   Michèle holds an MBA and Certificate in Public Management and Social Innovation from Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, and a bachelor degree in Mechanical Engineering from the American University of Beirut.   Michèle has been volunteering with arcenciel since January 2015 helping set up arcenciel USA and initiating the association’s legal incorporation. She is born and raised in Lebanon.