On June 11 in Education City in Doha, Qatar, the American University of Afghanistan (AUAF) held its 13th annual commencement ceremony, celebrating thirty-six Doha-based graduates of the Class of 2024.
The ceremony included remarks by Dr. Ian Bickford, president of AUAF; Mr. David Sedney, AUAF trustee and former president of AUAF; Ms. Christiane Amanpour, award-winning journalist; Dr. Stephen Tremaine, vice president for network education at Bard College; Ms. Pashtana D., AUAF alumna and human rights activist; and Ms. Joanne Giesbrecht, Interim Chair, AUAF Business Department.
Other speeches noted the extraordinary hurdles the graduates overcame to earn their bachelor’s degrees in business administration, law, political science and public administration, and information technology, as well as master’s degrees in business administration. Graduates were aided in their studies through generous support from the U.S. and Qatar governments as well as other donors.
On June 14th, 90 AUAF undergraduate and graduate students celebrated their graduation with a virtual ceremony. The graduation ceremony featured many distinguished speakers including Dr. Ian Bickford, president of AUAF; Amb. Said Jawad, president of the AUAF Board of Directors; Ms. Leslie M. Schweitzer, Founder and Chair of the FAUAF Board of Trustees; and Ms. Christiane Amanpour, award-winning journalist.
In her video remarks, Amanpour spoke about the graduates’ dedication and perseverance throughout their academic journey. “I wish you so much luck” she said. “I believe the world will be a better place when there are many, many more women in positions of leadership and decision-making, and around the peace table especially.”
