“I believe that a person with a strong will is not to be defeated by circumstances, even if that circumstance is war.”
After the war started, Mohammad and his family carried on with their lives much as they had before. Mohammad was studying Primary School Education at Damascus University in Dara’a near his village, Sheikh al Meskin. When the conflict reached Dara’a, Mohammad, along with his parents and siblings, was forced to flee to Jordan. There, Mohammad committed himself to pursuing youth empowerment regardless of the challenges that followed.
Displacement did not impede Mohammad’s ambition to excel and make a difference, “The war did not, does not, and will never change any of my aims. I believe that a person with a strong will is not to be defeated by circumstances, even if that circumstance is war.” Mohammad’s commitment to education led him to be the first person at Za’atari Camp to graduate from Al Albayt University in Mafraq, Jordan with high marks on July 20, 2016.
Mohammad has worked with the IRD team at Za’atari Camp as a psycho-social skills trainer with the TIGER program, a community-based initiative which aims to support and enhance girls’ education. In addition to TIGER, IRD also offers courses and activities aiming to strengthen academic and capacity building opportunities to the Za’atari community, working with hundreds of learners on a monthly basis.
Mohammad attended many of these courses, “I realized that I wanted to become a trainer when I first arrived at the camp and started attending different trainings that were held in the camp. I liked the idea and started looking for voluntary work through which I could improve my skills to become a successful trainer.”
Mohammad not only supports the coaches and girls involved in the TIGER initiative, but also speaks regularly with other members of the Za’atari community who are seeking guidance and support for academic advancement. He plans to complete his Master’s and Doctorate studies with a focus on Primary Education in the years to come.
“IRD is the organization that has given me the opportunity to practice what I have learned through my different trainings.”
Through IRD and his position as a psycho-social trainer for the TIGER program, Mohammad has prepared, designed and disseminated numerous trainings, including the Art of Presenting, Anger Management and Time Management, as well as many others to be planned in the future.
