PROFESSOR ABDUL AZIZ SAIDTRIBUTES
“As a scholar and visionary thinker, Abdul Aziz made significant contributions to knowledge and new ways of thinking in several areas. Abdul Aziz helped create and lobby for a forward-looking approach to the theory and practice of International Relations, focused on a new world order of cooperative relationships, common security, an equitable economic system, and ecological balance. He proposed intercultural dialogue to reveal basic assumptions as well as fallacies of existing systems and to bring forward positive contributions from all cultures into a multicultural world. He was one of the first to call for the integration of human rights into the context of positive peace and peace education. On the practical side, Abdul Aziz engaged in numerous initiatives of institution building, both directly and indirectly, to bring his vision of the new world order into reality.”
Dr. Ronald J. Fisher | Associate Faculty, School of Humanitarian Studies, Royal Roads University | Former Professor and Director, International Peace and Conflict Resolution Studies, School of International Service (SIS), The American University
“What I learned most from Professor Said was not from his books, lectures or even his amazing stories, but through his example—the way that he lived his life so fully and vibrantly aligned with his values. I learned through his example that love and justice are at the center of peace. That active peace is intentional and requires courage. It starts with our own self-love and carries into our relationships, families, communities, and ultimately to our global community. He embodied deep empathy, collaboration, justice, equity, inclusion, humanity, and respect (among so many other qualities). He centered marginalized communities in his work and was a tireless advocate and source of support for students. He opened his office doors and shared his heart and time generously with so many people.”
Elli Nagai-Rothe | Founder and Lead Consultant, The Ripple Collective | Former Student and Coordinator for the Mohamad Said Farsi Chair of Islamic Peace, The American University, 2008
“Abdul Aziz Said was an inspirational figure in the lives of all those who knew him. Even though he was aware that in his discussions with his students as well as his friends, everyone wanted to listen to his insights, he listened more than he spoke. He listened with such attention, he made his friends and students fully know that he valued everything he heard. He was an amazing active listener. As a friend he knew that discussions can expand the horizons and deepen the oceans. Talking with Abdul Aziz was synonymous with exploring new frontiers, new philosophies, and new spiritualties.”
Dr. May Rihani* | Former Director of the Gibran Chair for Values and Peace, University of Maryland
“I watched Professor Said honored many times for his enormous accomplishments. In his limitless humility, he never used praise as a source of self-inflation. Rather, he always reflected the honor that was shining on him towards those from whom he drew inspiration.”
Dr. Sarah Schmidt | School of Peace and Conflict Studies, Kent State University | Former Student and Coordinator for Professor Said, 2015
“Upon his arrival in the US, Professor Said sought to eradicate war through education and empathy, while also fighting internal conflicts such as racial discrimination on a more local level. Professor Said famously retrieved members of the AU community from arrests at peaceful protests and was an active participant in demonstrations against violence, discrimination, and injustices around the world, from the Vietnam War, South African apartheid, and the Iraq war. No man beside my father can be said to have influenced my life path as significantly as Professor Said, and few have done as much to fight for the advancement of international peace, especially in the Middle East.”
Hani Farsi | Founder and CEO, The Corniche Group | Former Student 1990
“In my view, Abdul Aziz has lived his life as a Sufi, a mystical persona characterized as a teacher and observer of faith and benevolent practices – a leader who truly found inner peace and mastered spiritual meditation. By showing passion and communicating with affection and transparency, the Professor rapidly engendered trust. Then, true mentoring ensued with an open heart, underscored by his intellectual prowess, deeply rooted core values and a commitment to enrich the lives of his scholars and friends alike. This is the legacy of Professor Abdul Aziz.”
Fuad El-Hibri* | Former Executive Chairman, Emergent BioSolutions
“Professor was my mentor and friend, and he was also my fraternity brother. He is responsible for the creation of the Phi Epsilon Pi fraternity at American University, the first Jewish fraternity on campus. And the story of its creation speaks to the character of the man. In the late 1950s he risked his young teaching career to help a bunch of Jewish boys form their own fraternity because the existing fraternities would not admit Jews or Blacks. It was his strong view that if the fraternities weren’t required to remove their exclusionary clauses, then these Jewish students should be permitted to form their own fraternity. At first, the university administration said ‘no’. But Said persisted and the administration relented. The Phi Ep Fraternity lived up to Professor’s expectations and principles: inviting students of all races and religions. Professor was the only faculty advisor we ever had. He gave his time and energy to us. He touched our lives in countless ways…and was the guiding spirit of our brotherhood.”
Keith Rosenberg, Esq. | Former Partner, Meyer, Faller, Weisman and Rosenberg | Former Student 1966
“Professor Abdul Aziz Said was more than a scholar and practitioner of peacebuilding – he was its personification. A gentle soul with a towering intellect, a patient teacher and mentor to thousands over his decades as a professor, and an inspiration to many through his scholarship and example.”
Shamil Idriss | CEO, Search for Common Ground
“Professor Said was a pioneer in many different ways, and in multiple subject areas. He played a significant role in the development and diversification of the international relations field, through his writings as well as through future scholars who benefited by his mentoring and support. Though he emphasized that it is highly difficult for a political scientist to predict trends more than five years in the future, his scholarship was bold in its efforts to capture unfolding dynamics, and often prescient. Many of his ideas anticipated areas of research that would soon become popular, and others call out for further exploration. His scholarship has offered enduring insights into a great number of substantive topics.”
Dr. Meena Sharify-Funk* | Associate Professor, Religion and Culture, Wilfrid Laurier University
Dr. Nathan Funk* | Associate Professor, Peace and Conflict Resolution Studies, University of Waterloo | Former PhD Students 2000
“He encouraged us to think of ourselves as global citizens with expansive visions, as ‘cathedral builders,’ not bricklayers, regardless of the specifics of our jobs and careers. While a humble boy from the desert, he built many cathedrals and inspired thousands of people whose lives he touched to think in new ways and be global citizens. Taking his class changed the trajectory of my life.”
Dr. Nike Carstarphen* | Co-Founder, Alliance for Conflict Transformation | Former Student 1988
“Professor Said was a source of innovation and his determination to create the IPCR program at the school was vitally important. Said served as a moral compass and conscience for SIS. The school stood for high principles, and he would speak to that. He would remind us of incidents past that should inspire us to stick to the moral high ground in everything that we did.”
Professor Louis Goodman | Dean (1986-2011) Emeritus, SIS, The American University
“What inspired me was how over time Abdul Aziz’s spiritual growth transformed his professional orientation and practice. He became a champion of peace and a leading figure in the field. This is what “engaged” scholarship should be, a vocation that emerges from a deep personal commitment and from the inner self. The fact that Professor Said could create a graduate program in Peace Studies at American University is a remarkable testimony to who he was and what he believed. It should be appreciated that the mainstream study of International Relations has been for decades obsessed with power “Realpolitik” and, frankly, the often horrific application of military force. And yet, even in this kind of environment (and in Washington, D.C. and at AU itself) Professor Said was able to successfully go against the (very strong) dominant current and create a context where students could acquire the knowledge and skills so critically needed (and still sorely lacking) in our era. And he did this as an Arab-American during a period when that identity presented its own challenges and difficulties.”
Dr. Charles Lerche | Associate Program Director for the Master of Arts in Diplomacy and International Relations Programs, Norwich University
“The Professor was a visionary and lived his life to the fullest. He advocated for peace and strived to be a role model for all of us. His scholarly work contributed significantly to the development of the field of peace and conflict resolution and he advocated for six decades against ethnocentrism, racism, and colonialism. A core belief and lifelong message of Abdul Aziz Said was we should not shy away from our spiritual path, even as academics. Said’s legacy extends beyond classrooms, books, articles, and magazines; his work touched the hearts and minds of many, carrying a spiritual message of peace and harmony.”
Dr. Mohammad Abu Nimr | Abdul Aziz Said Chair in International Peace and Conflict Resolution and Professor | SIS, The American University
“Some friends are remembered because they touch your mind. Others your heart. And others reach into your soul. Abdul Aziz will be cherished forever by touching all three. He was one of those rare people who integrated intellectual, emotional, and spiritual knowing in themselves and recognized and awaken it in others. He was one of the most whole and integrated people I have been privileged to know.”
Dr. Patricia Mische | Former President, Global Education Associates
“Abdul Aziz was a man of ideas, with a heart that longed for global peace, and who was willing to put his life’s energy into making peace and teaching peace. His mind comprehended so many ideas, then rearranged them into a kaleidoscope of new concepts that made sense…The most important things I learned were not academic. I recall as we went through the cafeteria, he always greeted the cashiers by name (he knew them all), and often inquired about a family member. One day he said, ‘you can learn a lot about people if you watch the way they treat those who serve them’. He dedicated a book that he authored to the SIS janitor – a man who could not even read his own name printed in the book. Yes, Abdul Aziz Said was a man of peace; because he taught peace by the way he lived, by the way he listened, by the way he brought out the best in those who worked with him, and who learned from him. He made indelible footprints on my heart and mind, and on the heart and soul of American University …”
Sister Adrienne Kaufmann,* OSB | Adjunct Professor, Mount Marty University | Co-founder, Educating for Global Citizenship Institute, The American University
“It’s very hard to put into words what Professor Abdul Aziz Said has meant to me and the profound impact he had on all aspects of my life, as an incredible peacemaker and beloved teacher in the highest sense of these words…anyone who sat with Professor felt that sense of being deeply seen, heard, and honored to the core. What I learned from witnessing him in the classroom—the passion and commitment he brought to his students year after year, and the way he’d treat everyone with such dignity and respect, recognizing their full humanity—was the greatest education I received.
Dr. Sheherazade Jafari | Adjunct Professor, Georgetown University | Former PhD student 2015
“Abdul Aziz was able to make Peace Studies at the American University one of the main programs at the School of International Service, and he was able to bring teachers from around the world for peace education and to recognize peace makers from different countries. His living legend as a teacher, friend and caring person gave him the title, ‘Leading Light’.”
Dr. Mubarak Awad | Founder, Nonviolence International and National Youth Advocate Program
“So many of us in the IPCR program felt when Professor Said looked at you, and was in your presence, he saw you in a way that others did not. I first learned this in my interview to join IPCR; he listened intently to me and seemed to be seeking what was best for me in the process, not just what was good for the school and the university. Over time, by eliciting who I was and how I thought of my own role as a scholar and a teacher, he helped define, and helped me define who I was in the school and the program and the field. It’s indicative of the role that Abdul Aziz played in a low key but persistent way: teacher, mentor, leader, example. He was all those things for me but also, I feel for all of us faculty members. He was a great inspiration and embodied the school’s commitment to the dignity and equality of humanity.”
Dr. Charles Call | Former Professor and Director of the International Peace and Conflict Resolution Program, SIS, The American University
“Professor Said’s life is like one part of a poem from Sri Lanka: ‘The sky would have a million stars, but it is that one moon that can shine more light to the world.’ And I always keep saying Professor Said was that one moon that was able to shed the light.”
Professor Vidya Samarasinghe* | SIS, The American University
*Excerpts taken from the Testimonials section of Abdul Aziz Said: A Pioneer in Peace, Intercultural Dialogue, and Cooperative Global Politics by Nathan C. Funk and Meena Sharify-Funk, published by Springer Nature Switzerland, 2022.