El-Gouna – World renowned cardiothoracic surgeon, Professor Magdi Yacoub, was the guest speaker at a full-day event held by Manara School in El-Gouna to discuss with students the importance of leadership and service to the community. The event was part of the school’s mission to provide students with a world-class education and to instill in them the qualities needed for personal development to facilitate their growth into future leaders of Egypt with a global perspective. It also offered students the opportunity for one-on-one interactions with Dr. Yacoub, allowing them to ask him about a variety of issues relating to critical thinking, self-reflection and the Egyptian identity.
“It is absolutely essential to travel and to see different cultures,” Dr. Yacoub said. “[But] we must see other people and take what we think is good. […] We don’t have to take everything. Humanity is one species and we are all the same. And we must learn about each other and how to move as a unit to look after planet Earth. We have to make sure we have a global view on things.”
He noted that while maintaining a global perspective, students should never lose sight of their Egyptian identity, pointing out that the best way to achieve this is through quiet self-reflection.
“Reflection has been absolutely fundamental,” Dr. Yacoub stated. “I like to spend some time with myself, away from the maddening crowd, and reflect: what’s going on? What have I done wrong? How can I do better? And as time goes by, I’m always criticizing myself, but I reflect. And I can do that. So being reflective and being critical to yourself is very important, at least to me. It’s important to everybody.”
The day started with the entire student body, staff and school management greeting Dr. Yacoub before students in the Leadership Program had a Q&A session with the celebrated physician, humanitarian and scientist. This was followed by the full student body assembly, where school founder Naguib Samih Sawiris led the discussion by highlighting Dr. Yacoub’s illustrious professional career. However, Sawiris focused on two main points that he noted the students had to consider.
“The first is that Dr. Yacoub was born in Bilbeis, Sharqia. Not Cairo, not Alexandria, not New York, not London, [but] Sharqia,” noted Sawiris. “Secondly, he has two parents [whose names] none of us know. [They’re] Habib and Madeline. [His parents were] not famous.” He continued that Dr. Yacoub’s story was in many ways like the stories of so many within the Manara student body itself. “Born all across Egypt, not coming necessarily from family privilege, [but with] a set of deeply rooted values of commitment to excellence, commitment to family, and most importantly, commitment to giving back.”
This set the tone for the overall discussion between the students and Dr. Yacoub, where he empathized the essential role education plays in the creation of well-rounded future generations of leaders and communities.
“I’m full of admiration that you’re getting an education [to] fight ignorance and realizing that you should aspire to excellence,” Dr. Yacoub told the students. “I have followed this [path]. And if I can do it, I’m sure all of you can. I am not unique in any way. I’m not better than you. You can do it as well.”
His remarks were then followed by questions from the students that spanned a variety of points including the courage needed to navigate the everchanging world in which we are currently living, standing up for one’s beliefs, and the prioritization of personal values versus institutional priorities.
For his part, Todd Cuddington, the Head of School, noted that the purpose of the visit was to give the students the personal opportunity to hear directly from Dr. Yacoub about the importance of personal values that go into becoming a leader in one’s field.
“We always encourage our students to embody the characteristics that we believe will help them become leaders for the future of Egypt,” Cuddington noted. “This is the core of what we at Manara aim to achieve by providing our students with the best quality education while emphasizing the need to embody the qualities that turn individuals from good students, and later professionals, into great Egyptian leaders. This is why we have our Leadership Program. In Dr. Yacoub the entire student body got to meet a person who excelled internationally as a professional but more importantly as a leader, and decided to return to Egypt to support the development of his country.”
At the end of the session, Sawiris announced the creation of the Magdi Yacoub Student Leadership Award to be given to the student who demonstrates the most humility in service, through which Sawiris will donate USD 5,000 in the name of the recipient to the Magdi Yacoub Foundation.
Manara School offers students in grades eight to 12 a unique experience by providing an internationally accredited education coupled with a residential program that enshrines leadership values such as executive skills, critical thinking, personal accountability for decision-making, and integrity in an immersive environment. As part of its mission, Manara offers students from all over the country the opportunity to enroll in the school based on merit, academic performance and commitment to excellence regardless of gender, ethnicity, religion or financial means guided by the belief that a level playing field is needed to create a more equitable future for Egypt where all can thrive.
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