Rania Succar, a Syrian American and esteemed business leader, will be awarded the Outstanding Arab American Philanthropist of the Year Award by the Center for Arab American Philanthropy (CAAP) at its Threads of Giving Gala this September for her extensive work in philanthropy.

The gala celebrates Arab American philanthropy and their dedication to giving. It will take place on September 22 in Morgan Hill, California.

Along with a vast philanthropic background, Succar, a Harvard alumna, has lead an accomplished career thus far as she is currently the CEO of Intuit Mailchimp. She previously worked at various companies, including Merrill Lynch, McKinsey and Company and Google. In her current position, she works to generate success for smaller businesses across the globe.

Being of Syrian descent, Succar told The Arab American News that she had a strong connection to the Arab world despite growing up in the United States. She said that her family would often visit Syria, and that lead her to notice the prevalent opportunity gap that exists between youth in Syria versus youth in America. 

In 2011, Succar helped found the nonprofit organization called Jusoor, which means “bridges” in Arabic. Jusoor’s mission is to impel the Syrian people to cultivate and strengthen both educational and professional opportunities for the youth of Syria. 

Rania Succar

Jusoor’s purpose is to ensure that we don’t have a lost generation among Syrians, and so we have been very focused on educating as many young Syrians as possible and equipping them with the tools they need to be successful in their lives… and help many others during the course of their lives. – Rania Succar

Jusoor’s purpose, Succar said, is to “ensure that we don’t have a lost generation among Syrians, and so we have been very focused on educating as many young Syrians as possible and equipping them with the tools they need to be successful in their lives, but more importantly to be multipliers to help many others, hundreds of thousands of others during the course of their lives.” 

Through this organization, Succar said they have been able to educate 15,000 individuals, a part of Syria’s youth.  

There are several significant programs within Jusoor that aid in this move for change including a university scholarship program, a refugee education program and an entrepreneurship program. 

“We’ve educated 15,000 young people through Jusoor programs and that includes university scholarship programs where they’re able to continue their university education in 40 different countries,” she said. “It includes a refugee education program where we’re working in Lebanon to ensure that the Syrian children learn to read and write and get a primary education because otherwise they wouldn’t. And then working on a entrepreneurship program to ensure that young people who aren’t able to get a job can help create jobs and employment for themselves and others in the community.”

Succar also co-founded the Harvard Arab Alumni Association in 2001, which is dedicated to uniting Harvard alumni with a connection to the Arab world to continue to push for positive change for the Arab world. 

“Rania Succar’s history of giving back directly aligns with CAAP’s values of giving smart and giving together,” said Tamara El-Khoury, director of the Center for Arab American Philanthropy. “She’s strategic about creating a real impact that will last decades and committed to ensuring the families and individuals affected by her philanthropy are set up for self-sufficiency and resilience. Her thoughtful approach to philanthropy has been transformational for countless Syrian youth and refugees.”

“I’m incredibly proud of what we achieved through Jusoor,” Succar said. “The situation in the Arab world, in Syria in particular, can be seen as very depressing and one where there’s nothing you can do to drive positive change. Jusoor is an exactly different story than that. It is all about hope and positivity and the role that we as individuals can play to make a transformative difference in the region’s future.”