Name: Alaa Elassar

Recipient Year: 2020|2019

Description: Alaa Elassar is a NYC-based journalist and breaking news writer for CNN Digital. She was a three-time intern for CNN before joining the International news desk after her work on the investigation behind Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s murder. She now writes for CNN, covering stories ranging from human abuses across the world, issues affecting communities of color, space, and everything in between. Alaa was also a writer for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution where she was on the legislative team working from the capitol bureau and the digital team, covering local stories all over Georgia. During her time with Storyful, a media and intelligence news agency, Alaa worked on stories including the weekly protests in Gaza, the Syrian conflict, and national and international politics. She earned her Master’s degree from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism in 2021. Along with journalism, Alaa has a passion for poetry, spoken word, and public speaking.

School Name: Columbia University in the City of New York

Major: Journalism

Sponsor: Makhraj Endowment Fund Scholarship|Ghulam and Arifa Azad Family Scholarship

LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alaaelassar/