Scholars at Risk

Esmat Ayoubi

Visiting Scholar, College of International Studies

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Esmat Ayoubi is a visiting scholar at the University of Oklahoma. She holds a master's degree in Public Law from Azad University and a bachelor's degree from Shahid Beheshti University in Iran. She served in different positions as the chief of staff of the Governor of Afghanistan Central Bank and deputy director, Non Banking Financial Institutions Supervision Department, until the collapse of the Afghan government in August 2021. 

Esmat grew up between Afghanistan and Iran, where she was active among Afghan refugees in Iran. The status of the huge Afghan community got her involved in Afghan politics from a young age. In 2002 she was appointed to be a member of the "Loya Jirga," a mass national gathering that brings together representatives from various ethnic, religious and tribal Afghan communities. She chose to return and live in Kabul, employing her education, skills and knowledge for the betterment of her countrymen and women's livelihood, and found her opportunity by joining  the Afghan Central Bank, which went hand in hand with her political activism. 

After the crisis, Esmat began a bitter and arduous journey to get out of Afghanistan. During her journey she had to endure the pain of leaving everything that she had built for many years, and add to that the torment of the travel journey that lasted for several months and included different countries before reaching Oklahoma.

Currently, she has embarked on an extensive research project on Afghan women.

Feroz Bashari, PhD

Visiting Scholar, Gaylord College of Journalism and Price College of Business

Phone: 572-910-1385
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Feroz Bashari is a visiting scholar at the University of Oklahoma. He teaches strategic communications, management and politics. He is a certified strategic communications expert who served for 20 years in this field. He worked as the director of communications at the office of the president of Afghanistan and the chief spokesperson for the government of Afghanistan for several years.

He also worked as the country media advisor for the U.S Embassy in Kabul as well as the head of strategic communications for the U.S. military in Afghanistan. His role was to shape government communication policy and narrative. He spoke to national and international media on political, security, social and economic issues representing the government of Afghanistan. He was the head of crisis communications task force in Afghanistan.

Bashari also served as interpreter as well as a cultural and political advisor for U.S. visiting senators and ambassadors, the U.S. Chief General for Afghanistan, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, U.S. Government Senior Special Envoy Richard Holbrooke, Senator John McCain, Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staffs General Mike Mullen, and U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney.

He had trained ministers, governors and government senior communicators at cabinet and state levels. He was the only government chief communicator on anti-corruption who once served as university professor in Kabul.

Bashari holds a PhD in management, a master’s degree in political science and bachelor's degree in English Language. He was evacuated by U.S. Marines after his government collapsed in 2021. He was the first immigrant to administer the oath of office for Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt, when Holt was elected for a second term.

Bashari is a leader in the Afghan immigrant community in Oklahoma, and provides his community with education on American culture though his YouTube channel. Some of his interviews are available on YouTube and Google.

Zahra Eyvazi

Visiting Scholar, Department of Geography and Environmental Sustainability

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Zahra Eyvazi brings a wealth of experience and resilience to her academic pursuits. She earned her bachelor's degree in urban development engineering from Payame Noor University, showcasing her dedication to academic excellence from the outset.

Before the tumultuous events surrounding the Taliban takeover in Kabul, Afghanistan, Zahra held the esteemed position of GIS Officer at the Energy Services Regulatory Authority (ESRA) and had several other experiences as architect engineer in private sector. However, the dramatic shift in the political landscape brought about unimaginable challenges, particularly for Zahra as a minority Hazara woman.

As an Afghan woman, she confronted the harsh reality of losing her job due to the Taliban's regressive policies that banned women from working outside their homes. Tragically, Zahra was also forced to abandon her master's program in urban planning at Islamic Azad University in Kabul, following the Taliban's decree prohibiting women from pursuing education. In the face of these adversities, she, alongside her colleagues in the Arghavan Charity Foundation, tirelessly worked to provide humanitarian assistance and education for girls, becoming a vocal advocate for women's rights in the deeply conservative landscape under Taliban rule until her last day in Afghanistan when she finally left her homeland on November 2022 for Pakistan and arrived in US on December 2022.

Zahra's resilience shines through as she reflects on the year and a half she spent in Kabul after August 2021. During this time, she bore witness to numerous acts of violence perpetrated by the Taliban, living each day in fear of their presence. Her determination to seek a brighter future led her to brave not only the mental torment but also physical assault at the hands of the Taliban.

Today, Zahra has found sanctuary at the University of Oklahoma, alongside her husband, Hossain Ahmadi, a graduate student specializing in Human Resources Studies in the Department of Human Relations at OU. Hossain, too, has an extensive background, having served as a university instructor, interpreter, social activist, columnist, and government employee in Afghanistan. Together, they embark on a journey to build a new life in the United States, eagerly anticipating the joys and challenges that parenthood will bring on the horizon.

Their presence at the University of Oklahoma is viewed as a miracle by the warm and welcoming community here. Zahra's and Hossain's inspiring journey, marked by resilience, determination, and a relentless pursuit of better opportunities, has touched the hearts of the kindest individuals at the university. Their story serves as a reminder of the boundless potential of the human spirit and the capacity to overcome challenges, inspiring all who hear it to embrace hope, unity, and the pursuit of positive change.

In this supportive environment, currently enrolled in the CESL program, Zahra is determined to further her education and continue her mission to contribute to society, supported by the caring and inclusive community at the University of Oklahoma, one in which she can actively foster positive change for all women. We extend our heartfelt thanks to former Dean Scott Fritzen, Joshua Landis, Dean Scott Green, Marjan Seirafi-Pour, and the Farzaneh family for their unwavering support in welcoming Zahra and Hossain to our university community. Your support has made a world of difference in our lives, and we are deeply grateful for your kindness and generosity.

Shabnam Khalilyar

Master of International Studies student, Department of International and Area Studies
Visiting Scholar, Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication

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Shabnam Khalilyar, the first visiting Omar Khayyam Scholar at the University of Oklahoma, is currently a graduate student in the Department of International and Area Studies. She holds a master's degree in journalism and communication from Kabul University. She served as head of public opinion analysis and media monitoring at the Office of the Chief of Staff to the Afghanistan President until the Afghanistan capital, Kabul, fell to the Taliban.

Khalilyar’s grandfather and auntie, who were prominent journalists in Afghanistan before the country fell to the Taliban, were a great source of inspiration for her. She started her career as a TV host for a children's program when she was at middle school, and served as a TV host for several years. Khalilyar shifted her field to journalism, and worked as a news reporter when she started at Journalism and Communication College. She wrote feature reports for Salam Afghanistan Media Organization website, as well as preparing reports for radio programs of the same organization. After working many years for private media, she decided to experience different paths of the same field; thus she joined Afghanistan government.

After the crisis in Afghanistan, Khalilyar took a flight from Mazar-e-sharif, a northern province in Afghanistan. She was taken to a refugee camp in Qatar and from there, she contacted professors from the University of Oklahoma. She spent three months at a camp in New Jersey and one month in Tulsa before arriving at OU in March 2022.

Khalilyar’s experience in both print and broadcast media, as well as her year of experience with media office of Afghanistan president, made her a good candidate to join Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication. Her interest in pursuing a dgree in international studies convinced both the College of International Studies and Gaylord College to provide her with a scholarship. She shifted from visiting scholar to graduate student.

“I never thought I will find my desired path during the darkest days of my life,” Shabnam says. “Here I find peace and hope. OU inspires me not only work for my future, but it provokes me work harder to bring a positive change in the lives of millions of girls who are deprived from their education right.”

Shogofa Rafi

Visiting Scholar, Price College of Business

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Shogofa Rafi is a visiting scholar at the University of Oklahoma in the Price College of Business. Her expertise lies in financial management, focusing on developing economic strategies for start-ups led by Afghan women entrepreneurs in Afghanistan. Rafi is a passionate advocate for women's rights. She grew up in Takhar, Afghanistan, during a time of great turmoil and upheaval, and she saw firsthand the challenges women face in her country. Unfortunately, the Taliban aggressively withhold women's rights.

In 2012, Rafi founded a network of Afghan women entrepreneurs in collaboration with the Afghan women Rehabilitation Skills Building Association Organization (AWRSA), which helped women start their businesses and provided them with business training. In 2017, Rafi worked in the Executive Committee on Women's Empowerment in the Office of the Chief Executive Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, believing that economic self-sufficiency for women is critical to preventing violations of women's rights. She worked with women in rural areas to create self-help groups and promote women's financial independence.

Rafi was determined to make a difference, so she pursued higher education to gain the knowledge and skills needed to effect change. In 2018, she graduated from Kardan University with an MBA and became a leading voice for Afghan women's empowerment. In addition to her MBA, Rafi holds a diploma in diplomacy from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Afghanistan. This training has given her a deep understanding of women's role and involvement in the political and economic aspects globally, and she has used this knowledge to advocate for women's inclusion in these areas.

In 2020, Rafi worked for the High Council for National Reconciliation in the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, focusing on women's inclusion in the peace process. She recognized that Afghanistan could not achieve peace without the participation of women, and she worked to ensure that Afghan women participated in the talks. She also worked with various international organizations to promote women's rights and advocate for their inclusion in the peace process.

When the Taliban took over Kabul in 2021, Rafi was among the many women who took to the streets to protest and raise their voices against the Taliban's rule. She was a vocal critic of the Taliban and their treatment of women, and she was determined to fight for Afghan women's rights.

Despite the dangerous and challenging environment, Rafi remained dedicated to her cause and worked tirelessly to make a difference. In 2022, she was awarded a scholarship from the OU College of International Studies to study English at the Center for English as a Second Language and as a visiting scholar at OU, she uses her knowledge to promote Afghan women's voices on the global stage. She frequently guest lectures in various business courses.

Mehri Rezaee, PhD

Visiting Scholar, Farzaneh Family Center for Iranian and Persian Gulf Studies

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Mehri Rezaee is a visiting scholar from Afghanistan. She holds a doctorate in international law from Allameh Tabatabaei University and a master's degree in international law from Tehran University, Iran. She has taught international law and human rights at the undergraduate and graduate level for over eight years at universities in Afghanistan.

Rezaee served as commissioner and chairwoman of the Ghor Provincial Complaints Commission during the 2018 parliamentary election, and for the 2019 presidential election she served as commissioner and chairwoman at Bamiyan Provincial Complaints Commission.

She has also worked as a human rights, women, and children expert in the office of the second vice president of Afghanistan before the Taliban takeover of Kabul. At the same time, she was working as a researcher at the Holding Group for Afghanistan Institute for Legal Challenges of Afghan Women.

Rezaee's area of expertise is human rights and women’s rights, and she has published several articles on Afghan women’s rights in domestic and foreign journals. The topic of her PhD dissertation was the interaction of the international law system and Afghan law in the fight against human trafficking from Afghanistan. Her master's thesis focused on the most important legal challenges for women in Afghanistan — namely education, violence, and forced marriage.

Rezaee was introduced to the University of Oklahoma through an Iranian friend, Dr. Fatemeh Shams, and she applied to the Scholars at Risk program at The University of Oklahoma. She arrived in the United States on May 25, 2022, and has been taking English courses at the Center for English as a Second Language. The Scholars at Risk program, Dean Scott Fritzen, and Marjan Seirafi-Pour and Joshua Landis of the Farzaneh Family Center worked together to coordinate her visiting scholar position, which was made possible by a generous donation from the Farzaneh family.

During the fall 2022 semester Dr. Rezaee will teach in OU's Persian/Farsi language program as an assistant professor. She will continue her English courses with CESL as well, and hopes to prepare a lecture for students on the interaction of international law and Afghan law in the fight against human trafficking (the subject of her dissertation). She also plans to prepare a speech on the legal foundations of the Hazara genocide in Afghanistan.

From Mehri: "Norman is a beautiful, peaceful and lovely city. I love the University of Oklahoma and my educated, kind and friendly colleagues, and I am very happy to work at this university. I hope that I can have a good and beneficial cooperation with the Department of International Studies and the Iranian Studies Center in this semester."

Masooma Vaezi, PhD

Visiting Scholar, Dodge Family College of Arts and Sciences

Masooma Vaezi holds a PhD and master's degree in health education and promotion from Tarbiat Modarres University, Tehran, Iran, and a bachelor's degree in nursing from Medical Science University, Mashhad, Iran.

Before Kabul fell to the Taliban, she was a faculty member and research associate in health and exercise science and social work at Katib University in Kabul, Afghanistan.

All her experience is in the field of health and education both in Iran and Afghanistan. She served as head nurse in Imam Reza Hospital in Mashhad, Iran and health education supervisor in Atiya hospital in Tehran, Iran.  

Similar to other Scholars-at-Risk, Masooma was forced to leave her country after Kabul fell to the Taliban. She first went to Italy, and then by contacting people at University of Oklahoma, she was able to come to Norman.

Masooma describes OU as a new opportunity where she can gain more knowledge and widen her experience.

Myo Win

Visiting Scholar, Dodge Family College of Arts and Sciences

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U Myo Win is a husband, father, human rights activist and founder and executive director of a non-governmental organization working to raise silent and moderate voices and ensure social justice for ethnic and religious minorities in Myanmar. He also serves as the team leader of the Interfaith Council of Myanmar and voluntary deputy head of mission of Al-Azhar Islamic Institute of Myanmar. He is a prominent member of the Yangon education and human rights community and has been recognized for his leadership in the facilitation of significant community pursuits.

Experience

Born in Yangon in 1978 to a Muslim family, Myo Win was raised in an era of community fear due to the military junta’s policies and personally experienced the injustice of discrimination towards minorities. Persevering despite his own educational restrictions, Myo Win has served as a private tutor for matriculation students and has worked as a facilitator for peace and conflict situations, mediation, team-building, leadership, organizational development, social entrepreneurship, trauma healing and post-traumatic stress (PTSD) for nearly two decades.

In 2007, Myo Win founded SMILE and has served as its executive director and CEO since its inception. Believing that youth are the key to sustaining long-term social and economic development, SMILE invests in the younger generation to become leaders of change by undertaking civic initiatives in their respective communities. Since 2009, SMILE has expanded its reach to youth outside of the education system, women and human rights defenders and broadened its scope of work to include:

• Legal reform, including drafting and advocating for the interfaith Harmony Bill, which focuses on religious freedom and combatting hate speech and hate crime
• Research and evidence creation on the challenges faced by religious and ethnic minorities regarding access to housing, citizenship and education, which included a Gap Analysis of the 1982 Citizenship Law
• Supporting documentary filmmaking on spotlight issues in Myanmar (e.g. gender-based violence) and raising awareness on them internally and externally
• Initiating and strengthening numerous consortiums and civil society groups at national, regional, and global levels. Including Metta Circle Consortium, Myanmar Civil Society Forum for Peace, Myanmar Peace and Human Rights Consortium, the Regional Consultation Body of the Freedom of Religion or Belief in ASEAN

Myo Win has long been outspoken about the human rights situation in Myanmar and has been invited to speak on these issues on numerous panels across the US and Europe. Most recently, he spoke alongside the Special Rapporteur in Myanmar, Yanghee Lee, at Forum Asia’s side event on Human Rights in Myanmar at the UN’s 38th Human Rights Council in Geneva.

Since 2009, he has also conducted research on the challenges faced by religious and ethnic minorities, especially regarding access to housing, citizenship, and education. He is an experienced speaker, having addressed audiences at universities such as Harvard, UC Berkeley and Purdue explaining the situation in Myanmar, and most recently speaking on the identity crisis of ethnic minorities in Myanmar. In 2021, his article “Citizenship Documentation of Myanmar and the Discrimination of Religious and Ethnic Minorities” was published in the edited volume Ethnic and Religious Diversity in Myanmar: Contested Identities (Bloomsbury Academic).

Education

Myo Win studied at a government school in Tharkayta Township, a suburb of Yangon, and obtained his bachelor’s degrees in Islamic Theological Science and psychology of the University of East Yangon. He studied conflict resolution at the University of York, England as a Chevening Fellow.

Accomplishments & Awards

• 2018 Clyde Snow Social Justice award from the University of Oklahoma
• 2012 Australia Leadership Award
• 2010–2012 Director of English Access Micro-Scholarship Program of the U.S. Department of State
• 2009 Crown of Peace Award from Universal Peace Federation of USA
• 2008 Chevening Fellowship on Conflict Resolution from York University