Board of Directors

Safa Rifka
Chair

Safa Rifka, M.D. is the Chair of the Board of Directors. Rifka is a Gynecologist and infertility specialist in the Washington, D.C. area where he has been since 1975. Dr. Rifka currently is the President of Columbia Fertility Associates. He is a member of many medical societies and is well-published in the field of infertility. In the past, he has been an Associate Professor at Georgetown University and President of the Medical Staff as well as Chairman of the Board of Columbia Hospital for Women. He has also served on The President's Commission on White House Fellowships between 2008 and 2010. He has been elected to the National ADC Board several times and has a long history of advocacy on behalf of the Arab-American community.

Assad Jebara
Vice Chair

Assad Jebara is the Vice Chair of the ADC Board of Directors. Jebara is also Chairman of ADC’s Advisory Committee and has been a member of the ADC National Board of Directors since 2005. Mr. Jebara is the President and CEO of Zana-DI Jeans/Alpha Garment, Inc., one of the largest denim brands for juniors as well as one of the largest Arab-American owned companies in the US. Over the years Zana-DI has won awards from retailers such as JC Penney and Wal-Mart, and was recently listed by Women’s Wear Daily on a “Top Ten Most Trend Setting Brands” list. Jebara is widely recognized for his contributions to the Arab-American community. He was the 2004 recipient of the ADC American Business Achievement Award in recognition of his outstanding entrepreneurship, dedication, and generosity. Aside from ADC, Jebara is an active Board member of the Arab American Family support center in NY.

Jay Salkini
Treasurer

Jay J. Salkini is the Treasurer of the ADC Board of Directors. Mr. Salkini is a successful entrepreneur, having founded his own company in the critical and vibrant field of telecommunications in 1991, and developed it into a supplier to mobile operators worldwide. Having immigrated to the United States from Syria on his own at the age of 17, Mr. Salkini received Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering and Master of Computer Engineering degrees from Florida Atlantic University (FAU), and he has been inducted into the FAU Hall of Fame. Prior to founding Tecore Networks, he held several R&D positions at Siemens and Nortel. He envisioned, developed and patented several wireless technologies, making Tecore a member of an elite group of companies supplying the infrastructure to serve 4.5 billion mobile subscribers worldwide, and making him one of the longest-serving chief executives in the telecommunications industry. Mr. Salkini Chairs the Middle East American Chamber of Commerce (MACC) on Foreign Relations, and is also a Founder of the ADC Maryland Chapter. 

Sawssan Khoury
Secretary

Sawssan Khoury is the Secretary of the ADC Board of Directors and a Board member of the ADC-Cleveland Chapter since 2000. She had dedicated much of her time and energies to various Arab-American organizations. Mrs. Khoury is also a Board member of the Syrian Cultural Garden in Cleveland, Ohio. From 2000-2005, she served on the Board of ACCESS-Ohio. Additionally, she was a volunteer with the National Arab American Medical Association, NAAMA, Cleveland chapter from 1983-1995. Immediately after, Mrs. Khoury served on NAAMA’s Auxiliary Committee from 1995-2001. Through her involvement with NAAMA, she helped organize numerous cultural functions in Cleveland, such as hosting events for the late Mr. Nizar Kabbani and Poet Mahmoud Darwish. Sawssan Khoury received her Bachelor’s of Arts in French Literature from Damascus University, and her Masters of Arts in French Literature from Kent State University in Ohio. She has been a teacher at the Solon Montessori School System since 1993 and is currently a professor of Arabic at John Carrol University. Sawssan and her husband, Dr. Wael Khoury, reside in Cleveland and have four children.

Mr. Tawfiq Barqawi is a longtime ADC leader, supporter and activist. He served as a member of the National Advisory Board of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee since 2005 and he is currently the Vice President of the ADC Philadelphia Chapter. He is a member of the New Jersey Arab American Heritage Commission and the treasurer of NAACP Gloucester County Chapter. The Camden County Board of Chosen Freeholders and County Human Relations Commission awarded him the “Unsung Hero of Human Relations Award” for his work and efforts post September 11. Mr. Barqawi also received the “South Jersey Champion of Diversity” award by the Courier Post. He is currently the vice chair of the State of New Jersey Human Relations Council and was appointed by freeholders as Gloucester County Human Relations Commissioner. Mr. Barqawi served on various boards of many Arab-American organizations. Mr. Barqawi was born in Palestine and raised in Jordan. In 1977, he graduated from law school in Lebanon and moved to the United States in 1989. He has been a resident of the state of New Jersey for 20 years.

Cheryl J. Faris, Esq., is a current National Board Member, and was on the National Board from 1985 to 2001. Originally from Fall River, Massachusetts, Faris attended law school in Los Angeles and has been an activist there for three decades. In addition to her long involvement with ADC-Los Angeles, she served on the Executive Committee of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference for 15 years. She was the first woman President of the Arab-American Lawyers Association of Los Angeles, and is currently on its Board of Governors. Cheryl is currently the Chair of the Social Studies Department at Notre Dame Academy in Los Angeles, where she teaches Law and Psychology.

Dr. Isam Hawatmeh, MD, was born in Jordan. He is a board certified Internal Medicine graduate from St. Louis University. He is a long time member of ADC and is also a former board member of NAAA. He is a recent recipient of the 2009 Citizenship and Community Service Award presented by the Missouri State Medical Society. He is the president of the St. Louis Medical Society. Dr. Hawatmeh is actively involved with interfaith organizations and a community organizer for non-profit organizations as well as for-profit organizations. Presently he is the chairman of South Side Comprehensive Group. He is a very active member in numerous hospital boards as well as in other medical activities.