January 31st - Akir

Here it is! Here's the last conversation that I had for this thirty-one day project.  It's been a lot of fun introducing myself to new people, getting outside of my comfort zone, and connecting with the people in my daily life that I'd never gotten the chance to talk with in depth.  There were days where I scrambled to find someone, and there were days where I just had to dive in and introduce myself to the first stranger that I saw.  But it was a great way to kick off the year, and I'm glad that I took a small step beyond my social bubble.

To round out The Interview Month, I sat down with someone who I had been trying to get together with since I started these conversations.  We had emailed back and forth about different dates, and we had to cancel other meetings because of one thing or another. It came down to the wire, but it finally worked out that I was able to meet up with this person, a man named Akir.

I've worked with Akir since he started with the university, but again, like so many people on this campus, that connection has been fleeting.  He is always quick to come up and say hello, or we might chat on our way down the hallway, but that's been about it.  I'm very glad to have gotten the opportunity to end The Interview Month with him.

Akir

Akir was born and raised in Greensboro.  His dad was born in India before the Partition (when India and Pakistan became two separate nations) and his mom was born in Pakistan.


Akir: I tell my friends, "Call me Kashmir."  Crank up the Led Zepplin!



Akir started out in the fall of 2013 as a student in our Ed.D program here at High Point University. He was in the second cohort for that program, and he actually just turned in his application for graduation (congrats, Akir!).

Akir: I was in the graduate program, and I realized I needed to get a job that would allow me to get more data and experience for my dissertation. Luckily, I found an opening in Dr. Holder's new program and I was able to get on board with that.

Lars: And what's the focus for your dissertation?

Akir: I'm focused on faculty perceptions and attitudes towards student retention. The goal was to measure that perception and those attitudes in some way.  Then, I would use those measurements and see how we can improve retention through the faculty involvement.


Akir works as a Freshmen Success Coach, an initiative that was created to help keep more students enrolled and working towards completing their degree.  

Lars: Do you enjoy what you're doing?

Akir: I really do.  It's amazing to see the transformation for our freshmen. When I think back to when I was in college, or when you were in college, there we were 17 or 18 years old, and we just jumped into it. We didn't have a mentor, or a person with vast amount of knowledge that we could turn to if we were having problems.  Now, in my position, I get to share my knowledge and help students find their way.

I also really enjoy working with the people in the office.  Everyone works as a team.  You could call us the X-Men.  And if that's the case, I'll take Cyclops.

Before starting with HPU, Akir worked in development at a non profit fundraising for the National Conference of Community Justice.  This commitment to community justice and awareness has continued throughout his time here at the university.  He is a chair on an interfaith group, and is working on starting a program through the Piedmont Interfaith Council called "Shifting Lenses."

Akir: Shifting Lenses helps people shift from what they think they know to what's true. We work with a variety of different groups, from faith groups to middle schoolers. You are conditioned to see things a certain way, and we want to educate people to see a different point of view.

Our ultimate goal is to build bridges of understanding. We're using the slogan #weareone, because in the end we are one. That camaraderie will carry us through this tough time.

Because of the recent events with Trump's travel ban, I has to ask Akir how he felt about the situation, as he a Muslim who works with these communities.

Akir: As an educational liaison through the Piedmont Interview Council, I'm constantly working with refugees. My goal was to increase the knowledge about their situation.   A lot of them were afraid, and a lot of them came to me asking if they needed to lawyer up.  It's impacted more people that just those traveling.

As a religion, we have to invite people in, because people have outrageous assumptions.  But the truth of it is that we believe in the same God that the other Abrahamic faiths do.  We don't believe that Jesus was the son of God.  Instead, we believe that he was a prophet, just like the Jews believe. But we still have the same bedrock faith as the other Abrahamic religions.

Lars: I remember reading something about where you went to a Trump rally during the campaign, and how you had said at one point "Man, I think I'm going to have to leave this party..."

Akir: Yeah that's right, it was an eye-opening experience. I define myself as a compassionate conservative.  When you look back at Reagan and Bush the first, they were showing compassion to those that needed it.  People just needed help.  (We talk about a video making the rounds recently from one of their early debates in the 1980s, and how so much of what they said wouldn't represent many people in the Republican party today).

And think about even what W. did, going to that mosque near Ground Zero.  And he's there saying "These people are our friends."  Think about how much guts that took to do that.  Now, I think those values of compassion are not in the party as it currently stands.

But I'm encouraged because as a country, we rally behind each other. Look at what happened at the airports. Would that have happened right after 9/11?  Would you have seen so many spontaneous acts of support for the Muslim faith?  I don't think so.  So it's really encouraging to see what took place after that order was handed out.  Other people from other faiths rallied behind us, and that makes me proud of this country.

I am about working with everyone, I'm not about the party, or making sure Republicans win out over Democrats. I'm about the American, that's the important thing for me.

What's your favorite joke?

Akir: A Christian, and a Jew, and a Muslim walk into a bar and they leave as friends.

What's the meal that reminds you most of home?

Akir: Chicken tiki masala.  It's old fashioned and simple.  You use your hands, no utensils.  You dip the bread or naan into it and it's so good. It reminds me of visiting Pakistan, its just broken down to the basics.

What was the most significant thing that happened last year?

Akir: I was recognized as a game changer in the area by the Greensboro Grasshoppers. I went out to the middle of the field at the end of a game to be recognized, and a lot of my friends didn't want me to do it.  "How do you know someone won't throw stuff at you or boo?" they all said. They thought it was going to be dangerous for me, a Muslim, to go out there.  And a bunch of my friends came to the came and were like patrolling the crowd to make sure nothing happened.

But nothing like that happened.  Instead, I looked up at the stands, and people were cheering from all walks of life. It felt good to be an American, and that moment affirmed my belief in this country.



Akir is very optimistic about this country, and his faith in it has not been diminished by recent events. It's inspiring to hear that kind of love and enthusiasm for this place, and it makes you think that no matter the problems that we are facing, if we lean into each other we can make it out the other side. He's working with people that are on the front lines of an issue that will have repercussions for years to come, but he's doing so with a positive outlook and a can-do-attitude.

I respect him for that, and for being able to look beyond differences and to see that at our core, we are all in this country because we want to be defined by the values in which it was founded. It takes work to get there, but with people like Akir out there putting in the time and energy to educate others and to bridge gaps, I'm sure we'll make things better in the end.