CCNY 2026-2028 Obama-Chesky Voyager Scholar Ramez Hassanen
Sophie Davis School for Biomedical Education junior Ramez Hassanen is The City College of New York’s 2026-2028 Obama-Chesky Voyager Scholarship for Public Service recipient.
The Bay Ridge, Brooklyn native is a graduate of Stuyvesant High School and a first-generation Egyptian-American. An Arabic-speaking South Brooklyn EMT for the past two years who aspires to attend the CUNY School of Medicine, he seeks to serve those members of his largely immigrant community who struggle to access proper healthcare.
“When there's a barrier between their language and properly managing their health, we're going to see an obvious rate of deterioration with their health outcomes and how well they're able to live through their quality of life,” he said. “You don't want to be at that point where you can't properly communicate what's really going on within your health, or any challenges within your body or any issues that you have with your health.”
The Voyager Scholarship was created by former President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama, and Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky, in 2022. It is a two-year leadership development and scholarship program for students committed to public service careers. Voyagers, as the scholars are known, spend six summer weeks in up to five countries, pursuing their interests in public service. They receive $25,000 for each summer to pay for tuition, room, board and fees, a $10,000 stipend and free Airbnb housing to pursue a summer work-travel experience between their junior and senior year of college, and $4,200 in Airbnb credits every year for 10 years after graduation.
Hassanen has yet to decide where to spend his summer as a voyager, but is leaning toward going to Egypt to collaborate with healthcare researchers and community organizations to gain a better understanding of healthcare accessibility, preventive care, and the experiences of underserved populations.
“Throughout my lifetime, I've grown up with the idea of empathy,” he said. “And I'm looking to expand on that once I continue to do my voyage.”
While medical school is his objective, it is not his final one.
“To me, becoming a physician is not only about diagnosing and treating illness,” he said. “It's also about understanding the circumstances that prevent patients from receiving care in the first place.”
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Since 1847, The City College of New York has provided a high-quality and affordable education to generations of New Yorkers in a wide variety of disciplines. CCNY embraces its position at the forefront of social change. It is ranked #1 by the Harvard-based Opportunity Insights out of 369 selective public colleges in the United States on the overall mobility index. This measure reflects both access and outcomes, representing the likelihood that a student at CCNY can move up two or more income quintiles. Education research organization Degree Choices ranks CCNY #1 nationally among universities for economic return on investment. In addition, the Center for World University Rankings places CCNY in the top 2.2% of universities worldwide in terms of academic excellence. Labor analytics firm Lightcast puts at $3.7 billion CCNY’s annual economic impact on the regional economy (5 boroughs and 5 adjacent counties) and quantifies the “for dollar” return on investment to students, taxpayers, and society. At City College, more than 16,500 students pursue undergraduate and graduate degrees in eight schools and divisions, driven by significant funded research, creativity, and scholarship. In 2023, CCNY launched its most expansive fundraising campaign ever. The campaign, titled “Doing Remarkable Things Together,” seeks to bring the College’s Foundation to more than $1 billion in total assets in support of the College's mission. By May 2026, more than $500 million had been raised. CCNY is as diverse, dynamic, and visionary as New York City itself. View CCNY Media Kit.
Syd Steinhardt
212-650-7875
ssteinhardt@ccny.cuny.edu