About the Author

Wissam H. Nasr is an educator, researcher, and former nonprofit leader whose career spans classroom teaching, humanitarian policy work, and international field research. Currently a Special Education and English Language Arts teacher at a high school in New York City, he has been certified to teach business, social studies, and special education. Wissam has also worked as an on-set tutor for actors in the film, television, and theater industries, a business and marketing teacher, and a social studies teacher in NYC public schools.

His earlier career includes research and policy roles at the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, where he researched and drafted a reference guide on humanitarian law for humanitarian personnel, in addition to other research roles at Columbia University’s Center for International Conflict Resolution,and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation’s UN Mission where he took part in its collective effort to find a diplomatic end to the Danish cartoon crisis. He has conducted field research on Islamic extremism in Central Asia, culminating in an article in The Bishkek Standard on the government’s proposed religious testing of imams, as well as worked on genocide prevention early warning systems, and authored small but meaningful entries to the Encyclopedia of Political Science (CQ Press).

A former Executive Director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations–New York, Wissam has trained judges, lawyers, and educators on Muslim civil rights, negotiated directly with federal law enforcement, and appeared in more than 500 media interviews including debating racial profiling with the former NYPD Commissioner Howard Safir on Hardball with Chris Matthews. His professional background also includes fellowships with Amnesty International where he authored a death penalty educational resource in 2001 and the Coro Immigrant Civic Leaders program, then in conjunction with the New York Immigration Coalition.

Wissam had a substantial career in business and marketing as well. He began his career as a licensed stockbroker in 1996 at age 18 before returning to college to continue his studies. But following the non-renewal of his UN contract during the 2008 recession, and a year of limited job opportunities, he accepted work as a van driver and warehouse staff member for an event marketing company. Once there, he rapidly moved into management roles, eventually rising to the top and becoming the national director where he led 33 regional, state, and city field operations managers and over 500 field staff. Under his direction, the program expanded into the company’s largest and most profitable division, generating more than $60 million over five years

Fluent in the language of international collaboration, Wissam has traveled to more than 60 countries, lived in Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, and Egypt, and continues to study Romance languages at Hunter College. A lifelong athlete, he is also an Ironman triathlete and a dedicated track and field coach. His wide-ranging career reflects a commitment to education, cross-cultural understanding, and community engagement—whether in the classroom, on the athletic field, or on the global stage.