Northern Virginia VCU student denied diploma after participating in pro-Palestinian protests [View all]
Source: WTOP
Northern Virginia VCU student denied diploma after participating in pro-Palestinian protests
Dan Ronan | dan.ronan@wtop.com
July 26, 2025, 8:48 AM
Two months after earning a bachelor’s degree from Virginia Commonwealth University, a 20-year-old Northern Virginia woman is having her diploma withheld for partaking in pro-Palestinian demonstrations. ... Sereen Haddad is accused of violating the school’s code of conduct by participating in pro-Palestinian demonstrations and school officials tell WTOP the diploma is on hold until it investigates her alleged conduct.
The Haddad family has deep ties to Gaza and her father, cardiologist Dr. Tariq Haddad, said at least 200 extended family members and friends have died during the Israeli-Hamas war.
Haddad finished her classwork at VCU in three years and would’ve earned a degree in psychology. She intends to pursue a master’s degree in psychology and eventually a PhD. ... “She did all the requirements in three years rather than four with a 4.0, summa cum laude,” Tariq said. “She wants to obtain a degree, a PhD in psychology, because over 50% of the children in Gaza suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder and childhood depression because of all these attacks over the past few years.”
He said his daughter’s goal is to use her PhD to help children with war-related mental illness. ... The dispute is also holding up her applications to graduate school, because she does not officially have a bachelor’s degree. ... After participating in and organizing several peaceful campus protests, Sereen was notified by the university this spring that she could attend the graduation ceremony but would not receive her diploma.
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Dan Ronan
Weekend anchor Dan Ronan is an award-winning journalist with a specialty in business and finance reporting.
dan.ronan@wtop.com
Read more: https://wtop.com/virginia/2025/07/northern-virginia-vcu-student-denied-diploma-after-pro-palestinian-protests/
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