House of Commons reception for ISSI alumni
Pictured (L-R): Lydia Wood of Weizmann UK, Prof. Benny Chain, Piran Mazaheri, Sheridan Gould of Weizmann UK, Chris Philp MP
Weizmann UK started the year on a high note with a reception held at the House of Commons for alumni of the Dr. Bessie Lawrence International Summer Science Institute (ISSI).
Almost 100 participants of the program who had spent a summer in Rehovot between 1970 and 2015 gathered in the Churchill Room at the Palace of Westminster. The event was hosted by Chris Philp MP, who is himself a Bessie alumnus.
He said: “My memories of that summer 22 years ago in Israel were amongst the happiest in my life. What the Weizmann Institute has achieved in little over 80 years to become so renowned internationally is remarkable.”
Another alumnus, from 1988, Piran Mazaheri, who is from Iran, gave a personal and entertaining account of his experiences, saying: “I was given an opportunity to attend the program at the Weizmann Institute and I have reaped the benefits ever since.” He went on to describe how he felt his connections to the Weizmann Institute had led to his acceptance at Cambridge University and later aided in forging a successful career in engineering. At the event, he announced his decision to sponsor an ISSI student scholarship.
Closing remarks were made by Prof. Benny Chain, a member of the Institute’s International Board who had been on the selection panel for many of the ISSI alumni. He paid tribute to the high quality of both the Weizmann Institute and the students he had encountered throughout the years.
