SULEIKA JAOUAD

Suleika Jaouad is an award-winning writer, speaker, and cancer survivor. Born in New York City to a Tunisian father and Swiss mother, she studied double bass at Juilliard’s pre-college program and earned her BA from Princeton University, followed by an MFA from Bennington College. Her career aspirations were cut short when she was diagnosed with leukemia at 22. She then began writing her acclaimed New York Times column, “Life, Interrupted,” from her hospital room. Her work has since appeared in Vogue and other major outlets. A sought-after speaker, her TED Talk was one of the top 10 most popular of 2019, with nearly five million views. During the pandemic, she founded the Isolation Journals, a creative community project. Jaouad has served on Barack Obama’s Presidential Cancer Panel and several national advisory boards. She’s been honored with the Red Door Advocacy & Community Service Award and has held residencies at Ucross, ArtYard, and the Kerouac Project. A frequent speaker and workshop leader, her work has been featured on The Today Show, NPR, The Paris Review, and Glamour.