25 years of the Rufayda Al-Aslamiya Building | AKU-SONAM

25

years of the

Rufayda Al-Aslamiya Building 1996-2021 SCHOOL OF NURSING AND MIDWIFERY

L to R: Safar Ali Lakhani, Alauddin Feerasta, His Highness the Aga Khan, Badruddin Feerasta, Jafferali Feerasta, Amir Feerasta

A story of generosity, vision and impact In the 1990s, when the School of Nursing, the Aga Khan University’s first academic unit, needed an expansion to accommodate its growing academic needs, the Feerasta family came forward to support the construction of a new building at the University’s Stadium Road campus in Karachi. The building was officially inaugurated in November 1996 by the Chancellor His Highness the Aga Khan, Jafferali Feerasta and his sons Badruddin Feerasta and Alauddin Feerasta, among others.

Ribbon-cutting ceremony of the building by the Chancellor, His Highness the Aga Khan | November 1996

Then Director, AKU-SONAM, Dr Paula Herbert, presenting a token of thanks to Mr & Mrs Jafferali Feerasta

Chancellor’s message “Today I think we can all share the sense of very very great happiness that the School of Nursing has achieved another significant benchmark in its history. I want to congratulate the Feerasta Family and the Soneri Bank for their magnificent contribution. Not only have they been very generous donors to the School of Nursing but they are repeat donors and the fact that they are repeat donors for an institution such as the Aga Khan University, is a magnificent example of ongoing support for a major institution as it develops and evolves.”

The Chancellor, His Highness the Aga Khan Inauguration of the Rufayda Al-Aslamiya Building at AKU, November 1996

Tree planting by the Feerasta family at the Rufayda courtyard | November 1996

The same tree 25 years later - a popular spot for students in the afternoon hours

Established in 1980, AKU-SONAM has grown vastly over the past four decades. Starting with a class of 39, the School now has 690+ students enrolled in multiple degree programmes. Thanks to donors like the Feerasta family, AKU-SONAM continues to create a life-changing impact on its students - uplifting their economic conditions, and contributing to the advancement of healthcare in the country and beyond.

School at a glance 5

690+

89%

65%

1:4

4,500+

academic programmes

currently enrolled students

students on financial aid

students from remote areas of Pakistan

Male:Female ratio

graduates to date

Students’ Lounge

Facilities within Rufayda Since its inception, the Rufayda Al-Aslamiya building has been the hub of most academic and non-academic activities at AKU-SONAM. The building hosts within it the School’s first multimedia classroom fully equipped with the latest technology to support online teaching and learning; an auditorium with the seating capacity of 120; science and computer laboratories; a newly designed students’ lounge; the dean’s office, an audio visual resource studio, and seven classrooms.

The courtyard of the building serves as the epicentre of all activities, events and gatherings for leadership, faculty, staff and students alike.

The building has also hosted multiple meetings of the AKU Board of Trustees attended by esteemed members like Princess Zahra Aga Khan.

Computer Laboratory | Graduate Programmes

Science Laboratory

Dr J. Fraser Mustard Lecture Hall

Multimedia Classroom

Silver Jubilee celebrations Twenty-five years later, Alauddin Feerasta and his family, and the late Badruddin Feerasta’s son, Nooruddin Feerasta, and his family returned to the Rufayda Al-Aslamiya building for the Silver Jubilee celebrations where they heard from AKU-SONAM and the University’s leadership about the significant impact their philanthropy has had on the nursing profession in Pakistan.

Members of the family with University leadership on the occasion of the Silver Jubilee celebrations

We thank the Feerasta family for their generosity, through which we are able to transform lives of our students, who go on to make a difference in the communities they serve in!

Learn more about us: @AKUSONAMPK

aku.edu/sonampk

sonam.pk@aku.edu