Sahra Noor (Somali: Sahra Nuur, Arabic: زهرة نور; born 1976 or 1977) is a Somali-American nurse and health care executive.[2][3]

Sahra Noor
Born1976 or 1977 (age 46–47)[1]
NationalitySomali, American
Alma materSt. Catherine University (BSN)
University of Minnesota (MS)
OccupationHealth care executive
TitleChief Executive Officer of People's Center Clinics & Services
Children2
RelativesIlhan Omar (sister)
Isra Hirsi (niece)

Biography edit

Noor was born in Mogadishu, Somalia, but spent part of her childhood in Kenyan refugee camps. In the camp, she witnessed a lack of healthcare as she battled malaria and developed a desire to enter the field of healthcare.[2] She moved to the United States as a refugee at the age of eighteen.[2] Upon arriving, her family settled in Arlington, Virginia. She completed her high school career in two years at an alternative high school in Virginia.[2] Noor attended St. Catherine University, where she received a nursing degree. She would wake up at three in the morning to study before taking her daughter to daycare and then attending classes.[2] She later attended the University of Minnesota and received a MSc in Nursing and Health Systems Administration with a concentration in global health.[4]

She serves as the chief executive officer at the People's Center Health Services in Minneapolis.[2][5]

Personal life edit

Sahra is the sister of politician Ilhan Omar, one of the first two Muslim women to be elected to the United States Congress.[6]

Noor has two children.[2]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ Oakes, Laura (June 5, 2015). "Home Grown: The Somali-American Struggle – 3 Success Stories". CBS Minnesota. You might say 38-year-old Sahra Noor is a bit of an overachiever. In a Kenyan refugee camp during her teens, her single father and four siblings ended up in the U.S., where Sahra made it through high school in two years while teaching herself English by watching TV talk shows.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Koumpilova, Mila (December 24, 2014). "New generation of Somali women is on the rise in Minnesota". Minneapolis Star-Tribune. Retrieved July 19, 2019.
  3. ^ "40 Under 40: Sahra Noor". Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal. 6 March 2015. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
  4. ^ "Sahra Noor - Interim Director, Africa Public Health Foundation". Pan African Women in Health. 6 October 2020. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
  5. ^ "Sahra Noor – StrongWomenFeature: Life-changing champion of global health". Minnesota Women's Press. Retrieved July 19, 2019.
  6. ^ ""Time for Ilhan": New Doc Traces the Rise of Ilhan Omar". Minnesota Monthly. 24 December 2018. Retrieved 13 April 2019.