Ben-Gurion University to award honorary doctorates to seven distinguished individuals
Social media star "Nas Daily" Nuseir Yassin, author Nicole Krauss, philanthropist Sami Sagol, singer Andrey Makarevich, Israeli-Ukrainian artist Zoya Cherkassky, nursing advocate Prof. Judith Shamian, and endocrinologist Prof. Moshe Phillip to be honored
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev will honor seven distinguished individuals during its upcoming 55th Board of Governors Meeting. The seven will receive honorary doctorates on Tuesday evening May 13, 2025.
They include social media star Nuseir Yassin, better known as "Nas Daily", author Nicole Krauss, Russian singer Andrey Makarevich, Israeli-Ukrainian artist Zoya Cherkassky, Canadian-Israeli nurse and nursing advocate Prof. Judith Shamian, renowned endocrinologist Prof. Moshe Phillip, and industrialist and philanthropist Sami Sagol.
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev President Prof. Daniel Chamovitz, "Ben-Gurion University of the Negev is proud to confer an honorary doctorate upon seven distinguished individuals who embody the legacy of David Ben-Gurion, representing human excellence at its finest and combining exceptional achievements in academic, scientific, and creative excellence, through outstanding service to the University, or through activities of notable benefit to society and humanity as whole. Their acceptance of an honorary degree from BGU reflects that honor back on to our institution and what it stands for, providing a mirror within which we hope to see a bit of ourselves. Their actions and accomplishments are an inspiration to all of us."
Honorees in alphabetical order:
Zoya Cherkassky
Artist Zoya Cherkassky is one of the most prominent voices of her generation. A recipient of the Sandberg Prize for Israeli Art, her art interweaves her experience of immigration form Ukraine to Israel with Israeli culture. A successful artist on the international stage, she explores war, displacement, and prejudice in Israel. Most recently, her works reference October 7 in international exhibitions in New York and Vienna.
Nicole Krauss
Hailed by The New York Times as “one of America’s most important novelists and an international literary sensation,” she is the author of the international bestsellers, Forest Dark, Great House, and The History of Love, which won the Saroyan Prize for International Literature and France’s Prix du Meilleur Livre Étranger. To Be a Man, her first collection of short stories won the Wingate Literary Prize.
Andrey Makarevich
Andrey Makarevich is the lead singer-songwriter and guitarist of the rock band Mashina Vremeni (Time Machine), the longest still active rock band in Russian history. He founded the group when he was just 16 years old and has become a towering figure on the Russian music scene and around the world. He is a staunch Zionist and has made his home in Israel since 2022.
Prof. Moshe Phillip
Prof. Moshe Phillip is a renowned endocrinologist. He is the inventor of an artificial pancreas, numerous diabetes tests including one to diagnose infants with Type 1. A graduate of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev's medical school, he is the Director of the Institute of Endocrinology and Diabetes, the National Center for Juvenile Diabetes at Schneider Children's Medical Center.
Sami Sagol
Sami Sagol is a longtime philanthropist with a special passion for education. He created the Sagol Neuroscience Network, which supports multi-disciplinary research centers, laboratories and projects in leading academic, scientific and medical institutions. Ben-Gurion University is proud to join that network with the establishment of the Sagol Medical School for International Health, which will be inaugurated during the Board of Governors.
Prof. Judith Shamian
Prof. Judith Shamian is a fierce advocate for nursing worldwide. As the former president of the International Council of Nurses, the Victorian Order of Nurses, and the Canadian Nurses Association, she has campaigned tirelessly on behalf of the profession. In addition to her advocacy, she has been a nurse in both Israel and Canada.
Nuseir Yassin
Nuseir Yassin is better known online as "Nas Daily," where he has amassed an audience of tens of millions for his one minute videos, which have been viewed billions of times. Yassin has an insatiable curiosity about the world and its varied cultures, which he shares with his followers. Since October 7, 2023, he has been an outspoken advocate for co-existence between Israelis and Palestinians.
