Rana El Khoury

Jordanian edtech pioneer democratizing STEM education for refugee youth

Edtech Visionary

Rana El Khoury founded STEM4ALL in 2021 to provide free STEM education to displaced children across the Middle East. Her platform uses gamified learning modules accessible via low-cost tablets, reaching over 500,000 students in refugee camps by 2024. The initiative has partnered with UNESCO to create Arabic-language curricula aligned with UN SDG4 (Quality Education).

Innovative Solutions

El Khoury's breakthrough was developing 'Solar-Powered Learning Pods', rugged devices charged via solar backpacks. These enable learning in areas without electricity, a critical innovation in Syria's Idlib region where 80% of schools lack power. The pods also include offline access to Khan Academy and Coursera content, certified by Jordan's Ministry of Education.

Community Impact

STEM4ALL's robotics competitions have produced award-winning projects like the 'Zaytoun Water Purifier' developed by Syrian teens in Azraq camp. These successes led to partnerships with Siemens and Microsoft, creating scholarship pathways for top performers. By 2025, 15% of Jordan's tech startups included graduates from her programs.

Policy Influence

El Khoury's advocacy contributed to Jordan's 2023 National Edtech Policy, mandating digital literacy programs in all schools. Her TEDxAmman talk 'How Refugee Kids Are Building the Future' spurred $22 million in private sector funding for similar initiatives in Lebanon and Iraq.

Global Expansion

In 2024, STEM4ALL launched 'Tech for Peace' - a program training Palestinian and Israeli youth to collaborate on tech projects. The initiative's first product, a cross-border pollution monitoring app, won the 2025 Tech for Peace Innovation Prize. El Khoury's vision exemplifies how technology can bridge divides while addressing systemic educational inequities.