We spoke with Philosophy alum Yamam Almouradi, who currently works as an eye doctor in nearby Brea. Yamam began her college studies as a Cellular and Developmental Biology major. She decided to take a philosophy class as a breather from science lectures and labs, and she "instantly fell in love with it and went on to double major in Biology and Philosophy and minor in Chemistry." Yamam's first encounter with Philosophy taught in an academic sense was with Dr. Calarco. She enjoyed his "scientific approach to unraveling difficult philosophical content" and the way in which he used "current world examples to decipher core notions of traditional and postmodern philosophy."
Yamam then went on to pursue Optometry and obtained her Doctorate from Ketchum University-Southern California College of Optometry. She currently works at Brea Optometry (https://www.breaoptometry.com) and Norwalk Family Optometry (https://www.drjohnlarcabal.com/) as a Pediatric and Vision Therapy Optometrist, where she focuses on Neurological Visual Rehabilitation and Acquired Brain Injury.
Amazingly, Yamam has also managed to find the time to co-found a grassroots medical and humanitarian relief project called Sight and Sketches, which provides no-cost vision exams, prescription glasses, and healing through the arts to refugees and underserved communities both domestically and abroad. (https://sightandsketches.com)
We asked Yamam to reflect on the Philosophy major and the role that philosophy plays in our individual and collective lives. Yamam believes that "everyone utilizes philosophy as a way of life. Our decision-making skills, coping mechanisms, strength of reactions to our surroundings and events, and choice of religion or lack thereof, are all personal philosophies by which we choose to live our lives." Yamam credits majoring in Philosophy for giving her the tools to carefully consider and think through these kinds of issues and decisions. She also believes that Philosophy has helped her in her work life: "The philosophical approach to critical thinking has helped my medical decision-making and strengthened my personal growth. I strongly recommend CSUF’s Philosophy program to students from all backgrounds and interests, as it is not just a field to major in, but a gateway to the self."