KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. -- Royal Saudi Air Force Major Naif Almani, student liaison officer, has dedicated his time to helping the RSAF students at Keesler as well as local elementary schoolers.
Almani’s position at Keesler is to ensure RSAF students have what they need to be able to build trusting relationships with their classmates and instructors while in training at Keesler.
“I work with them prior to their arrival, making sure everything is set for them. While they start their classes I follow with their schools in case any issues arise,” said Almani.
The RSAF students at Keesler train alongside 81st Training Group students in finance, cyber, air traffic control, radar systems and more. Keesler merges international military students into a joint training environment that gives all students the same quality of training and supports global alliances.
After moving himself and his wife to the United States three and a half years ago, Almani is familiar with how helpful it can be to be supported in a new environment.
“Shortly after moving here, my wife completed her master’s degree,” said Almani. “Her classmates and professors were so helpful to her throughout the process. It was amazing.”
When Almani was offered the opportunity to work with the local school district as an Arabic translator, he was happy to have the chance to give back to an education system that had supported his family.
“It's a great opportunity for me to be able to help these parents and the schools who can trust me to assist in communicating with each other,” said Almani. “There is no doubt that building trusting relationships between students of different countries is considered one of the most important enablers for cooperative nations, which are linked by bonds in humanity and ensure equal opportunities among people.”
The connections that Almani has made in the Keesler and Biloxi community serve as a reminder of our goals of enhancing our global presence and strengthening our ties to one another as humans.