Abdul is the son of Mohamed El-Sayed, professor and past president of the Academy (and IJPE co-author) and Jackie El-Sayed, professor first editor in chief of the International Journal of Process Education, both long-time Process Educators.
On April 17, 2025, Abdul announced he would be running for the U.S. Senate after incumbent Michigan senator Gary Peters announced he would not be running for re-election.
The following is from his campaign website (https://abdulforsenate.com):
A seasoned public servant, Abdul rebuilt a government agency to make it actually work — and then he did it again. He rebuilt Detroit’s Health Department after bankruptcy. Then he restructured Wayne County’s Department of Health, Human & Veterans Services, serving 1.8 million Michiganders in the state’s largest and most diverse county. Abdul secured free glasses for kids who needed them, removed lead from Detroit’s elementary schools, took on Michigan’s biggest polluters, and made life-saving Narcan universally accessible. He also spearheaded a program that will cancel up to $700 million in medical debt for 300,000 Michiganders over 2 years. His work earned him recognition as “Public Official of the Year” by the Michigan League of Conservation Voters and a spot on Crain’s Detroit Business “40 Under 40” list.
Abdul is recognized nationwide as a public health and healthcare expert. He is the co-author of Medicare for All: A Citizen’s Guide, which explains how to build a healthcare system that guarantees high-quality, affordable healthcare for every American. In 2020, he was selected to serve on President Biden’s Unity Task Force for Healthcare, helping craft policy that is lowering prescription drug prices today.
Born in Southeast Michigan, Abdul was raised by his father Mohamed, an Egyptian immigrant, and his stepmom Jackie, whose family has lived in Gratiot County, Michigan, for over a century. Abdul proudly attended public schools and captained his high school football, wrestling, and lacrosse teams. He graduated from the University of Michigan with the highest distinction and played on the Wolverine’s men’s lacrosse team. Abdul earned his medical degree from Columbia University on an NIH-funded fellowship and a second doctorate at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar. During his 2018 run for governor, Abdul earned over 340,000 votes from Michiganders across the state, bringing together a diverse coalition around his policy-driven platform.
(A note from Denna: I’ve been following and reading Abdul for years and I highly recommend doing the same. Not only is he going places, but his brilliance is matched by his compassion and sense of civic duty.)