Cochise College Instructors Daniel O’Meara and Dave Pettes recently received the Building Bridges Educator of the Year Award from the Islamic Speakers Bureau of Arizona. The award honors individuals or organizations in Arizona who have shown a sincere commitment toward building bridges of understanding between diverse communities through education.

The Islamic Speakers Bureau of Arizona is a non-profit, apolitical, educational organization that provides education about Islam and Muslims and promotes interfaith dialogue. Its mission is to reinforce and promote the American ideals of tolerance and religious freedom that are embodied in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

The bureau’s director, Azra Hussain, has presented Islam 101 at Cochise College since 2008 to educate students, staff, faculty and the community about what the world of Islam is about and what it means to be Muslim. The presentations have been conducted in conjunction with other activities that incorporate the notion of tolerance and understanding, such as the Holocaust Project, Martin Luther King presentations conducted by students, and other activities.

O’Meara and Pettes were recognized at an awards ceremony in Phoenix earlier this month.