A graduate of Pepperdine University with a bachelor of arts in business, Jamal Daniel went on to complete a master of business administration at the University of Texas at Austin Business School. The chairman of Houston-based Crest Investment Company, Jamal Daniel leveraged his training and experience to establish the Levant Foundation.The Levant Foundation seeks to promote an understanding of Middle Eastern cultures, specifically the relationship between Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. The foundation accomplishes this goal by collaborating with universities, religious institutions, and fine art institutions to fund artistic and educational programming. Initiatives funded by the Levant Foundation include the Jamal Daniel Fund for the Study of the Levant, which supports students at Georgetown University’s Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service. In addition, in 2006, the foundation created an endowment for the University of Texas Press to publish up to three books per year on the three aforementioned monotheistic religions or on issues affecting the people of the Levant region.
With a passion for the Levant region, Jamal Daniel founded the Levant Foundation to increase understanding of the history of this area and create awareness of issues affecting its people. To this end, Jamal Daniel, who is chairman of Crest Investment Company, leads the foundation in collaborating with universities and research organizations, including the Foundation for Interreligious and Intercultural Research and Dialogue (FIIRD). In 1999, the Levant Foundation helped establish FIIRD, which created a program in conjunction with the University of Geneva in Switzerland to improve understanding of Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. To this end, FIIRD funded several postdoctoral fellowships at the University of Geneva in the 2015-16 academic year. The fellowships were awarded to students with a background in one of the above religions and a desire to specialize in dialogue to foment peace among the people who practice these religions.The postdoctoral fellows form part of an exclusive alumni group of fellows and commited to take part in forums and exchanges to expand interfaith understanding.
Based in Texas, Crest Investment Company chairman Jamal Daniel has spent 30 years managing investments in real estate, energy, manufacturing, the high-tech industry, and more. Born in Tartus, Syria, Jamal Daniel has maintained a connection with his roots by forming The Levant Foundation and Al-Monitor.Recognized by the Huffington Post for offering “insightful commentary,” Al-Monitor is an American-based news website that shares current events and politics happening in the Middle East. Keeping a pulse on several states within that region, Al-Monitor journalists contribute fresh perspectives from countries such as Egypt and Turkey.Al-Monitor writers cover special interest stories, as well. Despite the severe political unrest in the region, 70-year-old Syrian resident Abu Omar showed journalist Muhammad Alkhatib his classic car collection. Out of his 20 different models, Omar’s collection includes a 1951 Buick and a 1947 Cadillac. Each one of Omar’s cars comes with the story of how he came to own them throughout integral times in history.
Jamal Daniel is currently the Chairman of the Crest Investment Company. Outside of his work, Jamal Daniel serves as Chairman of The Levant Foundation.As part of its larger mission to inform people about the culture of the Levant area, The Levant Foundation is dedicated to educating people about the three major religions (Christianity, Judaism, and Islam) that arose in the Middle East. One of the focuses of the foundation is to provide aid in the form of scholarships and fellowships for post-doctoral students. In 2011, the foundation provided financial support for the Swiss organization The Foundation for Interreligious and Intercultural Research and Dialogue (FDDI) to offer fellowships to post-graduate students who specialize in one of the three religions. The recipients of the fellowship formed a research group to study the commonalities among the different faiths with the goal of contributing to interreligious dialog and facilitating a deeper understanding between people.
