31 October 2022
Anonymous Writer
Contributors: Tito Sucipto, Hafizah Arinah, Arida Susilowati
Petite and slim, with a simple hijab, casual dress, backpack, and sneakers, are her daily life when she goes to campus. At first glance, she looks like a teenage girl and is sometimes mistaken for a student by people who just saw her. Sometimes, new students often call her “sister” because of her posture and gestures. That’s our dear friend Mrs. Irawati Azhar, or we used to call her Mbak Ira, Uni Ira, or Bunda Ira for her mentoring students.
Mrs. Irawati Azhar has been a civil servant lecturer at the Faculty of Forestry, Universitas Sumatera Utara, since 2003. Ms. Ira, a native Minang, was born in Tanjung Keling, Payakumbuh, West Sumatra, on July 28, 1973. She is one of the 28 alumni of the Faculty of Forestry of IPB (Class of 1991) and is well known by her classmates as a person who is slang, energetic, and has high solidarity. It was at the Faculty of Forestry that Ms. Ira met her classmate and soul mate, Mr. Riswan Zein, a Tanjung Balai native who was one of the guitarists of the band at the Faculty of Forestry at that time. She married on September 20, 1997, and was blessed with two handsome and intelligent sons, Ahmad Fathan Rizqi Irawan and Ariq Fariz Fakhri Irawan. On July 24, the happiness of this family increased with the marriage of Bang Fathan to Kak Shaumi. Following in their parents’ footsteps, they came from the same alma mater, Telkom University.
Academically, Ms. Ira pursued her undergraduate studies at the Faculty of Forestry - Institut Pertanian Bogor (IPB) in 1991 with an invitation pathway and took an interest in Forest Product Technology. This invitation route is intended for high school graduates who excel, but not everyone gets this golden opportunity. By entering as a student of the IPB Faculty of Forestry, Ms. Ira became a new member of the E-28 community (E is the symbol for the faculty of forestry, and 28 is the year of entry calculated from the founding year of IPB in 1963).
In 1996, she successfully completed her undergraduate education thanks to her persistence and the warm hands of her two mentors, Dr. Ir. Edi Suhaimi Bakar, M.Agr. (now Associate Professor at UPM Malaysia) and Dr. Ir. Osli Rachman, M.S. (Researcher of Research and Development of Bogor Forest Products). On the sidelines of her teaching activities, she enthusiastically participated in master’s education at the Environmental Natural Resources Management Study Program at the Universitas Sumatera Utara and entered as a 2005 student.
In 2009, she obtained her M.Si degree with the help of great advisors, Prof. Ir. Zulkifli Nasution, M.Sc., Ph.D., Prof. Dr. Erman Munir, and Prof. Dr. Basuki Wirjosentono. In 2015, her enthusiasm to increase her knowledge was high enough to make her continue her studies in the doctoral program in the same study program, guided by Prof. Ir. Zulkifli Nasution, M.Sc., Ph.D., Dr. Agussabti, M.Sc., and Dr. Delvian, S.P., M.P. She completed her dissertation and closed her defense on September 3, 2020. However, God’s destiny only requires her to stop her doctoral education until this stage. Various professional organizations such as members of the Indonesian Wood Research Society (IWoRS), the Center for Forestry Studies and Analysis of Sumatra JATI (Pusaka JATI), and the Harangan Social Forestry Development Institute (LPPS Harangan) are a means for Mrs. Ira to channel her scientific aspirations. In the socio-religious field, she is also a donor to various foundations for the poor and tahfiz institutions.
Since moving to Medan and joining the USU Forestry Study Program, she has devoted much of her time, thoughts, and energy to advancing the USU Faculty of Forestry as one of the senior lecturers at the Department of Forest Products Technology (THH), USU’s Faculty of Forestry, her ideas, ideas, and thoughts on campus are widely applied to this day. Known as a lecturer in Non-Timber Forest Products (HHNK) courses, Fiber and Composite Technology, General Economics, Industrial Management, and Optimization of Forest Product Management, countless students have received knowledge transfer and successfully guided by her. Her motherly spirit, contemporary style, and light-hearted spirit make her one of the favorite lecturers in the Department of Forest Products Technology. Her sincere affection during her time as a lecturer has made her a mother to most students at the USU Faculty of Forestry.
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