American University of Beirut Magazine. Spring 2017, Vol...

BOLDLYForward

AUB students light up a village BOLDY AUB, the largest campaign ofits kind in the history of the region

American University of Beirut Magazine. Spring 2017, Vol XV, No. 2

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A hard look at Syria’s health crisis

To speak to someone about supporting financial aid, contact us at [email protected] or make a gift at give.aub.edu.lb

Aiducation.Bedros Torossian (BA ’17) is the first in his family to go tocollege. He studies Ottoman history at AUB. “I’m interested inthe late Ottoman period and how the educational institutionsof that era helped shape the identities of the people living inthe region.” He hopes to earn his master's and doctorate inthe subject on his way to becoming a professor, perhaps, hesays, at AUB. “AUB Jafet library is my favorite place. I spendmost of my time there. I often visit the AUB special archivesand special sections that I use for my history papers. I spendmy free time reading. I recently read a memoir of three Arabsoldiers who had participated in World War I: one worked inthe Ottoman Commiserate in Jerusalem; the other two went tothe fronts, the Russian and Gallipoli. I know I’ll be a lifelongstudent.” Bedros currently receives a mix of scholarships fromthe WAAAUB Northern Emirates Chapter, the ArmenianGeneral Benevolent Union, and the Calouste GulbenkianFoundation.

Contents

Zalmay Khalilzad (BA ‘72, MA ‘74), ambassador to

Afghanistan, Iraq, and the United Nations, a veteran

diplomat discusses his passion for democracy

AUB Everywhere Alumni profile, class notes, WAAAUB, and chapter news

Impact Regional impact, advocacy, and policy initiatives

The Lancet-American University of Beirut Commission,

a comprehensive analysis of the causes and effects of

Syria’s Civil War

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5Inspiration Student life, the liberal arts, AUB personalities past and present

Rebuilding from rubble, Rabih Shibli puts

communities back on the map

Discoveries Research, the arts, and current events

An oncologist’s passion for science, innovation

and people

Wellness AUBMC 2020, health, and medicine

BOLDLY AUBAUB looks ahead to a bright futureThe Campaign to Lead,

Innovate, and Serve

The MainGate Spring 2017 Vol XV, No. 2

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TAMAM, a grassroots approach to education reform in

the Arab world22

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Dear fellow alumni and friends of AUB,

Let me start by sending my greetings and thewarmest of welcomes to this Spring ’17 edition ofThe MainGate, where we have the great pleasureof launching BOLDLY AUB, our ambitiouscampaign to accelerate the University’seducational and research missions into the middle of this century.

I would like to take this opportunity to talk to youabout what really matters in our view. In thewords of the great Board Chair Emeritus RichardDebs, the things that really matter always hurt.They are the things that might seem hard to livewith in the short-term, but they are the last thingsyou can afford to cut. They keep you up at night,wondering if you are equal to the task. But theyare the things you manage to do precisely becausethey matter. I know at times like these the thingsthat really matter—the last that should be cut—areeducation and opportunity. Our world is at acrossroads. We are seeing this clearly in the MENAregion, the US, Europe, and throughout the world.Education leads to opportunity, and everyindividual deserves the opportunity to realize hisor her own potential. Education for Aristotle was“an ornament in prosperity and a refuge inadversity;” for Benjamin Franklin it was “theinvestment which pays the best interest;” and forNelson Mandela: “the most powerful weaponwhich you can use to change the world.” That’sactually my favorite, even as a physician and apacifist—all of you know how effective a weaponthe education at AUB is, for peace, for prosperity,for opportunity.

That is why we have launched BOLDLY AUB: TheCampaign to Lead, Innovate, and Serve. We believethe most important thing we can do in our lifetimeis to school responsible and caring citizens anddevelop inspirational and effective leaders at themost important university in the Arab world. Ourpreeminence does not mean we have the resourcesof a Harvard or a Yale, but we have a resonancethroughout the Arab world that is extraordinary,influencing policy, healthcare, medicine, thehumanities. That places a tremendous andawesome responsibility on our community today.The BOLDLY Campaign will modernize our MedicalCenter—making it the best in the region andenhancing its world class reputation. The hospitalcelebrates its own 150th anniversary this year—you’ll be learning more about that in the next issueof The MainGate. We are proud of AUBMC’stransformative history, which helped keepLebanon whole during the war because it treatedeveryone the same, without regard for political orreligious affiliations, from the wounded fighters tothe fragile victims, the least fortunate to those withgreat fortunes. This has defined AUB’s egalitarianapproach for 150 years.

You can delve more deeply into the campaigngoals and activities in a special 10-page insert inthis MainGate, including tributes to the incrediblepartnership with AUB of the late Trustee MarounSemaan and his family, Trustee Talal Shair at thehead of Dar Group, and Mr. Jamal Daniel of TheLevant Foundation. These three outstanding fociof vision and purpose have furnished AUB withthe three largest gifts in our history. This isphilanthropy that really matters, and which“hurts” inasmuch as it is not easy, and it takes realcommitment. They have our eternal thanks, asdoes every donor, whatever their means, who putstheir sweat equity into this extraordinaryenterprise. With your faith in AUB, this is now amagnificent opportunity to serve, not only as asacrifice, but as a privilege and an honor, in thecause of education and the building of a betterfuture.

Fadlo R. Khuri

Views from Campus

Letter from the president

Dear MainGate readers,

Last year, we looked back at AUB’s history-making achievements, which spurred advancementin the humanities, arts, sciences, engineering, and medicine, and the impact it had on Lebanonand the wider Middle East. This year we look towards future achievement in those same fields,with the launch of BOLDLY AUB: The Campaign to Lead, Innovate, and Serve. A high bar hasbeen set, $650 million, which will allow us to recruit the best scholars, improve our campusinfrastructure, and better integrate AUB’s faculties and departments to produce impactfulscholarship.

This issue, in keeping with the theme of impact, tells the story of a group of students whobrought solar lighting to a remote village in Akkar; professors whose work supports the UnitedNations Sustainable Development Goals; AUB’s commitment to building Lebanon’s firstnational research education network (NREN); Huda Zoghbi’s pioneering medical research; andTAMAM’s push for grassroots education reform in the Arab world. Moreover, our students areparticipating and succeeding in a growing number of highly competitive innovationcompetitions.

On the geopolitical side, the stories of AUB International Advisory Council members ZalmayKhalilzad (BA ’72, MA ’74) and Lakhdar Brahimi give us their different inside perspectives onsome of the most consequential events in Middle East and world history, while the AUB-ledLancet Commission deliberates on how to handle the myriad health challenges resulting fromthe Syrian civil war.

It being the inaugural campaign issue, I’m eager to share our celebrations of BOLDLY AUB’sBeirut and New York launches where you’ll get a taste of our higher aims and grand projectscurrently in the works, and perhaps spot a few familiar faces. We ask for your continued supportduring this crucial phase that AUB may continue to lead, and lead well.

Martin Asser, Executive Editor

Inbox

Back CoverThe Munib and Angela MasriInstitute of Energy andNatural Resources building,designed by Builders DesignConsultants, is expected toopen in Fall 2018.

CoverAUB’s iconic College Hall clocktower.

Commonabbreviationsfound in TheMainGate (MG):

Abbr.

AUBAmerican University of Beirut

AUBMCAmerican University of Beirut Medical Center

CCECSCenter for CivicEngagement andCommunity Service

FAFSFaculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences

FASFaculty of Artsand Sciences

FEAFaculty of Engineeringand Architecture

FHSFaculty of Health Sciences

FMFaculty of Medicine

HSONRafic Hariri School of Nursing

IFIIssam Fares Institute for Public Policy andInternational Affairs

LAULebanese AmericanUniversity

OSBSuliman S. Olayan School of Business

REPRegional External Programs

SPCSyrian Protestant College

WAAAUBWorldwide Alumni Association of AUB

www.fsc.org

The pages of The MainGate are printed on 100 percent postconsumer fiber paper and the cover is 30 percent. It is printed using web offset process with attention to clean-air operations. Lane Press gets 98 percent of its electricity from sources other than greenhousegas-producing carbon fuel. Inks are bio-derived and low in volatile organic compounds.

Please recycle this magazine. If you prefer to subscribe to the on-line version of The MainGate, please email [email protected]

Executive EditorMartin Asser

Responsible DirectorNabil Dajani

Managing EditorSally Kaya Najjar

Features EditorEric Eyges

Alumni EditorBarbara Rosica

Contributing WriterRami George Khouri

CopyeditorSierra Prasada

Art Direction and DesignCommunication Design SALwww.cd-sal.com

PhotographyHasan NisrJean Pierre TarabayUniversity Libraries, Archives and Special Collections

American University of BeirutOffice of CommunicationsPO Box 11–0236Riad El Solh 1107 2020Beirut, LebanonTel: 961-1-353228

New York Office3 Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, 8th Floor New York, NY 10017–2303Tel: [email protected]/maingate

PrintingLane Press

A Breakthrough Powered by Compassion

AUB Trustee Huda Zoghbi (BS ’76) is arecipient of this year’s BreakthroughPrize, a Silicon Valley-inspired awardthat recognizes achievement in lifesciences, fundamental physics, andmathematics. A professor at BaylorCollege of Medicine and the foundingdirector of the Jan and Dan DuncanNeurological Research Institute atTexas Children's Hospital, Zoghbi haslong been recognized as a sciencesuperstar. Her discovery of the geneticcause of Rett Syndrome and herongoing research into rare braindisorders hold promise for unlockingthe mysteries of autism and Alzheimer’sdisease. As a resident pediatrician inthe 1980s, Zoghbi was frustrated by thedearth of medical knowledge as to howbest to treat children who hadinexplicably lost mobility and speech.She decided to switch paths andbecome a geneticist because, she says,“I was heartbroken that I had to tellparents nothing could be done abouttheir child’s disease.” When colleaguestried to dissuade her from pursuingresearch into rare diseases on thegrounds that such efforts are routinelyunderfunded, Zoghbi put her faith incompassion. She went on to identify the genes responsible for two rareneurological disorders and vows “not toretire until I find a treatment for any ofthe diseases that I work on.”

Google cofounder Sergey Brinpresented Zoghbi with “the richestaward in science” at a red carpet eventin Silicon Valley last December. He

commented: “As a Russian emigrant, itgives me great pleasure to give thisaward to a Lebanese emigrant.” Zoghbiis a Howard Hughes Medical Instituteinvestigator and a member of theInstitute of Medicine, the NationalAcademy of Sciences, and the AmericanAssociation for the Advancement ofScience. Recent awards includeCanada’s Gairdner International Award,the Shaw prize, the first Nemmers Prizefor Medicine, and the Jessie StevensonKovalenko Medal, awarded every threeyears by the US National Academy ofSciences. “You could give me all themoney in the world to do another joband I wouldn’t do it,” Zoghbi told TheGuardian. “I am working on somethingthat will help people, and that rewardis with you every day.”

“Just as we are not surprised that Dr.Zoghbi’s prominence is continually

validated by the world’s most covetedprizes in science, so too are we not

surprised that she hasn’t sought to useher winnings for personal enrichment butrather has given every penny back to

educate and inspire other transformativescientists. We are particularly grateful tobe able to announce the four-year Hudaand William Zoghbi Scholarship in

Science and Medicine, which we will beable to initiate with the interest from her

latest most generous gift.” President Fadlo Khuri

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8Light Up a Village Students bring renewable energy to a remote village

10Published & ProducedAn acclaimed production of King Lear in Lebanese Arabic; Mimesis,Expression, Construction at the AUB Art Galleries; “choR inteR kultuR,” anAUB Choir collaboration with the Swiss Youth Chorus

Presidential Symposium The immeasurable rewards of an education in the humanities Architect and activist Mona El Hallak heads the Neighborhood Initiative

12Student NewsThe winners of FEA’s Social Entrepreneurship Hackathon take a bite out of hungerrelief. OSB grad students ace a prestigious MBA International Case Competition hostedby Concordia University.

14Faculty News Director of the Asfari Institute for Civil Society and Citizenship Dina El Khawagadiscusses the changing contours of citizenship

Inspiration

Face to Face Rabih Shibli rebuilds as head of the Center for Civic Engagement and CommunityService

Student life, the liberal arts, AUB personalities past and present

Face to FaceRabih Shibli Rebuilds

Rabih Shibli was a newly-minted master’sgraduate in urban design when Israeliforces bombarded his village of al-Qulaylahin 2006. On moving back home, throughthe rubble and the unraveling plumbingand electric lines, he wondered how,enmeshed in this chaos and destruction,residents could rebuild to any sort ofstandard.

After a year of intense volunteering, Shiblifounded and directed the non-profitorganization Beit bil Jnoub (House in theSouth). The unprecedented level ofdestruction and the lack of a nationalpost-war reconstruction plan promptedShibli to partner with UN-Habitat for funds,to staff unions of municipalities withengineers who could help a large numberof villages rebuild. An AUB instructor at the time, he brought his students toconstruction sites where they gainedhands-on experience in post-conflictreconstruction.

Through this experience, he found a callingthat would lead to AUB’s Center for CivicEngagement and Community Service(CCECS); he joined CCECS as a consultantin 2008, became associate director ofCommunity Development Projects in 2013,and director in 2015. His first project withthe center, Upgrading Souk Sabra, tackledthe access to basic services in a highlyinformal and haphazardly organizedmarket. “It’s the busiest market in Beirut,open 24/7. Yet the neighborhood does notexist on the blueprints of planningdepartments,” which, Shibli notes, is thecase for much of the region’s slums andshantytowns.

The Syrian refugee crisis has pushedpopulation growth in underserved areas

to new heights and living standards to newlows across Lebanon, a problem Shibli hashelped to address with the GHATA (ghatameans cover in Arabic), a multifunctionalunit he designed in 2013. It takes six hoursto build and three to take down and servesas a testament to what can be done usinglow-cost materials and local resourcescreatively. GHATA won plaudits this pastsummer when Design and Flow, anorganization that promotes impactfuldesign, selected it for exhibition at IndustryCity for NYCxDesign Week 2016. Shiblispoke to students and faculty at ParsonsSchool of Design giving them “abackground on AUB and its work withrefugees, and showed them the sevenGHATA schools we assembled.” The schoolsare currently in use in the Beqa’a Valley.

Through the CCECS, Shibli promotesinnovative solutions to societal challenges,drawing on the expertise of AUB facultyand staff, while simultaneously providingtransformative educational experiences forstudents who participate in and leadcommunity service projects. Some recentstudent projects include developing a wastemanagement plan for North Lebanon,educating refugees in the Beqa’a, providingart therapy for Beirutis, championing roadsafety in Mount Lebanon, and promotingdisability awareness in the South andwomen’s economic empowerment in theChouf.

In the future, Shibli hopes CCECS will have a regional outreach program. Civicengagement, he adds “is an imperative –for reconstruction and reconciliation in a war-torn region, for upgradinginformalities in overpopulated cities, and for empowering the underserved in marginalized landscapes.”

Inspiration

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Presidential Symposium

The University commemorated the launch of the BOLDLY AUB Campaign with an inspiringPresidential Symposium entitled “The Humanities at AUB: Building Better Futures from theInside Out.” In an intimate setting at West Hall’s Bathish auditorium on January 17, twopanels probed the subjects “Inside the Humanities: Leadership and Innovation” and“Beyond the Academy: Learning for Life, Engaging in Life.” Deans, department chairs,professors, distinguished alumni, and remarkable students discussed the importance of thehumanities in developing the creativity, curiosity, and critical reasoning needed by ourcomplex modern societies. At a time when the humanities are under siege in highereducation and students around the world are focused on professional development, thissymposium offered a platform for the testimonies of young people who left the sciences anddiscovered meaning and a deeper understanding of life in the humanities. Their message isclear: technology may provide the structural apparatus that connects us, but the humanitiesreinforce social bonds.

New to the Neighborhood

. . . but hardly new to Beirut, Mona El Hallak (BAR ’90; MArch, Syracuse University) hasbeen appointed to lead AUB’s Neighborhood Initiative following the retirement of foundingdirector Cynthia Myntti. A celebrated architect and conservationist, Mona El Hallak hasworked on numerous preservation campaigns over the past 20 years, most prominently,“Beit Beirut,” the iconic Barakat Building, which, thanks to her efforts, will be turned into amuseum. Awarded the Ordre National du Merite au grade de Chevalier in 2015, El Hallak is apassionate defender of Beirut’s rich cultural heritage; a visionary with her eye on thecomplex challenges posed by a need to balance new development with the preservation ofhistoric urban landscapes; and a welcome addition to our neighborhood.

A literary event held on February 17 celebrated the75th anniversary of the birth of Syrian playwrightSaadallah Wannous, whose private library wasgenerously donated to AUB.

Contestants in the First Street Dabke Competition,March 22.

On April 12, FEA won the annual Big [football]Game. AUB’s new, symbolically significant mascot,The Phoenix, was unveiled at the event.

In mid-April, FAS hosted a conference entitled“Urbicide II: Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Palestine – PostwarReconstruction” to examine the implications of thedestruction of urban space and shed light onpostwar reconstruction and development in theregion.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

What does it take to bring renewableenergy to the world’s most remotecorners? Lots of big, powerfulorganizations, such as the EuropeanUnion, USAID, and the Clinton andGates foundations want to know.Renewable energy figures prominentlyin the UN’s Sustainable DevelopmentGoals. Through its network Students forSustainable Energy for All (SSEA), thenon-profit Global Energy Initiative (GEI)has mobilized students across the worldto establish chapters at their homeuniversities. Students at AUB haveestablished the Middle East’s first SSEAchapter, and their early experiencesoffer tentative cause for optimism.

A little more than a year after the AUBchapter launched, Mariam Dabboussi(BEN ’18) walked up to a club stand ona hot, sunny day in October 2015 andheard the SSEA pitch: Let’s light up avillage with renewable energy. “He wasa great salesman, so I was intrigued,”she says.

When Dabboussi began attending SSEAmeetings, she learned that membersweren’t uniformly behind the idea.Many felt there were too many obstaclesto navigate—municipal politics,fundraising, and technical difficulties—and that they should focus onawareness campaigns and other moreimmediately feasible goals. “I told theclub president we should keep trying,”Dabboussi says. Eventually, she tookownership of the Light Up a Villageproject (LUV) herself, then partneredwith another student, junior computerand communications engineering majorMohammed Fares Al Jajeh (BEN ’17).They met with Computer EngineeringDepartment Chair Sami Karaki, who,

Light Up a Village

For many Beirutis, Jawad’s village Mejdel,home to farmers and

craftsmen, might as wellbelong to another country.Located in the mountains of Akkar, about an hourfrom the district capital

of Tripoli, the houses seizethe eye with their pink,yellow, green, and purplehues, but there’s no clearsense of how many people

live there, whetherhundreds or a few

thousand.

Inspiration

Al Jehjeh says, “verified some of ourideas,” bolstering their decision toexplore solar light poles, equipped withsolar batteries that charge during theday and switch on at night.

Next, they had to track down the lamppoles and figure out how to installthem. They reached out to renewableenergy companies all over Lebanon tobetter understand the market. “OnlySmart Age [a Beirut-based energysolutions company] really seemedwilling to help, not only engage with usas a business but also teach and mentorus,” Dabboussi says. Smart Age taughtthem the market: Chinese solar lightpoles were cheaper, but German oneswere better quality and lasted longer.They also turned to AUB lecturer Dr. Hassan Harajli, who connected theteam with UNDP-CEDRO, a joint venturewith the Central Bank of Lebanonpromoting renewable energy. CEDROhelped to install solar light poles inLebanese towns but generally avoidedthe smaller, far-flung villages.

These villages, the team thought, mightoffer the best candidates for LUV. Tofind out, they’d have to get in touchwith the right government officials.There’s no public phone directory forLebanon’s village mayors; suchinformation is passed through“informal networking,” Dabboussi says.She was able to get some names andnumbers from her father, a constructioncontractor, after listing village namesthat popped up when she googled“poorest villages in Lebanon.”“The first mayor didn’t pick up,”Dabbousi recalls. The second, a man

named Abdulkader Jawad, boomedenthusiastically over the phone. “Hewas very encouraging and supportive of his constituents. He already helpedsome of them with his own money,though he didn’t have much.” The thirdvillage was too close to the Syrianborder.

For many Beirutis, Jawad’s villageMejdel, home to farmers and craftsmen,might as well belong to anothercountry. Located in the mountains ofAkkar, about an hour from the districtcapital of Tripoli, the houses seize theeye with their pink, yellow, green, andpurple hues, but there’s no clear senseof how many people live there, whetherhundreds or a few thousand. “At first,they thought we were foreigners,”Daboussi says, describing their firstvisit. “It wasn’t until we spoke [aboutthe project] that they opened up, andeven then there was still somewariness.” An old sheikh served as theirguide. “He led us to a mosque in asquare that lacked lights and told ushow it wasn’t safe at night.”

Smart Age Operations Manager EliKhoury determined they would need at least 10 solar light poles, given theangles and each pole’s maximum lightradius of 20 meters. That meantspending $27,000 to buy and installthem.

“We researched companies that wereinterested in corporate socialresponsibility and sustainability andcontacted them, around 90 in total,”Dabboussi says. Their first 30 or someetings were “complete disasters.

They said the economy was bad andthey had to be careful.” At least it gavethe pair time to hone their professionalpresentation. They began wearing suitsand built an on-line presence that madeit clear they were operating underAUB’s umbrella. Dabbousi didn’t spenda lot of time worrying about whether itwas all worth it: “I’d eat, sleep, andthink LUV. I didn’t like how peopleassumed we couldn’t do it. I wanted toprove them wrong. It became personal,our baby.”

Their dedication has paid off. Thefundraising team expanded: BankMed,Deloitte, Byblos Bank, and the Chamberof Commerce, Industry, and Agriculturein Tripoli and the North of Lebanon,eventually all signed on. UNDP-CEDROagreed to provide half the light polesthey needed. Those funds, in additionto support from the AUB 150thCommittee and vendor stands atuniversity sporting events, put themover the finishing line.

The funds, of course, “had to gothrough AUB procurement.” Once theywere released, the light poles went up.The mayor expressed his gratitude. “It’schanged the atmosphere in the village,”Jawad says. “There’s light day andnight.” At a commemoration ceremonyheld inside Charles Hostler Auditorium,President Khuri personally praised theendeavor: “This is one of the mostimpressive projects that we have seencarried out in our 150th year.”

“I’d eat, sleep, andthink LUV. I didn’t likehow people assumedwe couldn’t do it. I

wanted to prove themwrong. It became

personal, our baby.”

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Inspiration

Published & ProducedTheater Art Music

A highly successful, pioneering productionof Shakespeare’s King Lear translated intocolloquial Lebanese Arabic was staged at Al Madina Theater in Hamra last December.A collaboration of AUB’s English 244 theaterworkshop and the Faction Theatre, aprofessional London-based theatrecompany, the production was part of AUB’sTheater Initiative, founded to incorporatetheater into the AUB curriculum and thecultural life of the community. Sahar Assafwho codirected the play with RachelValentine-Smith, also played Cordelia, andshared translation credit with Nada Saaband Raffi Feghali. AUB Professor RobertMyers produced the play and co-founded the Theater Initiative with Assaf. Hecommented, “People have told us repeatedlythat especially before the war there was anextraordinary theatrical culture at AUB. We have done our best to help grow thiscommunity and to connect with the widercommunity because this is what AUBhistorically represented.”

At the Rose and Shaheen Saleeby Museum

Exhibit runs through the end of October 2017

The exhibition proposes three categories,Mimesis, Expression and Construction forthe understanding of art. It suggests thatmuch of the art produced between the earlytwentieth century and the present can beseen as having been made according to oneof the these categories. The core of theexhibition consists of paintings drawn fromAUB’s Permanent Collection. The public isinvited to view the art through the prism ofthe three categories.

ThE FIRST LEBANESE LEAR

Roger Assaf as King Lear

MIMESIS, ExPRESSIoN, CoNSTRUCTIoN

The AUB Choir and Choral Society performeda joint concert in Assembly Hall with theSwiss youth chorus “choR inteR kultuR”(RRR for short) on April 24th and 25th. Theprogram “aanilhoub - about love” bydirector/composer Fortunat Frölich featuredmuwashshah singer Rima Khcheich. Frolich’sopus combines traditional Arabic songs withEuropean polyphony and harmony. Hecommented, “On the cultural level, we meeteach other a lot more with curiosity ratherthan prejudice. But when different musicalsystems collide there rises a conflict too…which can lead us to surprising and positivesolutions.”

MUSIC EAST ANd WEST

1. ThE LESSoNS oFLEBANoN: ThE ECoNoMICS oF WAR ANd dEvELoPMENT

The Red Sea: In Search of Lost Space by Alexis Wick, (University of California Press,2016) Because of its strategic location separating Africa and Asia, the Red Sea hasbeen one of the world’s most navigated spaces by those in pursuit of trade,pilgrimage, and conquest. Wick explores how the world and the sea were imagineddifferently before imperial European hegemony. Searching for the lost space ofOttoman sea visions, The Red Sea makes a deep argument about the discipline ofhistory and the historian’s craft.

2. ThE REd SEA:IN SEARCh oFLoST SPACE

3. PRINTINg ARABModERNITy: BooKCULTURE ANd ThEAMERICAN PRESS INNINETEENTh-CENTURyBEIRUT

Making a Difference: Reflecting on the Past, Thinking of the Future by James L. Hecht(CreateSpace, 2016) weaves a poignant personal story into an inspiring narrative ofactivism for societal change and transformation. An astute political observer, Hechthas an impressive record of constructive action with respect to many of society’sthorniest issues, including national security, health care, housing, taxation, civilrights, conflicts in the Middle East, and international aid work.

4. MAKINg A dIFFERENCE:REFLECTINg oN ThE PAST,ThINKINg oF ThE FUTURE

Written Word

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5. ThE ALEPPo CooKBooK

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The Lessons of Lebanon: The Economics of War and Development by Samir Makdisi(I.B. Taurus, 2016 edition) Since 1945, more than two hundred significant intrastateconflicts have erupted in countries that achieved independence from colonial ruleafter World War II, and the case of Lebanon is informative. This book includes anin-depth analysis of Lebanese economic development during the second half of the20th century, placing special emphasis on the civil war (1975-90) and its aftermath.Makdisi assesses the principal phases of national development since the period ofLebanese independence in the 1940s and those conditions necessary for sustainabledevelopment in Lebanon, as well as many other developing countries.

Printing Arab Modernity: Book Culture and The American Press inNineteenth-Century Beirut by Hala Auji (Brill, 2016) presents American Presspublications from the 1800s as important visual and material objects that offerunique insights into an era of changing societal concerns and shifting intellectualattitudes on the part of Ottoman Syria’s Muslim and Christian populations. Thisstudy demonstrates that printed books are worthy of close visual scrutiny and thatprint culture was a significant factor in an emerging Arab modernity.

The Aleppo Cookbook by Marlene Matar (Interlink, 2016) unlocks the secrets of adistinctive cuisine with practical guidance on Middle Eastern cooking techniques aswell as step-by-step instructions in more than 200 irresistible recipes. At a time whenAleppo has become a synonym for despair, Matar’s cookbook offers a crucial meansof safeguarding the city’s culinary heritage for generations to come.

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Inspiration

A food app gobbled up this year’sFaculty of Engineering andArchitecture-sponsored SocialEntrepreneurship Hackathon. AUBstudents Joseph Matar (BA ’18), TonyTohme (BA ’18), Elie Lebbos (BA ’18),Fred Gebrael (BA ’18), and JohnnyToumieh (BA ’18) formed the team, ThePacifiers, and created Foodbite, an appmeant to encourage anonymous fooddonations.

“We were originally thinking of makinga LinkedIn for Syrian immigrants, but it turns out two other teams had thatidea. So I thought, let’s tackle a simpleproblem—why not hunger?” Matar says.

To make sure their idea was viable, the team surveyed more than 100 AUBstudents.“What would you be mostlylikely to donate?” they asked. Mostanswered food. “Would you be willingto download an app to facilitatedonation?” More than two-thirds saidthey would.

Matar took inspiration from an articlehe saw on Facebook about an Italianpractice called “pending coffee,”whereby a patron pays for a futurecustomer’s coffee. “Why not a pendingsandwich?” he says.

During the three-day event, the teamdrafted a business plan, logos, andsample ads as part of their pitch forFoodbite, then they went on to win the $1,000 grand prize.

They’re considering moving forwardwith development while remainingmindful of the inherent challenges.“Some people don’t know how to useapps well,” Gebrael says. “And thenthere’s the issue of stores trying tocheat by charging for a meal twice but providing it once.”

A rewards system might encourageparticipation, Matar says, “especially if it confers some kind of status, VIPaccess at movies, airports, or theaters.”

The Center for Research and Innovation(CRInn) organized the first “AUBBootcamp,” which brings togetheraspiring students and alumnientrepreneurs to create idea-stage, tech-based startups. Bootcamp is anintensive startup training program builton global best practices that convenesdesigners, developers, and businesspeople. Altcity, a social venture basedin Beirut, is providing support andresources to innovative, creative, andhigh impact entrepreneurial initiatives,including AUB Bootcamp.

The 24 teams/startups accepted to the bootcamp received six weeks oftraining, coaching, and mentoring at AUB as they worked to transformtheir ideas into potentially scalablebusinesses. At the final judging event,held on Thursday, December 22,startups pitched their businesses in front of a jury of establishedentrepreneurs and AUB faculty. Thefirst-place winner was the startup FindA Nurse, an on-demand home nursingmobile application led by HusseinSleiman. Trusted Ability, a startup ledby Najwa Grace Tohme, claimedsecond-place with a plan to offer hourlycare-giving services to individuals withspecial needs or disabilities.

Foodbite Fights Hunger AUBBootcamp

Student News

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A team of graduate students from theSuliman S. Olayan School of Business(OSB) reached the semifinals and won top honors at the 36th MBAInternational Case Competition (ICC),the world’s oldest and most prestigiouscompetition of its kind, hosted by theJohn Molson School of Business,Concordia University, Canada.

Thirty-six top business schools from 18 countries competed in the six-dayevent. Teams had three hours (with no access to the Internet) to prepare aPowerPoint presentation that wouldimpress a panel of judges.

Before they boarded the plane toMontreal, students Narine Bolghourjian(MBA ’18), Souraya Eid (MBA ’17), AsiyaIskakova (MBA ’17), and MatthewTrotter (MBA ’17) ran the gauntlet laiddown by management and strategyinstructor Hagop Panossian. “Weprepared for four or five hours everySaturday for six months during the run-up,” Iskakova says.

Their preparation paid off. The teamwent undefeated through the primaryround, where they waded into theIndian dairy industry, helping toformulate a strategy that would allow a small producer to compete againstlarger firms. “When we got there, theadrenaline kicked in,” Bolghourjiansays. “It’s amazing how much betterpeople work under pressure.”

One of their successful presentationsaddressed a real problem facing thefirm WeWork as it seeks applicationsbeyond the work arena for itscommunity-building platform. “Weproposed a program for retirees,WeCare, that helps connect youngpeople with retirees.” WeWork isconsidering putting the students’proposal to work.

Along with reaching the semifinals, the team received the Richard OutcaultTeam Spirit Award and DivisionalLeader Award. “It was quiteexhilarating to see them bring their

performance up to international andglobal levels,” Panossian says.

OSB Dean Steve Harvey put thecompetition in context: “Casecompetitions are a central part of the new business school culture that allows schools to both comparethemselves in practice to the world’sbest and brightest and to provideopportunity for extraordinary studentdevelopment and experientiallearning.” Harvey has stressed theimportance of building a strongbusiness case competition program at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.

“We want to encourage students toparticipate,” Bolghourjian says. “It was more valuable than any othercourse I’ve taken at AUB.”

OSB Aces 36th MBA International Case Competition

“I’m from a generation that cherishedthe welfare state, the one that Nasserarticulated and that was copied bymany Arab states. Free education, freeaccess to healthcare, employment,subsidized basic goods, all in exchangefor political submission. Young people,however, see this state as reproducinginequality, not as emancipating. Freeaccess to education isn’t as important as quality education to social mobility.”

Thus, Dina El Khawaga summarizes theconditions that led to the events of theArab Spring, which in turn triggered theestablishment of the Asfari Institute forCivil Society and Citizenship, the AUBinstitute she’s directed since September2016. El Khawaga comes to theUniversity after long experiencedeveloping programs at Cairo

University and the Ford and OpenSociety Foundations, programs that aremeant to educate and empower Arabcitizens to “renegotiate their socialcontract with the state.”

“Citizenship itself is something that isconstantly being negotiated,” she says.“The whole region needs to figure outwhat we mean by social justice andequal opportunity.” She wants theAsfari Institute to push Arab citizenry to relentlessly engage with notions ofcitizenship and to “equip themselveswith tools to advocate for theircitizenship and hold their leadersaccountable.”

To that end, she’s undertaken a three-pronged strategy for the Institute, thefirst component of which involveseducation. “We’re developing amaster’s program in social activism, a first in the region.” The program will instruct students in concepts ofcitizenship, rooting current conceptionsin broader historical and globalcontexts.

The second component involvespromoting research and partnerships.“We’re partnering with universities

across the region and in the UnitedStates to promote collaborative researcharound three areas: Civil society lawand governance; citizenship andcontentious politics; constituency andthe market as potential allies for civilsociety’s action.”

Finally, she wants the Institute itself to be a vehicle for direct action.“Defeatism pervades the region,” shesays. “I want to fight it.” She’s doingthat first by highlighting examples ofsuccessful activism in the Middle East.“We just interviewed trainers at a campin the Chouf who are inspiring youth tobe civically active and engaged.” Eachmonth she plans to document tangibleinstances of social change and postabout them on a forthcoming blog.

“We have to provide a safe space foractivists and civil society leaders whofeel harassed in Arab countries.” ElKhawaga says that this space can be the source for a “new political class . . .that will be able to think clearly aboutdemocracy, rule of law, andaccountability.”

New Generation, New Social Contract

Inspiration

By the Books

SUMMARy oF CoURSE

This is a core course of the MA in IslamicStudies that is offered at the Center for Araband Middle Eastern Studies at AUB. The courseexamines the political, social, and religiousinstitutions that shaped the Islamiccivilizations while also focusing on theintellectual, scientific, artistic, and scholarlytraditions that characterized the Muslim world from the founding of Islam onwards.Beginning with the geographical, cultural andhistorical context of the rise of Islam, the life of the Prophet, and the Qur’an, the course also covers various dynastic epochs up to themodern era, with a special emphasis placed ontextual primary sources and complementarysecondary literature.

SEMINAR SESSIoNS

The course is structured as a graduateinteractive and research-led seminar with asmall study group. It mainly consists of weeklydiscussions on specialized readings that relateto Islamicate intellectual history, religioustraditions, dynastic epochs, material culture,and societal-political movements. Selectsessions feature guest faculty members fromvarious departments in the humanities andsocial and political sciences at AUB, who share their expertise in their specialist areas of research around themes addressed in thecourse. The graduate students engage indiscussions, deliver seminar presentations,and submit research essays and papers.

BIo

Nader El-Bizri is a professor of philosophy and civilization studies. He also serves as thecoordinator of Islamic Studies (Center for Araband Middle Eastern Studies), the director of theCivilization Studies Program, and the director ofthe Anis Makdisi Program in Literature. He is anexpert in Arabic sciences and philosophy,architectural humanities, and phenomenology.Prior to joining AUB he taught at the Universityof Cambridge, the University of Nottingham, and the University of Lincoln; he was a seniorresearcher at the Centre National de laRecherche Scientifique in Paris and the Institute of Ismaili Studies in London.

Course: ISLM 302 The Islamic Civilizations

By the Nu bers

Fund/Project

New Buildings RenovationsCapital Total

Current Expenditure

Endowment

Endowed Academic Programs;Professorships; and FellowshipsEndowed Financial AidEndowments Other RestrictedTotal Endowment

grand Total

goal

$47,000,000

$14,000,000

$61,000,000

$10,000,000

$54,000,000

$15,000,000

$69,000,000

$140,000,000

Achieved

$37,538,195

$14,571,594.69

$52,109,790.29

$37,548,531.20

$54,977,284.98

$23,429,232.92

$2,997,374.79

$81,403,892.69

$171,062,214.18

% of goal

79.9

104.1

85.4

375.5

101.8

156.2

118

122.2

A Look Back at the Campaign for Excellence(October 2002 - December 2007)With the recent launch of the BOLDLY AUB Campaign, The MainGate reports back on thenumbers from the last campaign: how much the University raised and where the funds went.

1514

At AUB’s Fine Arts studios, students train inpainting, sculpture, and ceramics, amongother techniques. They render objects inacrylic, oils, and watercolor on different typesof canvases and under different lighting,develop their intuition for how lighting andmedium convey mood and experience. Herewe see a painting class in progress. 1. Assistant Professor of Fine Art and Art

History Daniele Genadry looks at a student’s painting of a sheep’s head.

2. Jar of acrylic paint on a glass table.

3. Students in Drawing and Painting III classconsider the sheep’s head from differentangles.

4. The sheep’s head, which is kept in coldstorage between sessions; the hair isremoved for a clearer observation of thefacial structures.

5. Original louvers for natural light datingback to 1960s construction of Nicely Hall.

6. Hand crank for the louvers still inoperation.

7. Vertical storage for drying canvasses.

8. Horizontal storage for works on paper.9. Glass palette tables on wheels for mixing

paint and easy movement.10. Ventilation: the studio is nevertheless not

ventilated sufficiently for oil paints,because of toxic vapors in solvents.

11. Still life table with bottles, waiting for nextpainting session.

12. Paper draped over the light source to avoidstraining art students’ eyes.

Tag Tour

Inspiration 16

3

3

6

9

5

12

10

114

1

8

7

2

22

R+D Mariam Itani (ME ’14, expected PhD ’18) is finding a better way for workersto cool off

19Quiz Faculty Crests and Coats of Arms

Under Discussion The consequences of climate change denial21

TAMAM Education reform: laying the foundation for better schools in Arab countries

20

IFI Infographic The roads (and roadblocks) to Higher Education for Syrian Refugees18

DiscoveriesResearch, the arts, and current events

Estimated Syrian refugees enrolled in tertiary education in 4 countries in the MENA region

Academic requirements

Residency requirements

Iraq (1%)Jordan (5%)

Lebanon (6%)Turkey (2%)

Residency is required.

The Lebanesesecondary schoolcertificate(Baccalaureate) orequivalent, andcertified copy oforiginal high schooldiploma from Ministryof Education in Syria.











Access To TertiaryEducation

411,850

For Syrian refugees in Iraq, Jordan,Lebanon and Turkey

Syrian refugees aged 18-24 in 4 hostcountries in the MENA region

Recommendations• Implementing special residency program targeted atstudents admitted to local tertiary education institutions

• Introducing a recognized qulifications framework to enableease of access to school records and proof of educationallevel

• Enrolling Syrian refugee students in degree programs thatallow them to rebuild Syria once the situation normalizes

• Providing international community support to localgovernments in the creation of temporary job arragements to benefit local economies

• Coordinating processes among local ministries and amongscholarship providers and international organizatons

Challenges • Acquiring valid residency• Acessing accurate information on universityadmission and residency requirements

• Acquiring authenticated academicdocumentation from Syria

• Securing necessary financial support (tuitionfees and living expenses)

• Engaging in learning within the context of anon-Arab language of instruction

Application forresidency within 2months of admissionis required.

Turkish Ministry ofEducation ratifiedequivalency of thestudent’s high schooldiploma from Syria or,high schoolequivalency testadministered byMinistry of Education.

Estimated Syrian refugeesenrolled in tertiary education

in 4 countries in the MENA region (in %)

Only a passport or agovernment-issued IDis required.

Original high school diplomaauthenticated bySyrian Embassy inJordan.

Residency is required.

High school cartificateauthenticated byMinistry of educationin Iraq.






#AUB4Refugees
























































5% 6%

2% 1%

Discoveries

1918

Quiz

Match ’em up!Match Shield to Faculty, year Founded, and Founding dean

KEy: 1. C-J-Q, 2. E-I-M, 3. B-K-P, 4. A-L-o, 5. d-g-N, 6. F h R(FM got its first dean in 1913)

A Suliman S. Olayan School ofBusiness (OSB)

B Faculty of Health Sciences (FHS)

C Faculty of Agricultural and FoodSciences (FAFS)

D Faculty of Arts and Sciences(FAS)

E Faculty of Engineering andArchitecture (FEA)

F Faculty of Medicine (FM)

G 1866

H 1867

I 1951

J 1952

K 1954

L 2000

M Ken Weidner

N Robert Haldane West

O George Najjar

P Leland Earle Powers

Q Samuel W. Edgecombe

R Harry G. Dorman

1. 2. 3.

4. 5. 6.

For more information, consult the source: Lead, Innovate, Serve: A Visual History of theAmerican University of Beirut’s First OneHundred and Fifty Years (AUB Press, 2016)

R+DMariam Itani

(ME ’14, expected PhD ’18), Chemical

Engineering

Research focus:I’m currently developing cooling vestsfor outdoor workers in hot climates.These vests use a phase-changematerial—passing from solid to liquid—to cool the body, as the temperatures ofthe body’s core and the outside climateincrease. The material is a mixture ofsalt hydrate and some additives andcomes in packets from an outsidemanufacturer, with the temperature ofthe phase change ranging in relation tothe concentration of salt hydrate.

I place these packets into vest pocketsand ask human subjects to wear themduring 30-minute periods of moderatelystrenuous stationary cycling. I thenmeasure skin temperature, coretemperature, and pre- and post-exercisebody weight shifts from water loss, andcompare the results from the vest-wearing group to a non-vest-wearingcontrol. I also consider subjects’ bodycomposition and the weight of the vest,which we are in the process of adjustingwith an eye towards optimization.

Ultimately, I’m trying to develop amodel that will predict humanphysiological responses to wearing thevest under different conditions. QatarNational Research Fund is funding myresearch, and my advisers include twoAUB professors. One Qatar Universityprofessor and one Kuwait Universityprofessor are also involved in what weexpect will be a three-year project. Weare currently in the second year.

Because we’re testing the vests onhuman subjects we had to first getapproval from AUB’s InstitutionalReview Board (IRB). After we got IRBapproval, we put posters aroundcampus and recruited volunteers.

Biggest discovery to date:I’ve found that wearing the vest leads to decreases in skin and coretemperatures, improves productivity in hot climates, and allows for longerperiods of work in such climates.

Implications for research:Large numbers of laborers work all dayin the hot sun in the Middle East, Gulf,and North Africa. These vests couldhelp reduce incidence of heatexhaustion and heat stroke and allowthese laborers to work in greatercomfort.

how I got here:I first earned a mechanical engineeringdegree from Beirut Arab University.Then I applied to AUB for a master’s inengineering, and I’m now working onmy PhD.

What I’ll remember most about AUB:I’ll remember my colleagues, the longdays, the work we’ve done together.AUB has become a second home to me.

Best moment of my day:There are two: when I get good resultsand when I gather with my friends forlunch and we share stories.

Discoveries

2120

Last year, global warming reachedrecord highs for the third consecutiveyear, according to NASA and the UnitedStates’s National Oceanic andAtmospheric Administration. In light ofthe facts, the Trump administration’sskepticism about climate changescience has implications for Lebanon.

First, there’s the possibility ofrestrictions on aid money. “USAIDindirectly supports research into watersecurity here in Lebanon through asubcontract with the Issam FaresInstitute for Public Policy andInternational Affairs [IFI] ,” says NadimFarajalla, director of IFI’s ClimateChange and Environment Program. Viaa private firm, the money passes fromUSAID to IFI researchers who assesswater quality and quantity in each ofLebanon’s four water districts.

Researchers are concerned that theTrump administration could move toblock such spending, in which caseLebanon would have to seek othersources of funding.

Even more worrying, the USadministration’s tone may have a morefar-reaching impact on the globalpolitical appetite for climate changework. “Though the US has never beenseen as a leader on climate change, youwant them on your side,” Farajalla says.“If they buy into something, it’s thatmuch easier to convince skeptics.”

No matter the significance of thesechallenges, Farajalla remains hopeful inlight of the Paris Accords. “The beautyof it is that everyone contributedvoluntarily,” he says. The keycomponents are the nationally

determined contributions (NDCs) set by197 parties to the convention, so farratified by 127 of them, which, comingfrom the parties themselves, representeach country’s individual initiative.“They have decided to reduce whateveramounts of carbon that they could,”Farajalla adds. “This is where some ofthe hope lies.”

In 2010, Farajalla and the IFI teamprovided the Lebanese governmentwith the National Economic,Environment and Development Study(NEEDS), which called for an 18 percentreduction in greenhouse gases and anequivalent rise in renewable energy’sshare of Lebanon’s total output andmade clear climate change’s impact on the agricultural sector.

The NDCs, which Lebanon submitted to the United Nations FrameworkConvention on Climate Change(UNFCCC) on September 2015, set“conditional” and “unconditional”targets, the former to be met with help, the latter to be met regardless.Unconditional targets for Lebanoninclude greenhouse gas emissionreductions of 15 percent, a rise inrenewable power generation’s portionof the mix to 15 percent, and a 3 percentreduction in overall power demand, allby 2030.

Three AUB alumni at the Ministry ofEnvironment—Vahakn Kabakian (’00),Lea Kai (‘06), and Yara Daou (’12)—arehelping Lebanon meet its NDC targets.

In the future, IFI hopes to secure fundsto conduct a sector-by-sector study ofthe impact of climate change thatMinistry officials could rely on to helpLebanon transition to a greenereconomy.

Changes in Climate Change

Under Discussion

GrassrootsEducationReform

Starting in 2007, AUB educational reform projectTAMAM (an acronym of an Arabic phrasemeaning “school-based reform”) has supportedinitiatives for sustainable school improvement in46 schools and eight Arab countries, serving morethan 18,000 students. The program, led byAssociate Professor of Educational LeadershipRima Karami Akkary and Professor of ScienceEducation Saouma Boujaoude, adopts anapproach to reform that breaks the current trendin Arab countries of “top down” reform andpromotes a sustainable grassroots approach toeducation reform. This is made possible through apartnership between policy makers, universityresearchers and practitioners at the school level.

The ultimate goal of TAMAM is to buildeducational institutions full of reflectivepractitioners, who have the capacity tocollaboratively initiate and plan school-basedreform that addresses the needs of teachers andstudents.

TAMAM empowers ground-level practitioners toimprove student experiences and outcomes. Thefocus isn’t so much on prescribing a particularreform measure as on “empowering teachers toreform as they see fit,” Karami-Akkary says. Shehas come to appreciate “the extent to whichteachers are lacking critical skills related toplanning, shared leadership, idea generation, and documentation. We’re an oral culture.Note-taking is not done much in the Arab world.”

TAMAM launched its capacity building model atprivate, high-achieving schools in Lebanon,Jordan and the kingdom of Saudi Arabia. At HaririHigh School II, a private school in in ZokakAl-Blat, the TAMAM project steering team (PST)coached academic coordinator Katia Dabaghi and a lead team of teachers to initiate and leadcurriculum reform for the school’s preschoolers.“We felt we needed something to approacheducation more holistically and to raise the wholechild while focusing on cognitive skills as well asemphasizing social and artistic skills,” Dabaghisays.

The PST guided the school lead team in inquiringabout current practices, determining the need for reform, implementing it, and evaluating itsimpact. Dabaghi noted that “the PST guided uswhile we led an improvement initiative that

included evidence gathering to support thedecision making process.” The team at Hariridistributed a questionnaire to parents andteachers, both of whom felt “cognitive skills, like math, were over-emphasized, while, social,artistic skills were under-emphasized. “TAMAMdidn’t spoon feed us,” Dabaghi says. “They taughtus to assess the problem.”

As a result, the curriculum at the preschooldepartment shifted away from its cognition-heavytoddler program to one that teaches art, drama,and penmanship, and encourages children tolearn while playing and discovering. They openeda kitchen made of recycled materials wherestudents watch how water boils and freezes andplay at cooking.

A few miles down the road, at the LebaneseInternational School, science coordinator Rayan Katergi along with a lead team of schoolcoordinators worked with TAMAM to develop asupervision program that improves relationsbetween teachers and coordinators. The processbegan again with questions. “The TAMAM PSTcoached us to identify our need, set our goals and objectives and plan for implementing ourintervention,” Katergi says. The school lead teamgathered data through various data collectiontools including focus groups. The initiativefiltered into a “faculty handbook” that nowguides teacher and coordinator roles. “We wroteit. We absorbed it, and now, so do our new hires.”

“The Ministry of Education,” Karami-Akkary says, “sees teachers as cogs, not decision-makers.Their decrees often fail to take into account theground-level realities of Lebanon’s schools.” Shecites the DIRASTI program as an example: “It wasall about introducing technology. They wantedadministrators to email and teachers to use theopen-source learning platform Moodle. They gavethem funds to buy computers. But some of theseschools barely had space for students, let aloneequipment. I saw equipment for an entire sciencelab just sitting in boxes.”

TAMAM continues to expand its reach. Theproject organizers are in talks to begin work at a private school in Sudan and has recentlypartnered with a private university in Sudan andthe Omani Ministry of Education just grantedTAMAM permission to operate in three publicschools in Muscat.

March With Us Towards a Solar Future

22 Discoveries

Dr. Deborah Mukherji, a passion for science, innovation, and peopleleads to oncology 26Check up

Keeping the Bar High AUBMC’s re-accreditation by Joint Commission International 28

24AUBMC News

The hidden health risks of the hookah; training ICU healthcare professionalsfrom the West Bank; AUBMC’s growing Developmental Care and EarlyIntervention Program for Premature Babies; “Movember, a men’s healthawareness campaign that finds fun ways to raise awareness about serioussubjects; The Brave Heart Fund ensures that refugee children with congenitalheart disease get treatment

30Sahtein Hania Saoud (BS ’79) shares a family recipe for Marshousheh

WellnessAUBMC 2020, health, and medicine

Wellness

AUBMC is training healthcareprofessionals from the West Bankthrough the Medical Welfare Trust Fund (MWTF). Coordinating with thePalestinian Authority’s Ministry ofHealth, AUBMC hopes to enhance thePalestinian health care system’s capacityto handle a large and diverse patientload.

A recent workshop, Critical andEmergency Nursing Care, focused ontraining nursing staff working in criticalcare and emergency units. The aim is toguide Palestinian nurses toward theholistic, patient-centric approach

practiced at AUB. The training coversinfection control, job descriptions,classifying patients’ diseases, and usingevidence-based practices in caring forcritically ill patients.

ICU Head Nurse at Bethlehem ArabSociety for Rehabilitation Bahaa Harbstated, “we have come to this workshopto learn how to develop newdepartments and implement all thestrategies followed at AUBMC.”

AUBMC has trained over 270 West Banknurses and healthcare professionals sofar.

AUBMC holds its 16th Medical Welfare Trust Fund

Workshop for Palestinian Nurses

AUBMC News

Some people think of smoking hookah orwater pipe as risk-free, yet it can lead tothe same serious health conditions thatafflict smokers of cigarettes, cigars, andpipes. According to the World HealthOrganization (WHO): “a hookah smokingsession may expose the smoker to moresmoke over a longer period of time thanoccurs when smoking a cigarette. Also,owing to the method of smoking—including frequency of puffing, depth ofinhalation, and length of the smokingsession—hookah smokers may absorb

higher concentrations of the same toxinsfound in cigarette smoke.”

In light of hookah’s popularity amonguniversity students, AUBMC haslaunched a campaign on social mediaplatforms to raise awareness of the waterpipe’s harmful effects. The press teamproduced a striking Arabic video forFacebook showing that one water pipe isthe equivalent of 100 cigarettes. It wentviral and was seen by hundreds ofthousands of viewers in the region.

AUBMC Raises Awareness on Risks of Smoking hookah

2524

In line with the global men’s healthawareness campaign “Movember,” theNaef K. Basile Cancer Institute at AUBMCand the Lebanese Chapter of the HarleyOwners Group organized Beards onWheels this past November. DuringMovember, participants shave theirbeards but grow mustaches for themonth, to promote awareness of men’shealth risks, such as prostate cancer,testicular cancer, and suicide.

Clinical Surgery Professor MohamadBulbul presented on prostate cancer atthe event. Those attending also had thechance to take in a professional dabkeshow, and a prize was awarded for themost creative mustache. Ladies of HarleyOfficer Rania Hashash said, “I remembera time when people were afraid of evenmentioning the word cancer. Thanks toawareness campaigns, people now aremore mindful of such diseases. Everyfamily should encourage its men toscreen before it’s too late.”

The Naef K. Basile Cancer Institute Raises Awareness on

Men’s health through “Beards on Wheels” Event

More than 10 percent of babies are bornprematurely, and more than 70 percentof those are admitted to a neonatalintensive care unit (NICU). They enterthe NICU at perhaps the most vulnerablestage of their entire lives. How they’retreated during their stay in the uniteffects incidence of future disability.

To make sure they’re treated properly,the Developmental Care and EarlyIntervention Program (DCEIP) at AUBMCprovides a wide range of services fromneonatologists, psychologists, NICUnurses, social workers, and various kinds

of therapists (physical, feeding,psychomotor, and occupational).

A certified trainer trained AUBMC staff inimplementing DCEIP in June 2014. Theprogram grew subsequently as stafftrained other staff. The DCEIP teamrecently published a study aboutsensorimotor stimulation and feeding ofpreterm infants, which concluded thatproviding any type of sensorimotortherapy helps preterm infants under 33weeks old reach full oral feeding fasterand that structured guidelines may helpoptimize this effect.

The developmental Care and Early Intervention Program

for Premature Babies at AUBMC

Once every week, Dr. Issam El Rassioperates on poor Syrian and Palestinianrefugees. “AUBMC is a non-profitorganization that is primarily concernedwith improving the wellbeing of thepeople in the Middle East by enhancingtheir lives,” El Rassi says. “We can’tstand and watch children die of heartdisease while we can help. With theassistance of Brave Heart Fund, we makesure that children with cardiac diseaseare given a better chance at liferegardless of financial cost.”

The Brave Heart Fund is a charitablefundraising initiative, established inNovember 2003, at the Children’s HeartCenter at AUBMC. The fund helps coverthe medical and/or surgical expenses forunderprivileged children suffering fromCongenital Heart Disease.

AUBMC doctor Saves the hearts of Syrian Children

Q. What’s your specialization? A. I specialize in GU (genitourinary)

and GI (gastrointestinal) oncology.GU oncology includes cancers of thebladder, kidneys, testes, andprostate; GI oncology concernscancers of the internal organs.

Q. Tell us about your path tooncology, and to AUBMC from the UK.

A. They say the medical specialtychooses the person. I’ve always had alove for science and innovation andan interest in people. We see peopleat a very difficult time in their lives.We see the best in people in theirfamilies. In Lebanon, there tends tobe more family support, which isnice; no one comes to chemotherapyon their own, which is quite commonin the UK.

I did my training in oncology atGuy’s Hospital and the RoyalMarsden. I was attracted to thecutting edge science involved inoncology. We really understand moreof the biology of cancer, and it’sfascinating.

Check Up:

Dr. DeborahMukherjiAssistant

Professor ofClinical Medicine,

MedicalOncologist, Naef K.

Basile CancerInstitute (NKBCI)

Wellness

As far as how I ended up in Lebanon, myhusband is Lebanese and a surgeon. I methim in London. Before I came to AUB, I wasdoing research in cancer drugdevelopment. Now, I teach the medicalstudents and junior doctors. We teach thehematology module and research ethics.AUB has signed the Federalwide Assurance[regarding research on human subjects];we follow the same ethics standards as USinstitutions.

Q. how do cancer rates in Lebanon and theUnited States compare?

A. Cancer incidence in Lebanon is fairlysimilar to that in the United States.Actually, in Lebanon, all cancers haveslightly lower incidence, according toofficial figures. Whether that’s reality orthe way we report it, I’m not sure. There isa central reporting system here; hospitalsreport cancer diagnoses to the Ministry ofHealth, but I’m not sure whether or notcases are documented as rigorously as theyare in the United States.

Q. What are your research interests? A. One of my main research interests is

prostate cancer. It’s the commonest canceramong Lebanese men. I’m looking atprostate cancer incidence in thispopulation and comparing it with otherpopulations in the region. Currently, I’mcollecting tissue, blood, and urine samplesfrom patients, looking at the types ofprostate cancer we see in our population tomeasure the disease burden—how muchcancer is in the body—with non-invasivetests.

Cancer is so many different diseases withone name. One approach that’s gotinteresting results: Immunotherapy is thebig hope, where we use our own immunesystem to fight cancer cells in the body. Inthis case, we stimulate the immune systemto find cancer cells it might not otherwisefind. This treatment has been approved fordifferent types of cancers.

However, responses to this treatment vary,and it’s extremely expensive, though oftencovered by insurance. AUBMC offers thistreatment for cancer patients.

Q. have there been any prostate cancerawareness campaigns in Lebanonrecently?

A. Yes. Lebanese healthcare professionalshave launched awareness campaigns andencouraged participation in Movember (anannual event involving the growing ofmoustaches during the month of Novemberto raise awareness of men's health issues).And AUBMC recently co-sponsored anevent with Harley Davidson, also to raiseawareness; there was dabke dancing andmusic. It was quite nice.

Q. do you recommend screening forprostate cancer?

A. Screening is recommended when earlydetection can save lives. For breast cancerthis is definitely the case, and for coloncancer as well. Prostate cancer is moredifficult to deal with.

The US Preventative Task Force recentlyupdated their guidelines and suggest that

men between 55 and 69 make an individualdecision about PSA screening with theirdoctor, it is particularly important for menwith a family history of prostate cancer.PSA screening is not recommended afterthe age of 70.

Q. What about treatment? Why do somecancers respond better to treatment thanothers?

A. The treatment of cancers depends on thestage of diagnosis. Cancer is a veryheterogeneous thing. We tend to classifycancers at site of origin. Breast cancers are generally less aggressive and moreresponsive to treatments. Pancreaticcancers tend to be detected late and areaggressive. Ultimately, it’s the biology ofthe disease that dictates how it responds to treatment.

One of the new buzzwords in medicine is precision, precision medicine. President Obama launched a precision medicine initiative, which takes into account individual differences in people’s genes, environments, and lifestyles. At the MiddleEast Medical Assembly conference, it was abig topic. It’s really the future. It’s already being implemented in cancer treatment, where doctors are using knowledge about the tumor to apply targeted therapies.

For example, lung cancer tumors are beingtested for certain genetic mutations, which, if present, make treatment options using certain medications more effective. Some can be tablet treatments rather than standard chemotherapy.

Q. What about insurance? What’s covered?A. The National Social Security Fund covers

cancer treatment, but not screenings. Boththe NSSF and the ministry of health covercancer treatments. At AUB, we see askewed population. Most have privateinsurance or are self-payers. In oncology,about a quarter of our patients come fromabroad [such as from] Iraq or Syria.

“Cancer incidence inLebanon is fairly

similar to that in theUnited States. Actually,in Lebanon, all cancershave slightly lower

incidence, according toofficial figures. Whetherthat’s reality or the waywe report it, I’m not

sure.”

2726 27

It is often said that AUBMC is a world-class medicalcenter. A bold claim for sure, but one that getstested every three years by the Joint CommissionInternational (JCI), the global gold standard forhospital accreditation. JCI performs hospital-wideaccreditations, and holds academic centers likeAUBMC to more rigorous standards than regularhospitals.

This past April five JCI auditors, who arethemselves healthcare professionals, descended onAUBMC for five days to put everything from staff,policies and procedures, and physical environmentunder the microscope.

“Out of 1,300 criteria, which cover everything from the nitty gritty details to governance andleadership, we fully met all but 14,” says Dr. PetraKhoury, AUBMC’s chief quality and complianceofficer. “We had a sink that wasn’t working, whichwe closed, and a counter that we hadn’t changed,but had put in a request to change. This was apartially met criterion.”

That AUBMC has passed such a thoroughinspection stands as a testament to the dedicationand expertise of the roughly 3,000 men andwomen who work hard to make top qualitymedical care available to those who need it most.

Though the most recent review just ended, staffhave already begun looking towards the next one.“JCI has already added new criteria. We are looking towards making sure we meet these newstandards, as they will be part of the next triennialreview,” says Khoury.

Concurrently, the center is preparing for a review of its oncology programs; AUBMC treats around 25 percent of Lebanon’s cancer population.

This most recent accreditation puts AUB on track to meet one of the Health 2025 Vision’s key goals,which states that the institution will provide top-quality patient-centered care.

Raising the Bar Again and Again

WellnessWellness

Send your recipesubmissions [email protected]

SahteinMarshousheh – Black-Eyed Peas Pilaf with Swiss Chard hania Saoud (BS ’79)Los Angeles, California

INgREdIENTS:

• 350 g (12½ oz) Swiss chard (~1½ cups choppedstems and ~4 cups chopped leaves)

• 425 g (2 cups) dry black-eyed peas• 175 g (1 cup) coarse bulgur #4 (extra coarse)• 225 g (8 oz) onion, thinly sliced• 80 ml (⅓ cup) olive oil• 1½ tsp salt• ¼ tsp ground black pepper

PREPARATIoN:

1. Wash the chard and drain. Separate the thickstems from the leaves. Chop the stems intosmall pieces, about the size of the black-eyedpeas, to fill about 2 cups. Set aside. Chop thechard leaves to fill about 4 packed cups. Setaside.

2. Wash the black-eyed peas. Place in a largesaucepan and cover with 3 cups water. Bring toa boil and cook over medium heat for 8 to 10minutes. Drain the peas in a colander, pouringout the liquid. Return the mixture to the pan,cover with fresh water, and again bring it to aboil over medium heat. Simmer for 10 minutes.

3. Add the chopped chard stems to the peas andcontinue to cook until the peas and the chardstems are almost tender (al dente). Stir in thechard leaves, adding more water to cover as thewater is absorbed. Continue cooking until thechard leaves are wilted, about 5 minutes.

4. Wash and drain the bulgur. Add the bulgurand return the pot to a boil. Cook for 2 moreminutes.

5. Set a colander in the sink and pour the peas,chard, and bulgur wheat mixture into thecolander to drain any remaining water. Coverthe colander with a lid so the trapped steamcontinues the cooking process.

6. While the mixture is steaming in the colander,sauté onions in olive oil in the large saucepanuntil golden brown. Add the pea mixture to theonions and continue to cook until all theingredients are blended.

7. Season with the salt, black pepper, and asqueeze of lemon. Serve with lemon wedges.

Makes 6 servings

good FoR yoU? An expert weighs in...

Marie Claire Chamieh, Marie Clare Chamieh,PhD, LD – Lecturer and Practicum Coordinator,NDCP, Department of Nutrition and Food Science

Marshousheh is indeed a hale and hearty dishwith its two main ingredients, Swiss chard andblack-eyed peas, branded as ‘functional foods’.In addition to the classical role in stabilizingblood sugar levels with their fiber content, thesenaturally occurring whole foods are rich inbioactive compounds, flavonoids and tannins,known to scavenge carcinogens and inhibit thegrowth of cancer cells. Equally important is theSwiss chard’s phytonutrient lutein, whichenhances eye function and health. This meal isalso a great source of calcium (1 serving wouldprovide 25% of adult total daily requirements),magnesium and vitamin K; a nutrient mixbeneficial for optimal bone health.

“I learned this recipe frommy late mother-in-lawMariana Saoud, who wasborn in Syria and moved toMinyara, Akkar in Lebanonafter she got married. I amtold this is a recipeparticular to Minyara. Aswith all recipes that arepassed down, there isalways the liberty of using‘a little bit of this and someof that.’ I usually serve thisdish with a simple tomatoand cucumber salad, and myhusband always gives it afresh squeeze of lemonjuice just before eating.”

Hania Saoud (BS ’79)Los Angeles, California

A recipe from the WAAAUBCookbook, ABUNDANCE:Mediterranean Cuisine:Recipes by Alumni andFriends of the AmericanUniversity of Beirut.Proceeds from net salessupport AUB StudentScholarships.

Available at:USA/Canada: Amazon.comLebanon: Malik’sBookstoresRest of world: Malik’sonline

For more information,visit:alumni.aub.edu.lb/WAAAUBCookbook

Serving size: 1Calories per Servingor Item (Kcal) 470Fat (g) 13Saturated Fat (g) 2Protein (g) 22Carbohydrates (g) 70Fiber (g) 13Sodium (mg) 720

30 Wellness

32

34Three Invaluable GiftsMaroun Semaan, Talal Shair, Jamal Daniel lay the foundation for AUB’sbold move into the future

BOLDLY AUB

Campaign Launches inBeirut and New York

Kicking off AUB’s most ambitious campaign in style

Campaign Pillars and Priorities

BOLDLY AUB

Anniversary

B E I R U T C A M P A I G N L A U N C H

In early 2017, AUB launched the most ambitious campaign of its kindin the history of the institution—and in the history of the region …

The Charles Hostler W. Students’ CenterAmerican University of Beirut

January 16, 2017

3332

N E W Y O R K C A M P A I G N L A U N C H

“THROUGHOUT OUR HISTORY, THEGENEROUS SUPPORT OF INDIVIDUALS,COMPANIES, FOUNDATIONS, ANDGOVERNMENTS HAS HELPED USEXPAND AND DIVERSIFY. NOW, AS WELOOK TOWARD THE FUTURE, WE AREASKING FOR YOU TO PARTNER WITH USAS WE EMBARK ON A BOLD NEW PLANFOR AUB." — CHAIRMAN PHILIP S. KHOURY

The Rainbow Room, Rockefeller Center, New York CityMarch 16, 2017

BOLDLY AUB T H E C A M P A I G N T O L E A D ,I N N O V A T E , A N D S E R V E

“OUR VISION IS TO PLACE AUB ATTHE CENTER OF MEANINGFUL,SERVICE-ORIENTED KNOWLEDGEGENERATION IN THE ARAB WORLD.OUR ROLE IS TO EDUCATE YOUNGWOMEN AND MEN TO LEAD, BUILD,HEAL, TEACH, AND BECOMEAMBASSADORS FOR VALUES THATARE THE BEDROCK OF AN OPENAND JUST SOCIETY.” — PRESIDENT FADLO R. KHURI

“AUB’S LIBERAL ARTS CURRICULUMTAUGHT ME HOW TO THINKCONTEXTUALLY, AND MY PROFESSORSINSPIRED MY PATH OF SCHOLARSHIP.FOR TODAY’S STUDENTS TO BENEFITFROM THE SAME OUTSTANDINGINTELLECTUAL ENVIRONMENT, WE NEEDTO IMPROVE THE PHYSICAL CAMPUS ANDSUPPORT THE FACULTY AS THEY STRIVE TO CLARIFY AND SOLVE OUR MODERNCHALLENGES, FROM THE SOCIETAL TO THE MEDICAL.”— TRUSTEE HUDA Y. ZOGHBI (BS ’76)

C A M P A I G N P I L L A R S• Enriching the educational experience

and increasing research opportunities forour students, alumni, faculty, and staff

• Enhancing the healthcare experience for our patients, physicians, nurses,paramedics, and staff

• Redefining innovation andentrepreneurship as fundamental to ourteaching methodology

• Steering the University toward increasedcommunity relevance in regard to ourenvironmental, social, and institutionalimpact.

• Ensuring the sustainability of ourstrategic pathways

S E R V I C E A M I DS T R I F ERecognizing and honoring ourresponsibility for others has been part of AUB’s mission since the earliest days.Today, through its Medical Center andCenter for Civic Engagement andCommunity Service, as well as otherleading units, AUB is at the forefront ofproviding humanitarian assistance andeducation to Palestinian and Syrianrefugees, as well as those groups mostvulnerable to systemic inequalities inLebanese society. Imagine the power of an institution that amid all the turbulencearound it can extend its hand meaningfullyto help transform the lives of the leastunfortunate members of our community.

The threads of the American University of Beirut are woven deeply into the fabric of Beirut,Lebanon, the region, and the world. AUB—throughits students, faculty, and greater community—has been a transformative leader in humanities,natural sciences, health sciences, medicine,business, engineering, agriculture, architecture,and the arts, reaching back 150 years.

AUB is a home for seeking and creating knowledgethrough thoughtful and informed debate. TheUniversity culture encourages curiosity, criticalthinking, and open discussion as a means ofdeveloping ideas that might help us all—as theAUB motto states—to HAVE LIFE, AND HAVE ITMORE ABUNDANTLY.

Philanthropic support is critical to the success of AUB’s mission. It is needed to fortify theinstitution’s ambitious initiatives and to grow its endowment, an essential s afety net during this period of regional instability.

C A M P A I G N P R I O R I T I E SACADEMIC

Academic and Research Endowments $150 million

Academic and Research Funds (current) $50 million

HEALTHCARE

New Medical Complex $225 million

AUBMC 2020 Priorities $50 million

CAPITAL AND INFRASTRUCTURE

New Academic and Student Facilities $50 million

STUDENT DIVERSITY AND LIFE ON CAMPUS

Financial Aid (current and endowed) $100 million

Facility and Campus renovations $15 million

Outreach and Community Impact $10 million

TOTAL: $650 million

I N N O V A T I O NAUB’s engineers and architectshave developed novel styles andsustainable approaches toengineering and urban planning of communities and cities, fromthe Gulf to North Africa. Theseapproaches include developingretractable schools for refugees,innovative green responses tosocietal challenges, new methodsfor schools and other projects in Lebanese villages, andmechanistic studies of the aerosoldelivery of compounds. Wecontinue to challenge ourengineers and architects tocommit to taking the region andthe University to even moresustainable levels. In turn, we willcommit to providing the resourcesand the infrastructure to inspire,encourage, educate, and mentorthe next generation of pioneerswho will build and rebuild a newArab citizenry and, in turn, a newArab world.

L E A D E R S H I P I NP U B L I C E D U C A T I O NFor decades, AUB has collaborated withministries of education across the Arabworld, USAID, and non-governmentalorganizations to help substantially improvethe quality of public schools. Thisextraordinary long-term commitment hasencompassed preparing and supervisingteacher-trainers; developing anddistributing subject-specific teachingmanuals; recommending science labmaterials and equipment; promotingcollaboration among teachers and schools; and supporting information andcommunication technologies. A landmarkeffort has been the Pan-Arab TAMAMproject led by our pioneering Departmentof Education, which seeks to transformelementary and secondary education in a dozen Arab countries through acommunity-empowering approach.

BOLDLY AUB

M A R O U N S E M A A N

The launch of the BOLDLY AUB campaign coincidedwith the largest ever gift in the University’s history.The Semaan Foundation donated the entirety of theirgift to AUB’s Faculty of Engineering and Architecture,now the Maroun Semaan Faculty of Engineering andArchitecture. Maroun Semaan (BEN ’77) graduatedfrom AUB with a degree in mechanical engineering. In 1991, he co-founded Petrofac International, whichwould grow to become a leader in the global oilfieldservices industry. Semaan was a founding member ofthe Arab Forum for Environment and Development.He has been an active member of AUB’s Board ofTrustees since 2013.

While Semaan enjoyed extraordinary success at thehighest levels of leadership in his field, his true legacymay be the idealism and moral clarity that has guidedhis philanthropy. In 2010, he established the SemaanFoundation in Beirut to support philanthropicactivities in the fields of education, environmentalsustainability, healthcare, and social welfare. Hiscontribution to BOLDLY AUB will ensure that theUniversity continues to create the knowledge andcultivate the talent needed to advance, not just theMiddle East, but our modern societies.

Trustee Semaan passed away on May 1. The AUB community mourns theloss of a true friend whose vision for a better world will continue toinspire us. [For more on Maroun Semaan, see In Memoriam]

Three Invaluable Gifts...

3534

Trustee Talal Shair will devote theconsiderable resources of his company, DarGroup, to the development of a new campusmaster plan aligned with a comprehensiveacademic strategic plan, and design of AUB’snew Medical Center. Charting the University’scourse into the 21st century, the planners willtake into account the next 20 years incalculating an appropriate level of orderlycampus growth and development that allowsfor the protection and enhancement ofimportant open spaces as well as historic and cultural landscapes. All stakeholders,including leadership, faculty, staff, students,and friends of AUB are coming together toassess how best to revitalize the University inorder to magnify its impact. This process hasalready created a buzz on campus, generatinglively discussion of AUB’s core institutionalvalues: academic excellence, free speech,diversity and tolerance, public health,engaged citizenship and outreach, andenvironmental sustainability.

Shair attended AUB in 1983 and 1984 andearned his BEN in civil engineering andoperations research at Princeton Universityin 1990. He received his master’s degree instructural and geotechnical engineering fromCornell University in 1995. After holdingvarious key positions at Dar Al Handasah, aninternational, multidisciplinary consultancyspecializing in engineering, architecture,planning, and economics, Shair becamechairman in 2008. His skillful philanthropycan be attributed to inclination as well asinheritance. His late father, Trustee KamalShair, led AUB’s highly successful Campaignfor Excellence from 2002 to 2007.

In recognition of this extraordinary gift, AUB willname the Children’s Pavilion in the New MedicalComplex in honor of Dar Al-Handasah.

T a l a l S h a i r

3534

In February 2014, international businessmanJamal Daniel and The Levant Foundationdonated what was then a record-breaking giftfor AUB in support of the AUBMC’s 2020vision. This comprehensive initiative includesthe 14-story, 35,000 square meters, Halimand Aida Daniel Academic and ClinicalCenter, currently under construction at theintersection of Maamari and Abdul AzizStreets in Ras Beirut. Named in honor of Mr.Daniel’s parents, the facility is the first of itskind in the region to combine patient care,research and education in one location. Itwill house a variety of outpatient centers aswell as major academic centers for teachingand clinical research in areas includingpsychiatry, oncology, ophthalmology, heartand vascular diseases, and otolaryngology.There will also be an outpatient day surgeryand a simulation center for education, as well as a ground floor exhibition area andconference room. Completion is expected atthe end of 2017.

Jamal Daniel has over 30 years of experiencemanaging investments in oil and gas,telecommunications, high technology, media,manufacturing and real estate. A dedicatedphilanthropist, this extraordinary gift willhelp make Daniel’s dream of stability,prosperity, and world class healthcare in theMiddle East a reality.

acc.aub.edu.lb

J a m a l D a n i e l

BOLDLY AUB36

42

A National KnowledgeNetwork

AUB spearheads Lebanon’s national research education network (NREN) tolink universities and research institutions

40Lakhdar Brahimi United Nations mediator, special envoy, and diplomat speaks to RamiKhouri about international relations and the importance of education

The Indian WeddingChair

Art historian Nancy Um presents the final lecture of the 2016 Philippe JabreLecture Series in Art History and Curating

ImpactRegional impact, advocacy, and policy initiatives

39

38

44AUB and Sustainability Through research and advocacy AUB’s faculty contributes to the UnitedNations’ Sustainable Development Goals

46#AUB4Refugees Empowering young refugee learners through STEM education

Lancet Commission The Lancet-American University of Beirut Commission assesses the globalrepercussions of Syria’s prolonged conflict

Impact

AUB will spearhead the formation of acountry-wide network linking thecountry’s universities and researchinstitutions to each other and the widerInternet, a.k.a. a National ResearchEducation Network (NREN). NRENs arein place in nations all over the world,including UAE, Oman, Jordan,Palestine, Qatar, and Syria. Theyprovide a stable high-speed connectionand various other services to acountry’s universities and researchinstitutions.

AUB has good reason to actindependently given the acutechallenges of Internet access inLebanon. Five years ago, Speedtest.netdubbed Lebanon’s Internet connectionthe world’s slowest, behind Zambia,Vanuatu (an island nation in the middleof the South Pacific), war-torn Iraq, andAfghanistan. Not much has changedsince then. Connection speeds remainsluggish by strictly Middle Eaststandards. Even Syria, in its state ofdissolution, boasts average downloadspeeds that are 100 Kbps faster thanLebanon’s.

The Internet in Lebanon is in thegovernment’s hands: The Ministry ofTelecommunications owns and leasesthe physical assets that make up thecountry’s telecom network. Wheregovernment management has brokendown, telecommunicationsmanagement has followed. And wheredeficits have risen, so have prices paidby Internet service providers (andsubsequently consumers) to theMinistry. Additionally, Lebanon allowsfor tiered pricing: pay more and you getfaster Internet. A United Statesappellate court recently struck downthis kind of pricing scheme, ruling that

the Internet has become a utility, aright, if you will, and that companiesmust provide citizens of different meanswith full and equal access.

Lebanon’s NREN, dubbed LebaneseIdentity Federation Ecosystem (LIFE),will connect AUB with 11 otheruniversities. It’s slated for a spring 2017launch and has the full support of theUniversity’s IT team. Chief InformationOfficer Yousif Asfour sees the project as“critical for AUB’s research mission.”

The idea of an NREN harkens back to the Internet’s origins as acommunications tool for intelligence and research. In 1969, the United StatesDepartment of Defense first beganfinancing the construction of aprimitive Internet connecting a handfulof universities, research labs, andmilitary bases.

AUB students already have access toUS, EU, and Emirati NRENs andparticipate in eduroam, a secured WiFinetwork service that enables students,faculty, and staff to use their homeinstitution's WiFi credentials in order to access WiFi network services whenvisiting other eduroam participatinginstitutions.

LIFE will provide a whole new array of shared services, communications, and computing tools to Lebanon’suniversities, such as smooth videoconferencing, knowledge base (a kindof smart database), cloud storage, and high performance computingapplications, while putting AUB onsecure Internet footing. “So that theymay have LIFE and have it moreabundantly…”

A National KnowledgeNetwork

The Seat of Power

It appears in gold-encrusted paintingsprized by Mughal emperors and mayhave an earlier Portuguese origin. InIran, we find it studded with gems anda sun disk. In the coastal Kenyan citiesof Mombasa, Pate, and Lamu, it comesin ivory and pearl inlay. The so-calledIndian wedding chair has passedthrough many incarnations in a longand intricate history still shrouded inuncertainty, Binghamton University Art History Professor Nancy Um told a crowd in West Hall this past April.

In the final lecture of the first annualPhilippe Jabre Lecture Series in ArtHistory and Curating, The Trouble withMobility: The Complex History of theSo-Called Indian Wedding Chair, Umtraced the varied histories of the Indianwedding chair, a generic term thatdescribes an angular, upright chair,with a tall pointed back, thin stretchers,and a raised footrest.

Across disparate regions, the chair’sfunctions as a seat of ceremony, status,and power remained constant. For theQajars, Mughals, and Russians, it wassomething like a throne. For theEgyptians, it was the bride’s chair. ForEast Africans, it was the chair of power,meant to exalted guests. “This chair stillplays a major role as a seat of honor inweddings and funerals,” Um said.

In her presentation, Um described alively scholarly debate that sprung uparound the history of the chair. In herwider scholarship, Um explores themessiness of history and the myriadtransregional and transculturalmigrations that influence the formationof cultural touchstones, influences thatcan never be wholly understood orcataloged, but speak, instead, tochaotic patterns of knowledge transferacross time.

“The so-called Indianwedding chair has

passed through manyincarnations in a longand intricate historystill shrouded inuncertainty...”

3938

Lakhdar Brahimi is a walkingrepository of modern global history.Since the 1950s, he has participated inthe most important political dynamicsof the past three generations:decolonization and national liberation;state-building and human developmentin the global South; conflict-resolutionacross the world; and the elusive questfor a just global social and economicorder. His career has lasted more yearsthan some Arab countries have beenindependent.

When we met in Washington recently todiscuss today’s turbulent Arab world,the 83-year-old former Algerian ForeignMinister, United Nations Under-Secretary General, and special envoy toa dozen lands immediately flashedback to 1956. He started his publicpolitical career that year as therepresentative of Algeria’s nationalliberation movement to South-EastAsia, based in Indonesia — a verydifferent world from today’s, he noted.Since then, Arab countries haveadvanced in some areas and badlyregressed in others, while the rest of the world has mostly moved forward.Decades spent navigating the halls ofpower in wealthy democratic countriesand shantytowns in autocratic poorones taught him many things. Onelesson that stands out today for theArab condition is the crucial role ofquality education. The opportunity to contribute to education was onereason why he agreed to join AUB’sInternational Advisory Council andcontinues to engage with leadinguniversities across the world.

Brahimi’s curriculum vitae is a mini-course in modern political history. Hewas involved in the Algerian strugglefor independence, the birth of the Non-Aligned Movement in Belgrade in 1961,and the Global South’s call in 1974, at

the United Nations, for a NewInternational Economic Order. As anAlgerian or UN diplomat, he engageddirectly with the manifoldconsequences of Thatcher-Reagancorporate globalization in the early1980s and the end of the Cold War in1989. He was a UN mediator or specialenvoy in the Iran-Iraq war, theAfghanistan war, post-Saddam HusseinIraq’s rebuilding, South Africa’stransition, the civil war in Syria,Lebanon’s civil war, and the ArabUprisings of 2011.

“To be fair, we have to give credit toworld leaders in the 1950s, ’60s and’70s, who prevented a nuclear war fromtaking place,” he concludes. “I’m notvery sure we can say the world ismanaging its affairs better today than itdid then. The Third World had muchmore of a presence on the global stagedecades ago, when it expressed thedeveloping countries’ aspirations,rights, and wishes clearly and directly.The Third World does not exist anymore politically today.”

He states bluntly that Third Worlddiplomatic initiatives like the Non-Aligned Movement and the call for aNew International Economic Orderfailed “because leading Westernpowers, led by the United States,basically rejected them. The collapse of the Soviet Union in the 1980s andChina’s inward focus allowed the Westto impose its will. The Non-Alignedcountries all had problems, and themovement faded away. The Americansstarted saying in the Reagan-Thatcheryears that their way was the way theworld should go in development terms.The Americans spoke about ‘theAmerican century’ with only one bigpower that also thought there was onlyone economic and social way of doingthings for the whole world — Reagan’sand Thatcher's global, free-marketsavage capitalism. It became worse.Beyond the saying that imperialism isthe supreme stage of capitalism, nowwe can say that the supreme stage ofcapitalism is a finance economy.Finance and money are all that count,nothing else. Wealth has nothing to dowith concrete things and production.You can become a billionaire withoutproducing anything.”

Brahimi does not believe the world willcontinue with one superpower and oneeconomic and social model fordevelopment in all countries. He seesthe world now passing through anothertransition period with much difficulty,as powers like Russia, China, India,Japan, Brazil, and others seek to createnew alliances and groupings.

“The big powers in Asia must find away of coexisting together,” he says,while lamenting that conditions at theother end of Asia have deteriorated.

“The Arab region is the mostproblematic region in the world, in

Reflecting on 60 Years ofGlobal and Arab ChangeBy Rami g. Khouri

“The Third Worldhad much more of a presence on the

global stage decadesago, when itexpressed thedevelopingcountries’

aspirations, rights,and wishes clearly

and directly.”

Impact

view of the weakening of states throughglobalization and the idea thatsovereignty is not important any more.The US feels it can ignore internationallaw and apply its own laws globally, asit stations its armed forces around theworld. But Arab weaknesses reflectinternal problems, including a kind offatalism, a feeling that our fate is not in our own hands.”

“The Arab Spring was a genuine humanoutburst by people who vanquishedtheir fear of their regimes. They wentahead and said, ‘happen what may, wewill not settle for anything less than amajor change.’ That was a genuinedevelopment, and not a conspiracy thatcould be managed by a foreign group.”

“The rallying cry during the ArabSpring was ‘justice’ or ‘social justice,’because ordinary Arabs felt that thepolitical elite thought what happenedto them did not count. The leaders andthe elite didn't care about their owncitizens. Many people spent their wholelife without a decent job. Often peoplewere both poor and helpless. What kindof life did they have to look forward to?What kind of stake did they have intheir own society? Four and fivedecades ago, poor young Arabs hadhope and expected their government to make their life better. In the ArabSpring people revolted because they no longer felt their government wasserving them. We failed to develop ourcountries properly, and people finallyrebelled.”

Brahimi feels that Arab leadershipsfailed their people in two ways: “Wehave become an elite, estranged fromour base of fellow citizens, and we havenot given our masses a solid educationor anything with which to resist newappeals to them. Why do Islamists usethe slogan, ‘Islam is the solution’? It'sbecause something else failed, andpeople need a solution that thenationalist state has not provided them.The political class send their children toprivate schools and overseas, and whathappens to the rest of the population isnot their concern. We paid too muchattention to the quantity rather than thequality of education in our countries.The figures show that high percentagesof our youth are enrolled in school, butthey are not learning as well as theyshould.”

“We paid too muchattention to the quantityrather than the qualityof education in our

countries. The figuresshow that high

percentages of ouryouth are enrolled in

school, but they are notlearning as well as

they should.”

4140

On many fronts, AUB has led the way in offering insight into the Syrianconflict’s primary actors, whileproviding schooling, scholarships, andmedical care for refugees. Now it’sramping up its intellectual influenceanother notch as it spearheads acommission—essentially, a broad studyon a globally significant topic—on Syriain concert with the prestigious UKmedical journal, The Lancet.

Co-chaired and convened by AUBProfessor of Public Health PracticeSamer Jabbour, the Lancet-AmericanUniversity of Beirut Commission onSyria brings together 24commissioners—scholars andresearchers from around the globe—to

shed light on a host of issues including:the death toll; the destruction of Syria’shealth services; the international healthand humanitarian system’s response;the refugee issue; the impact of thecrisis on Syria’s long-term social andeconomic development; likely futurescenarios; and areas of greatest needs.

Within 16 months, an accelerated pacefor Lancet commissions, theparticipants aim “to develop concreterecommendations to address the unmetcurrent and future health needs,including those related to rebuildingand to strengthening the global healthresponse to political conflict,”according to the journal’s website.

A Hard Look at Syria’sHealth Crisis

“A considerable portion of the healthsystem in Syria is

fragmented or destroyed.It was a mostly public,government-financed

system. How do you buildit back? Where do you

focus? At what level? Theseare some questions

we have.”

Mohammed Badra/European Pressphoto Agency

Impact

“A considerable portion of the health system inSyria is fragmented or destroyed,” says HealthManagement and Policy Professor Shadi Saleh,who is co-leading one of the Commission’s sub-groups on health systems. “It was a mostlypublic, government-financed system. How doyou build it back? Where do you focus? At whatlevel? These are some questions we have.”

Previous Lancet Commissions have covered a wide variety of subjects, such as cancersurgery, the future of medical education,women’s health, and urban planning forhealth. Unlike the 28 previous commissions,which met a finite number of times,deliberated, and then released a report, theLancet-AUB Commission will retain a morefluid structure, one Jabbour describes as “an ever-shifting network of researchers and experts doing critical scholarship” andrepresenting eleven countries, including the UK, Syria, USA, Qatar, Italy, Australia,Lebanon, France, Belgium, Palestine, andTurkey. The Commission intends to seek inputand data from additional scholars andinstitutions, as needed.

This is AUB’s third time participating in aLancet Commission but its first time leadingone. Back in 2010, former FHS Dean HudaZurayk participated in Health Professionals fora New Century, which sought to understandhow post-secondary education in medicine,nursing and public health needed to evolve inorder to keep pace in the 21st Century. FHSProfessor and Associate Dean Rima Afifi was amember of the Lancet Commission onAdolescent Health and Wellbeing published in 2016.

Founded in 1823, The Lancet is an independent,international general medical journal. Thejournal’s current editor-in-chief, RichardHorton, has pressed for the journal to engagemore actively in contemporary medical and

non-medical issues and to speak with a loudervoice. To that end, The Lancet has, among otheractions, called for a tobacco ban in the UnitedKingdom; calculated an estimate of the 2003Iraq War death toll; attacked the Vatican for itsposition on contraception; and condemnedIsrael’s 2014 war on Gaza.

A December statement published in the journalreads: “The path that led us here calls intoharsh light the utter failure of globalgovernance and action to intervene to protectvast populations from the atrocities of war. Thepromises made and structures established inthe wake of World War II have been broken,crumbling under political stalemates and lackof leadership at the UN.” The Lancet cites“indifference” on the part of “major nationstates” when it comes to norms and standardsof behavior.

Recommendations will be accompanied byadvocacy, according to Jabbour. “We hope tostage events at the World Health Organizationheadquarters and other sites prior to thepublication of the final report.”

During its first meeting this past December, theCommission sought to define its scope and planof work and “recognised the terrible globalmeanings and dismal outlook of the conflict inSyria,” and made clear its goal of advancing“global research, collaboration, and advocacyon matters of life and death in conflict.”

In March, the Commission published adamning report on a particular form of violenceperpetrated by the Syrian regime and its allies:“The weaponisation of health care—a strategyof using people's need for health care as aweapon against them by violently deprivingthem of it—has translated into hundreds ofhealth workers killed, hundreds moreincarcerated or tortured, and hundreds ofhealth facilities deliberately and systematicallyattacked.” The Commission estimates that 814medical workers were killed between March2011 and February 2017 and that large swaths of the population now lack all access tomedical care.

The report also details the rise of “siegemedicine,” in which innovation and necessityare closely tied: “There is now an undergroundfactory in eastern Ghouta near Damascusproducing normal saline. Denied blood bags for the collection and storage of blood, urinebags with anticoagulants added are used.Homemade external fixators are used fororthopaedic surgery.”

The AUB Commission will continue to publishstand-alone reports detailing Syria’s myriadhealth crises and their policy implications inthe lead up to the final report, expected in June 2018.

“The weaponisation of health care—a strategy of

using people’s need for healthcare as a weapon against themby violently depriving them of it—has translated into

hundreds of health workerskilled, hundreds more

incarcerated or tortured, and hundreds of healthfacilities deliberately andsystematically attacked.”

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AUB signed a Memo of Understanding with the AlGhurair Foundation for Education, which will givefull financial support to more than 170 STEM studentsfrom Arab backgrounds over the next three years.

On April 7, AUB’s Knowledge is Power (KIP) projectand the Gender Initiative hosted a symposium onwomen’s political participation in Lebanon entitled“Women in Public Life: A Gender Analysis ofLebanon’s Sectarian Power-sharing System.”

In April, AUB’s Munib and Angela Masri Institute of Energy and Natural Resources held its 7th annual workshop on “Energy Geo-Science and

Engineering.” Attended by regional andinternational experts in the field, the workshopoffered a platform for the presentation of faculty and student research funded by the Masri Institute.

AUB Professor Salma Samar Damluji was recentlyelected as a member of France’s prestigiousAcadémie d’Architecture.

The Faculty of Engineering and Architecture (FEA)signed a Memorandum of Understanding withBeirut Digital District (BDD) that will allow FEAstudents to explore entrepreneurship inpartnerships with BDD.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

In September 2015, the United Nations adopted itsSustainable Development Goals (SDGs), aiming toput the world on a significantly more sustainablepath by 2030. Of course, this isn’t just the work ofa single entity, no matter how sprawling itsbureaucracy. It requires ongoing effort byorganizations and individuals operating at alllevels of society, including universities. AUB’scommitment to sustainability predates the SDGsbut has ramped up under President Khuri’sleadership, who, in his inauguration speech,called for “a better, fairer, more economically,environmentally, and ethically sustainableworkplace.”

Here’s a look at the 17 SDGs and how research andadvocacy by just some of AUB’s faculty and staffhave supported each of them. Please note that thelist of projects is far from exhaustive.

1. No Poverty - End poverty in all its formseverywhere.• Economics Professor Jad Chaaban has

studied how a value-added tax mightincrease poverty in Lebanon. He has workedwith UNRWA to shed light on the extent ofdestitution in Palestinian refugee camps andregularly participates in conferences onpoverty, human rights, and social justice inthe Middle East.

2. Zero hunger - End hunger, achieve foodsecurity and improved nutrition, and promotesustainable agriculture.• Assistant Professor of Agribusiness

Marketing and Management Gumataw KifleAbebe studies small farm economies inEthiopia, how crop varieties figure in farmvaluations, and how farmers might bestdesign contracts.

• Professor of Plant Pathology Yousif AbouJawdeh is trying to better understand plantviruses and pests in hopes of improving cropyields. He advises agricultural officials inLebanon and the wider Middle East on bestpractices concerning pest management andplant health.

3. good health and Well-being - Ensure healthylives and promote well-being for all ages.• Epidemiology and Population Health

Professor Abla Mehio-Sibai considers theplight of Lebanon’s elderly, many of whomlive alone. She has studied lifetimecumulative exposure to waterpipe smokeand its correlation with coronary artery

disease; healthcare access; and the socialand psychological dimensions of aging.

4. Quality Education - Ensure inclusive andequitable quality education and promotelifelong learning opportunities for all.• Educational Leadership Professor Rima

Karami-Akkary leads TAMAM, an initiativethat empowers teachers across the Arabworld with the planning and leadershipskills necessary to drive change at thegrassroots level.

5. gender Equality - Achieve gender equalityand empower all women and girls.• Title IX Coordinator Trudi Hodges: “AUB is

committed to compliance with Title IX of theEducation Amendments of 1972, a US lawthat prohibits sex-based discrimination inschools and universities that receive federalfunding.” Hodges is on the advisory board ofthe KIP (Knowledge Is Power) Project, whichpromotes research and knowledge-sharing of gender and sexuality issues in Lebanon.She sits on the Task Force on the Lives andCareers of Women Faculty at AUB, thatstudies the career paths of women faculty at AUB.

6. Clean Water and Sanitation - Ensureavailability and sustainable management ofwater and sanitation for all.• Environmental Health Professor May

Massoud and Department of EnvironmentalHealth, Safety and Risk ManagementDirector Farouk Merhebi authored the“Guide to Municipal Solid WasteManagement” in response to Lebanon’s trashcrisis. The guide articulates an integrated,recycling-based waste management plan forthe country.

7. Affordable and Clean Energy - Ensure accessto affordable, reliable, sustainable andmodern energy for all.• In 2016, staff at the laboratories and facilities

at the Faculty of Engineering andArchitecture completed the installation of374 solar panels on the roofs of the Bechteland CCC buildings in lower campus.

8. decent Work and Economic growth -Promote sustained, inclusive, and sustainableeconomic growth, full and productiveemployment, and decent work for all.• Economics Professor Serena Canaan’s

AUB and the United Nations:Marching Toward Sustainability

Impact

research, recently published in the Journal ofLabor Economics, shows the impact of accessto higher education on low-skilled worker’searnings using regression analysis.

9. Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure -Build resilient infrastructure, promoteinclusive and sustainable industrialization,and foster innovation.• In 2011, AUB inaugurated the Samih

Darwazah Center for InnovationManagement and Entrepreneurship. Thecenter’s staff are dedicated to the study ofinnovation and entrepreneurship in theregion with a view to documenting andstimulating innovative practices in thebusiness community.

10. Reduced Inequalities - Reduce incomeinequality within and among countries.• In 2016, AUB’s Issam Fares Institute for

Public Policy and International Affairs, inconjunction with Oxfam, produced acomprehensive report entitled “Poverty,Inequality, and Social Protection inLebanon.” The study aims to informpolicymakers of best practices for alleviatingpoverty and implementing a social safetynet, as well as raise awareness on pockets ofpoverty in the country.

11. Sustainable Cities and Communities - Makecities and human settlements inclusive, safe,resilient, and sustainable.• Politics and Urban Studies Professor Mona

Harb is currently investigatingdecentralization, local and regionalgovernments, city strategies, and policymobilities in Lebanon. Part of this research isforthcoming as a co-edited volume entitledLocal Governments and Public Goods:Assessing Decentralization Experiences in the Arab World (Beirut: LCPS, with SamiAtallah).

12. Responsible Consumption and Production -Ensure sustainable consumption andproduction patterns.• In celebration of AUB’s 150th anniversary and

with its slogan “Healthy Earth, Healthy Food,Healthy People,” AUB’s Faculty ofAgricultural and Food Sciences (FAFS) heldthe two-day event “Together towards aSustainable Community” on September 29and 30, 2016.

13. Climate Action - Take urgent action to combatclimate change and its impact by regulatingemissions and promoting developments inrenewable energy.• Professor of Environmental Hydrology and

Director of the Issam Fares Institute ofClimate Change and Environment ProgramNadim Farajalla attends international

climate change negotiations as part ofLebanon’s national delegation.

14. Life Below Water - Conserve and sustainablyuse the oceans, seas, and marine resources forsustainable development.• Plant Pathology Professor Yousef Abu

Jawdeh’s grant-funded research is helping totransform AUB into a regional center foralgae studies. He has identified severalstrains of Lebanese microalgae that showpotential as super foods and fuel sources andbelieves that there is great potential formicroalgae as a crop in Lebanon.

15. Life on Land - Protect, restore, and promote sustainable use of terrestrialecosystems, sustainably manage forests,combat desertification, halt and reverse landdegradation, and halt biodiversity loss.• Biology Professor Khouzama Knio surveys

insect diversity at the Bentael Reserve inByblos, specifically the number of speciesand their distribution. Surveys of butterflyspecies were conducted decades ago, but nosurveys of insect biodiversity in the reservehave ever been done.

16. Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions -Promote peaceful and inclusive societies forsustainable development, provide access tojustice for all, and build effective, accountable,and inclusive institutions at all levels.• Between 2007 and 2014, AUB’s Issam Fares

Institute for Public Policy and InternationalAffairs hosted the Bill and Sally HambrechtDistinguished Peacemakers Lecture Series inwhich international peacemakers such asformer US President Jimmy Carter, formerArab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa,and former UN Special Envoy LakhdarBrahimi spoke of their experiencesnegotiating peace.

17. Partnerships for the goals - Strengthen themeans of implementation and revitalize theglobal partnership for sustainabledevelopment.• AUB seeks to partner with sister universities

and institutions to compound its reach andeffectiveness and recently partnered withnine other universities in the Middle Eastand Europe to launch the Pro-GreenDiploma. President Khuri recently launchedthe Strategic Partnership Initiative, whichpromotes partnerships between AUB andelements of civil society and government;recent AUB graduates are interning atLebanese government ministries as part ofthis initiative.

4544

On January 8, young refugees and theirwould-be helpers came together for thedebut event of the STEM For Refugeesinitiative. A partnership between AUB,the NGO Sonbola, and The LittleEngineer, a private company foundedby AUB distinguished alumna Rana ElChemaitelly (BEN '93, MEN '08), STEMFor Refugees was established in 2014 toempower refugee and other vulnerableyoung learners through science,technology, engineering, andmathematics education. Designed forstudents living in Lebanese refugeecamps, their pilot project, The SonbolaLittle Engineer Robotics Program,included three months of hands-oneducational instruction followed by apresentation of student projects at AUB.The program brought together 50refugee youths (ages 9-18), an equalnumber of boys and girls, for weeklysessions at the Sonbola Learning Centerin the Beqa'a Valley. Here, theparticipants learned how to use small

building blocks and state-of-the-artsensors to create projects that wouldmeet the needs of camp life. Projectsrevolved around four themes: hygieneand comfort; renewable energy; healthand safety; and personal developmentand leisure. Trained facilitators guidedstudents in building such workingmodels as rainwater collection systems,solar-powered ovens, ventilated tents,and playground equipment. Studentswere then introduced to programminglanguage in order to integrate sensorswith the blocks.

The program aims to impart technologyskills and knowledge while integratinglifelong learning attributes such ascritical thinking, creative problem-solving, and teamwork, as well ascitizenship values such as respect forothers and personal responsibility.Massa Mufti, founder and CEO ofSonbola, opened the event by speakingabout some of the challenges that STEM

For Refugees seeks to address. Theseinclude the gap between education andemployability in the Arab world at largeand shortcomings in math and scienceeducation in particular. Finally, thestudents took center stage anddemonstrated how their projects workbefore a rapt audience. “We learnedspecifically how to face challenges inour lives and how to overcome themand think of solutions," one youngstudent noted in a brief but pointedtestament to the program’s success.

#AUB4Refugees

Launched in September 2016,University-wideinitiative#AUB4Refugeesbrings together AUB faculty andunits working to nurturecooperation andbuild partnershipson campus andbeyond to deal withthe repercussionsof the Syrianrefugee crisis.

Impact46

Some ongoing #AUB4Refugee Projects:• Food and nutrition security, FAFS• Mitigating determinants of earlymarriage among refugees, FHS

• New sustainable solutions to waste andsanitation issues in refugee campus, FEA

• The establishment of communitykitchens currently serving over 140,000hot meals per year, FEA

50StandingOUTstanding Akl Fahed (BS ’06, MD ’10), a cardiologist and genomics scientistdecodes the DNA and connects the dots

48

54

WAAAUB Events &Announcements

A striking typographic sculpture in Mary Dodge Hall Plaza; New chapterpresidents Omar Hamad, Fadi Jradi, Bassam Hajj, and Khalil Khoreibani

AUB EverywhereAlumni lives in action, WAAAUB and chapter news, every day and extraordinaryclass notes, and unexpected revelations

WAAAUB Aroundthe Globe

Chapter events and gatherings52

Zalmay Khalilzad (BA ’72, MA ’74)

One of the world’s top diplomats discusses his journey from Kabul tothe corridors of power

51

Class Notes Updates from former classmates from the 1950s through the 2000s

AUB Everywhere

Zalmay Khalilzad (BA ’72, MA ’74) is among a small number of senior US diplomats who left their homecountries to serve in the upperechelons of American government.Born in the Afghan city of Mazar-i-Sharif, Khalilzad would go on to servein senior State and Defense Departmentposts, at the White House, and threehigh-profile ambassadorships: toAfghanistan, to Iraq, and to the United Nations.

In summer 2001, as a member of theNational Security Council, he met withAfghan opposition leaders in Rome andpuzzled over how the US should handlethe Taliban’s support for Al Qaeda.After 9/11, Khalilzad’s portfolio became first priority for the Bushadministration, and he began whatwould turn out to be an eight-year tourat the tip of the spear of America’sefforts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Thirty years after he left Kabul, hereturned in January 2002, as a specialpresidential envoy. He came from theHotel Petersberg in Bonn, Germany,where he had pushed leaders ofAfghan ethnic factions to form a

transitional government. He recalledKabul International Airport as “apleasant hub” but it now “resembled ascrap yard.” Tears stung his eyes, notfrom the dusty air but from a sense ofloss.

He began crisscrossing the country,marshalling warlords’ support for thetransitional government; asking themto take part in the Loya Jirga (a specialassembly) that would ratify the newAfghan constitution; and seeking tomanage the expectations of then-Interim President Hamid Karzai. Whenhe asked Defense Secretary DonaldRumsfeld and President Bush formilitary aid in securing far-flungprovinces, they declined.

A constitution was drafted. Electionswere held. And by 2005—two yearsafter Khalilzad officially becameambassador to Afghanistan—the Bushadministration felt hopeful enoughabout the country’s progress andconfident enough in Khalilzad’spolitical abilities to send him 1,500miles west, to Baghdad. There, theyhoped, he might find similar success incoaxing elections and a constitutionout of rival politicians: “I knew fromAfghanistan that constitutionalnegotiations bring to the surfacepeople’s fundamental hopes, fears.Issues that strike outsiders assymbolic—the official language, thedesign of the flag—strike deepemotional chords.”

From Kabul to the White HouseAlumni Profile

“I knew fromAfghanistan thatconstitutional

negotiations bring to the surface people’sfundamental hopes,

fears. Issues that strikeoutsiders as symbolic—the official language, the design of the flag—strike deep emotional

chords.”

4948

His voice retains a trace of his Dari accent ashe tells the story of how he came to deal instate-building. It began with a studentexchange program. “The American FieldService selected me as the top student in myclass to live with a family in California andstudy at a local high school there. We were 18Afghans, including the current president ofAfghanistan, Ashraf Ghani (BA ’73, MA ’77),all headed to different parts of the country.”

On arriving in the United States heexperienced many shocks: air conditioners,racial diversity, traffic lights, showers,televisions. “Even the farms were like villas,”he says. “The work ethic, spirit ofentrepreneurialism, and tolerance” alsoimpressed him. He quickly took to his newsurroundings, playing basketball, swimming,and giving talks at the local high school onAfghanistan. When he returned to Kabul, hefound himself struggling with politicalquestions: Why was America doing so well?How could Afghanistan do better?

A USAID scholarship announcement postedon Kabul University’s campus brought him toAUB to study political science. Speaking ofAUB at the time, he describes “a simmeringmini-cauldron of the region’s ideological andpolitical turmoil. You had Nasserists, Marxist-Leninists, a few Islamists, Lebanesenationalists.”

From History Professors Hanna Batatu andWalid Khalidi and Islamic Studies ProfessorYusuf Ibish, he learned “about the decline andfall of the Ottoman Empire, the rise of theEuropean colonial powers, and the division ofthe Middle East.” He met his American-Austrian wife Cheryl at a dance at the edge ofcampus where he tried to pass as a woman toavoid the entrance fee. At AUB, he says, hereceived “a first-rate education,” and became

convinced that the spread of the Americanmodel of higher education around the worldwould benefit humanity.

After he completed a master’s in politicalstudies, USAID granted him the opportunity topursue a PhD at the University of Chicago,where he studied under Albert Wohlstetter, aninfluential political thinker and future ReaganAdministration official. Via Wohlsetter’sconnections to the policy world, he came tobrief Secretary of Defense James Schlesinger,Pentagon official Andrew Marshall, andneoconservative thinker Paul Wolfowitz.

His Afghan expertise became even morerelevant when the United States began waginga proxy war against the Soviet Union throughAfghan mujahideen. He predicted Afghanresistance to the communists. That got theCarter Administration’s attention. Wolfowitzinvited him to join the State Department, butfirst he needed to pay a visit to Manhattan’sfederal court building in 1984 to be sworn inas a US citizen.

Then came the White House. Secretary of StateGeorge Schultz invited him to join his policy

planning staff, which involved developing astrategy of support for Afghans fighting theSoviets and engaging the Afghan resistance on the Reagan administration’s behalf. Thereis a 1987 photo of President Reagan inconversation with Afghan mujahideen leaderYounis Khalis, Khalilzad translating. Speakingfor Khalis, he told the president, “Islam is areligion of righteousness and peace… Andgiven its universal truth, Mr. Khalis would liketo invite you, Mr. President, to accept thereligion of Islam.” President Reagan declined,but added that as men of faith they were onthe same side against the Soviets.

Khalilzad brims with stories of the halls ofpower. After he briefed President Bush onformer Afghan king Zahir Shah’s role in thetransitional government, the presidentreplied, “Zal, you work for a republic. What’sthis monarchy you’re trying to create?” Duringthe Loya Jirga, he remembers delegates askingKarzai to give longtime political oppositionleader Younis Qanooni a role in the newgovernment. Karzai responded, “Well, I thinkhe should be minister of education.” And sohe was.

Despite heavy criticism of the Bush Doctrine,Khalilzad stands steadfast in his belief in thecore foreign policy objectives that guided theadministration: “Even the darkest days of myambassadorships in Afghanistan and Iraq didnot fundamentally diminish my support forpromoting democracy abroad. I realized that asmall number of reforms could have made thedifference between major successes anddefeats on the democracy front. Although it ishard to overstate the difficulties in the greaterMiddle East today, there are decent people inthe region who are searching for a way out ofthe crisis. Many of them wouldn’t have had aplatform or a voice but for our interventions.”

Akl Fahed (BS ’06, MD ’10) Born inAchkout, Lebanon, Dr. Fahed is acardiologist and genomics scientist atMassachusetts General Hospital andHarvard University in Boston.

Q. how does your research into thegenetic causes of heart disease helppatients and families in the MiddleEast and worldwide?

A. Many severe heart diseases areinherited through uniquefingerprints on our DNA that createdefective genes. In Middle Easternpopulations, increased incidence ofintermarriage results in a higherfrequency of genetic heart disease.Using next-generation genomic toolsto identify these defects, we are ableto identify many gene defects thatcause heart malformations, heartmuscle disease, and even suddendeath in families. Our researchallows family members to get testedfor the gene defect; identifies familymembers who have it; and canprevent the disease before ithappens. In one instance, weidentified a gene defect that causedsudden death in half of the membersof five families in South Lebanon.Many of them believed they werecursed! Our research allows patientsto understand the cause of theirillness so that they can be screenedand receive defibrillator implants toprevent cardiac death. Our groupalso studied familial forms of veryhigh cholesterol in Lebanon, and wewere able to identify 100 percent ofthe genetic causes of the disease inthe country. These findings provideinsights into why these diseasesoccur and enable other scientists tobuild on and improve the care ofpatients worldwide.

Q. Were there any professors ormentors who influenced yourcareer path?

A. Absolutely, and I’m a firm believer inthe power of mentorship. In myearlier days, I was inspired by my

professors at AUBMC, several ofwhom are physician-scientists. Somebelieved in my potential andsupported me, including Drs. FadiBitar and Georges Nemer, whoguided my first steps in genetics andcardiology. When I moved toHarvard, I was privileged to workunder Drs. Christine and JonathanSeidman, who made me the scientistI am today.

Q. As president of the WAAAUB NewEngland Chapter, you arespearheading the creation of aknowledge hub and network ofscientists and doctors forprofessional advancement. Whatare the lessons you’ve learned inthe process?

A. As a physician, I appreciate that acare team of physicians, nurses,nutritionists, etc., working togetheralways performs better than anindividual doctor. As a researcher ingenomics, I know that real science isonly achieved with collaboration andsharing of ideas and data. The AUBalumni community is no different.Working with WAAAUB, I found thatthe depth and breadth of talentwithin the alumni community isextraordinary, in every single fieldyou can imagine. Our initiative isbuilding on these basic concepts bycreating a state-of-the-art networkthat would be used for professionaladvancement and collaboration,starting with healthcare and lifesciences. The idea is that we arestronger together and bycollaborating we can drive innovativesolutions for critical issues in theMiddle East. One of the mosthumbling observations in thisprocess is how interested our seniorAUB alumni are in mentoring,guiding, and supporting youngeralumni and current students. Themomentum is there; we only needthe tools to keep people engaged,and that’s what we are building.

A Scientist Skilled in Matters of the Heart

StandingOUTstanding

• Graduate Studies inPhilanthropy andNonprofitManagement,Georgetown University (’07)

• PostdoctoralFellowship in HumanGenetics, HarvardUniversity (’13)

• MPH QuantitativeMethods, Harvard (’15)

• Residency in InternalMedicine,MGH/Harvard (’16)

• Fellowship inCardiovascular Disease,MGH/Harvard (current)

• Awards from theAmerican Society ofClinical Investigation(ASCI), AmericanCollege of Cardiology(ACC), andMGH/HarvardUniversity

• President of theWAAAUB New EnglandChapter

• Founder and formerleader of severalprofessional andvolunteerorganizations

• Chair of the HealthcareSessions of HarvardArab Weekend 2012 and 2013

AUB Everywhere AUB Everywhere

A stunning cedartypographic sculpturehonoring the life ofZahi Hawwa (BS ’60,MD ’65) has beeninstalled in MaryDodge Hall Plaza.Donated by Zahi’sbrothers, calligraphyartist Kameel (BA ’68),Samir (BA ’56), Mounir(BS ’59), and Loutfi,the sculpture depictsthe acronym of theAmerican University ofBeirut (AUB) in Arabicscript.

Recently Elected Chapter Leadership

WAAAUB Events and Announcements

WAAAUB New york MetropolitanChapter LeadershipPresident: Omar Hamad (BEN ’12)Vice President: Tony Mansour (BBA ’06)Treasurer: Salim Bousleiman (BEN ’91)Secretary: Zaynab Jaber (MS ’15)Member at-large: Dena Taha (BS ’13),Rana Hajjaj (BBA ’09), Sara Kaddoura (BS ’15),Sarine Beukian (BSN ’08), ShereenGhandour (MA ’98)

WAAAUB Washington, dC ChapterLeadershipPresident: Fadi Jradi (BS ’08, MS ’11)Vice President: Talal Naboulsi (BE ’14)Secretary: Dina Shahin (BA ’99)Treasurer: Mark Maalouf (BE ’14)Member at-large: Nadia Assaf (BA ’94), Gracia El-Ayle (BS ’11), Rola El-Halaby (BA ’83), Joy Khalil (BA ’72), Clovis Maalouf (BBA ’11)

WAAAUB Egypt Chapter LeadershipPresident: Bassam Hajj (BBA ’98)Vice President: Samer Farhat (BEN ’02)Treasurer: Farah Eido (BS ’03, MS ’13)Secretary: Norhan Bader (MPH ’17)Member at-large: Adib El Zoghbi (BBA ’04, MBA ’06), BahaaMuhammad, Serene Musallam Farah(BBA ’98, MBA ’99), Sina Hbous (BA ’02)

WAAAUB Ivory Coast ChapterLeadershipPresident: Khalil Khoreibani (BBA ’09)Vice President: Hamza Cheaito (BBA ’06)Secretary: Mazen Aasi (BA ’13)Treasurer: Mirna Daher Kalot (BS ’93)Member at-large: Hani Zaatari (BEN ’16)

New Chapter

Omar Hamad, President New York Metropolitan Chapter

Fadi Jradi, President Greater Washington, DC Chapter

Bassam Hajj, PresidentEgypt Chapter

Khalil Khoreibani, PresidentIvory Coast Chapter

5150

BaltimoreChapter

MASSAyA WINETASTINg

The Debs Center,AUB New YorkOffice28 March

New York

North Americanlaunch ofAUBMC’s 150th

Anniversarywith Dr. ZiyadGhazzal Bistro Bistro Washington, DC17 March

GreaterWashington, DC

Look for more onAUBMC’s 150th inthe next issue ofThe MainGate!

gALA

Dr. Shadi Saleh and Ms. NohaHachach

A special thanks to ZapherDajani for hosting AUB at theCuvier Club. Zapher comesfrom a proud AUB legacyfamily beginning with MoussaBeidas (BA ’42), and includinghis mother Najwa BeidasDajani (BS chemistry ’62).

La Jolla, CA2 April

Southern California

WAAAUB Around the Globe For event details and photos, visit the alumni website: alumni.aub.edu.lb

United States

SPRINg PICNIC

Centennial ParkEllicott City, MD23 April

PRoFESSIoNALdEvELoPMENT

With LamiaCharleboisL’AssommoirNotre-DameMontreal18 April

MontrealCanada

AUB Everywhere

www.flickr.com/photos/aubalumni/

ANNUAL BALL“WE ARE ThEWINd BENEAThThEIR SAILS”

Al Bustan RodaHotelDubai2 March

Dubai andNorthernEmirates

Middle East/North Africa

gALA dINNER

Grand Hyatt HotelAmman9 December, 2016

Club ofJordan

UNIvERSITySChoLARShIPPRogRAMChAPTERLAUNCh

College Hall24 April

Lebanon

MEET & gREET

Eatery RestaurantCairo3 March

Egypt

5352

BRUNCh

Orjowan LebaneseRestaurantLondon19 February

UnitedKingdom

Europe

gAThERINg

Dr. Adham ElKhalil’sMansionAbidjan12 January

Ivory coastAfrica

AUB Everywhere

Fouad y. dagher (BA ’54, MD ’58)completed four years of surgicaltraining at AUH (now AUBMC), twoyears at Harvard Medical School, and ayear at the Cuyahoga Hospital inCleveland before he returned to AUB’sSurgical Department, where heperformed the first kidney transplantoperation. In 1973, he joined theDepartment of Surgery at the Universityof Maryland Medical Center, becominga tenured professor responsible for theKidney Transplant and VascularSurgery programs. His manyappointments include professor ofsurgery at the University of SouthFlorida, George Washington University,and Georgetown University where healso served as associate dean. He waschief of surgery at Bay Pine Veteran’sAffairs Medical Center in St. Petersburg,Florida, and chief of staff at the VAMedical Center in Washington, DC. In2001, Fouad served for a year as chiefmedical director and associate dean atAUBMC. He has been a visitingprofessor at numerous top-rateduniversities throughout the world. Ashe and his wife Malak Nahas (BA ’57,MA ’74) prepare to celebrate their 60thwedding anniversary, they feel blessedwith good health, an active life, threewell-established sons, and six healthygrandchildren.

Mounir E. Nassar (BS ’55, MD ’59) A cardiologist and medical author,Mounir completed his medicalresidency at Baylor University School of Medicine and a cardiorespiratory

fellowship at Columbia University’sCollege of Physicians and Surgeons. His extensive medical practice includesservice in the US Air Force Reserves atthe Sheppard Air Force Base as a Majorspecializing in medical education, aswell as time spent as associate chief ofstaff and co-director of ICU, EKG,Respiratory Therapy at Arnold GregoryMemorial Hospital in Albion, New York;chief physician at the Veteran AffairsMedical Centers in North Carolina andWestern New York; and researchvolunteer associate at the University ofRochester Medical Center. Dr. Nassar isthe recipient of the highest award forpublic service from the Department ofVeterans Affairs at Buffalo, whichincludes Western New York. He is afellow of the American HeartAssociation, an honorary seniorphysician of the American MedicalAssociation, an emeritus honorarymember of the American College ofCardiologists, and a fellow of theAmerican College of Physicians.

Dr. Nassar’s books, Clinical MedicineResearch History at The AmericanUniversity of Beirut Faculty of Medicine1920-1974 and A Physician's Odysseyand Clinical Experience, relate to his lifeand education, his specialization inclinical medicine and cardiology atBaylor College of Medicine andColumbia, and his clinical practiceexperiences with his patients’healthcare. They can be purchasedthrough the author.[[email protected]]

Class Notes

1950s

The Big GameArts and Sciences triumphs in the 1966 Centennial football (soccer) game against Engineering. The fullcentennial photo album of Zareh Arzoumanian (BBA ’70) [pictured fifth from left] can be found online.

5554

Yahya Fadl (BS ’58, MD ’63) came toAUB from Syria. He completed hisresidency in internal medicine and afellowship in hematology/oncology atthe Medical College of Virginia. Forcedto turn down a teaching post at AleppoMedical School due to unsuitableconditions, he completed militaryservice, married, and ran a smallpractice before returning to the UnitedStates in 1975, where he practiced untilhis retirement in 2008. He and his wifelive in Richmond, Virginia, near theirchildren and grandchildren. Their sonpractices cardiology in Indianapolis.

hala Asfour hunt (BA ’63) writes:“After 23 lovely years in rural France,my husband and I are moving to SanFelipe, Baja California, Mexico. We will be building our own home on thegolf course of this lovely community on the Sea of Cortez, an Americandevelopment called El Dorado Ranch. It provides all the amenities we canthink of, plus ample activities to keepus fit and entertained. We play pickleball almost every day, walk, swim, etc.There are movies twice a week andendless social events. It's a great place,so come join us active retirees. We’d liketo hear from classmates.”[[email protected]]

Jaber Sawaya (BS ’64, MD ’68) joinedthe medical school in 1964 afterfinishing three pre-med years. Hewrites: “The first shock was when wedissected cadavers in the anatomyroom. Mr. Trlikian, a sweet oldtechnician, made life easier. It was

shocking to know that most of thesecadavers were from the mental hospital. . . Studying on the old worn benches ofVan Dyck Hall gave us a sense ofcontinuity since so many generationshave sat on those benches. At the end ofthe day we hurried to wear our greenjackets with the medical emblem on thefront and stroll on campus to impressthe girls who had high esteem formedical students. And life goes on.”[[email protected]]

Fatima Sbaity Kassem (BBA ’65, MA’70) was recognized as one of the Top100 Most Influential Women inEmerging Economies by the Centre forEconomic and LeadershipDevelopment, a leading genderempowerment and human capacitydevelopment-based organizationaffiliated with the United NationsEconomic and Social Council, during anevent at the Shangri-La Hotel in Dubai,UAE last December. Fatima is theformer director of the UN-ESCWA Centrefor Women.

Faisal Rashed Al-ghais (BA ’68) is aretired ambassador. He retired in 2010after 43 years of diplomatic service. “Igraduated from AUB with a degree inpolitical science. Being a graduate ofAUB, I was welcomed into thediplomatic service of my country,Kuwait. I have always felt proud to tellpeople that I am an AUBite because thisbrings me recognition and respect. I amrightfully proud of our alma mater, andI have always wished that my childrenand grandchildren could get the samelevel of education and culturalexposure. Although half a century haspassed since I graduated, my AUBalumni friends in Kuwait and I still talkabout it as if it were yesterday.Whenever I am in Beirut for any reason,I visit the campus to satisfy mynostalgia.”

Ahmad Salim Awdeh (BA ’68, MA ’86)recounts an anecdote from the 1960sclassroom of Professor Scaife, a Britishcitizen: “The classroom door was openwhen two janitors were heard talking. Astudent, having caught a glimpse ofdisapproval on the professor’s face, rosefrom his seat with a nod to theprofessor, walked to the open door,

said, ‘Excuse me,’ closed the door, andcame back to his seat. Professor Scaifewatching, told the student, ‘That wasan example of good behavior. Thankyou.’ Students learned good behavior atAUB. An acknowledgement of itseducation is part of this good behavior.”[[email protected]]

Sayfuddin Kasir (BA ’68, MA ’71)writes: “After graduation in 1971, I didmy military service until 1974. I rejoinedAUB for doctoral studies for two yearsbut was forced to quit due to theLebanese civil war. I joined the Ministryof Education in Syria and served as ahigh school teacher, co-head master,and master of a secondary school untilmy retirement in 2003. Now I ampracticing the translation of historybooks for the Institute of Ismaili Studiesin London. The translated books arepublished by al-Saqi publishers inBeirut. The list includes about 17 titles.My family includes four children: twoboys and two girls. A son passed awayin 2008 at the age of 31. The other son ismarried and has three children. Onedaughter is married and has threechildren. The other daughter is singleand works at a hospital.”

Simon h. Kuttab (BS ’68) earned hisPhD in Organic Medicinal Chemistry atthe University of Kansas (1974). Aftercompleting postdoctoral work at theUniversity of California at Davis and atSan Francisco, Simon served as anassistant professor at NortheasternUniversity in Boston (1976-81) beforemoving to Birzeit University, Palestine,where he was a professor (1981-2015)and dean of the Faculty of Science(1989-92 and 2005-11). At Birzeit, heestablished the Center forEnvironmental Health Sciences (1982)and the Pharmacy doctoral program(2010). He currently teaches part-time asa retiree. His wife, Eileen Rizek, isassociate professor of Sociology andWomen’s Studies at Birzeit, where sheserved as director of the Women’sStudies Institute. The couple has threechildren: Rania (BA ’01), who holds anMBA from California State University;Johnny, a cardiologist at TuftsUniversity; and Rani, a medical studentat Lebanese American University.[[email protected]]

1960s

AUB Everywhere

haig Toroyan (BS ’68, BEN ’72) writes:“It was so unbelievably delightful to beat AUB that I did two majors just so Icould stay there and keep enjoying allthat it had to offer. The period wasbetween 1963 and 1972, and I earned aBS in physics and another in electricalengineering. Being surrounded by 40nationalities and being offerednumerous activities—social, scientific,sports—led to my acquiring a number ofsports trophies and success in buildingand firing a rocket while president ofthe Space Science Club under armypatronage. These achievements andothers have set a standard for mygrandchildren. For them and mydescendants, I am writing a book ofglimpses into my life to include severalchapters on what AUB is and how itimpacted my life.”[[email protected]]

Zareh Arzoumanian (BBA ’70) workedin international finance across theglobe. In 2002, he retired to Palm BeachGardens, Florida. A photo from his AUBcentennial photo album is featured atthe beginning of Class Notes. The fullalbum can be accessed in the on-lineversion of MainGate.

John Carpenter (BA ’73) writes: “TheNew York Times recently ran an articleon Steven Kerr, son of Malcolm. Whilethe tragic part of this story took placeyears after I graduated in 1973, thearticle made special mention and

included a photo of the banyan treeoutside of College Hall where Dr. Kerr is memorialized. The tree part of thestory brought back a lot of goodmemories for me as I spent many hoursup in it studying and contemplating lifeduring my wonderful four years at AUB.My AUB education prepared me for myfuture path in the fire service byteaching me how to deal constructivelywith people from differentbackgrounds. I retired as a fire chiefthree years ago after a long career ofservice. Thank you, AUB!”

Muhammad Asef Sobhi gardezi(BS ’73) attended Habibia High Schoolin Kabul, Afghanistan, and Arvada WestHigh School in Colorado (1966-67). After receiving his degree in agronomyfrom AUB’s School of Agriculture, heworked for Afghan Fertilizer Companyin Kabul until 1979, when he moved toAfghanistan’s Academy of Sciences ashead of their Department of Genetics. In 1980-81, Asef completed a project atthe Biological Research Center of theHungarian Academy of Sciences, and in 1986 he earned an MS from KabulUniversity. In 1994, in the middle of thecivil war in Afghanistan, he joined theInternational Committee of the RedCross as a health adviser, a position heheld until 2013. In 2010, Asef attended a health emergency course at AUB,bringing back lots of memories. He hasbeen retired for three years. “I am proudof being an AUB graduate, and now Ihave contact with all my Agricultureclassmates through the Internet.”[[email protected]]

Raghid Nahhas (BS ’73, MS ’76) earneda PhD in environmental zoology fromUniversity of Hull, England in 1981. Aresearcher, adviser, consultant, andsenior manager, he worked in marinesciences and urban pollution in Syria,with the United Nations’ EnvironmentProgram among others, and in Australia(since 1987) with the VictorianEnvironment Protection Authority andlater with Australian WaterTechnologies. He is now retired,focusing on his interest in creativewriting in English and Arabic. He haspublished several literary books andedited and published 26 issues of aninternational magazine of creativewritings. Raghid lives in Sydney,Australia, with his wife. They have twodaughters and two grandchildren.

Mohamad S. Jaafar (BS ’74, MD ’78) haskept close contacts with the maincampus and AUB alumni. On June 30,2016, Mohamad was installed as thefirst Endowed Chair in Ophthalmologyin Washington, DC. Mohamad wasrecognized for his numerous clinical,academic, and advocacy achievementsand for promoting pediatricophthalmology training worldwide. Thespecial installation ceremony wasattended by the Children’s NationalHealth System Board of Directors,leadership, faculty, and staff; membersof the Washington medical community;and family and friends. On March 23,2016, Mohamad was also honored withthe inauguration of the AnnualMohamad S. Jaafar VisitingProfessorship. He is the Dorothy, Jay,Kara, and Mark Weinstein Professor andChief of Ophthalmology at Children’sNational Health System and Professorof Ophthalmology and Pediatrics at

“My AUBeducation

prepared me formy future path inthe fire service byteaching me how

to dealconstructively

with people fromdifferent

backgrounds.”

John Carpenter(BA ‘73)

1970s

5756

George Washington University,Washington, DC.

Imad dandan (BS ’78, MD ’83) receivedthe Outstanding Service Award fromAUB’s Surgical Alumni Association ofNorth America. Imad is trauma medicaldirector at Scripps Memorial Hospital inLa Jolla, California.

Ranya Nasrallah (BS ’85, MS ’03)received a bachelor’s degree inagriculture engineering and a master’sdegree in plant sciences in 2003. Shewas a self-employed landscapeengineer for 18 years, designing andexecuting landscape designs in gardenssuch as Holiday Beach and others. In1995, she founded the NGO CrossTalk,which provides ecumenical Christianeducation, promotes family and civicvalues, and dispenses humanitarianrelief to needy populations.[www.mycrosstalk.org]

hrayr Attarian (BS ’88, MD ’92) is aprofessor of neurology at NorthwesternUniversity Feinberg School of Medicinein Chicago and the director of the SleepMedicine Fellowship program. Hespecializes in sleep disorders andrecently published the third edition ofhis textbook A Clinical Handbook ofInsomnia. He has published 60-pluspeer-reviewed articles and two othertextbooks and has presented atinternational conferences including,most recently, at the Chest WorldCongress in Shanghai. In his spare time,Hrayr is a professional jazz critic andwidely published writer in musicmagazines.

ghassan Abdel Rahman (BEN ’88,EMBA ’06) has been living in Abu Dhabisince 1989. He is a group managingpartner at Midis Site & Power, UAE. Anactive alumni, Ghassan has served as a committee member of the Abu DhabiChapter, a WAAAUB council member, a member of the WAAAUB ChaptersCommittee that lobbied for the creationof the EMBA (Executive Master’s inBusiness Administration) chapter, andof the nomination committee at thetime of EMBA’s first elections. He hasserved as a judge for the DarwazahStudent Innovation Contest and is amember of AUB’s President’s Club.Ghassan’s eldest daughter Lyn is agraphic design student at AUB,expected to graduate in 2017. He writes, “I cannot wait to attend thecommencement, so many years after my graduation.”

Adib Jaber, (BS ’89, MD ’93) has been apracticing ophthalmologist in Beirutsince 1997. His practice includesmedical as well as surgical treatment ofeye disease. Adib is a regular volunteerwith the Special Olympics, anorganization concerned with theintegration and well-being ofintellectually disabled, special needspeople. He helps provide free eyecheckups and free eyeglasses for thispopulation in Lebanon and worldwide.Adib is married to Nada Sbeity. Theyhave four children: Hassane, Dani,Raed, and Iyad. [[email protected]]

Shadi Mhaish (BBA ’96, MBA ’98)moved to Toronto, Canada, two yearsago. He is an accomplished financeleader with 20 years of corporatefinance, accounting, and consultingexperience. With a multitude ofcertifications (CFA, CPA, CMA, andCFM), Shadi believes that learning is anon-stop, lifelong activity. He stillremembers the good old days spent atAUB. His two daughters enjoy playingon the Greenfield whenever they visitBeirut. Shadi proudly provides trainingevery year to AUBMC finance andaccounting staff, and he makes surethat he visits the AUB campus duringthat period. [[email protected]]

Michel Nawfal (BS ’98, MA ’09) is a medical doctor and a clinicalpsychologist. He earned a bachelor’sdegree in biology (pre-med), a master’sin psychology, and a medical degree at St. George’s University School ofMedicine. He completed an internshipin general psychotherapy at AUBMCand a training with supervision inCognitive Behavioral Therapy at theBeck Institute. With a post-graduatecourse in psychopharmacotherapy from Harvard Medical School, Michelhas a unique skill set. He practices inLebanon as a prescribing psychologist.Professional affiliations includeProfessional Colleague and FellowMember of the Academy of CognitiveTherapy, full member of the AmericanPsychological Association (APA), boardmember of the Lebanese Psychological

“I cannot wait toattend the

commencement[of my daughterLyn], so manyyears after mygraduation.”

Ghassan Abdel Rahman(BEN ’88, EMBA ’06)

1980s

1990s

Wadih Fadi haddad (BBA ’03) firstworked for a multinational logisticscompany before founding the self-storage company The Box in Dubai. The Box now has additional locations in Beirut and Qatar. Wadih has beenmarried for five years. He has a 3-year-old son and a daughter on the way.[[email protected]][www.theboxme.com]

Nabeel Anthony Saad (BS ’03) works asa Google Cloud customer engineer inLondon. He and his wife Elisa have a 9-month-old daughter named Matildaand a dog named Wizard. “Life isgenerally good, enjoying the hustlebustle of London and do like theopportunity to catch up with folks fromAUB. If anyone is coming throughLondon, reach out and say hi.”[[email protected]]

Association (LPA), and social affairsdirector on the board of the Middle EastEating Disorders Association. Accordingto Dr. Nawfal “One who has not been toAUB at least once in their life has notreceived a proper education.”[[email protected]][www.nawfalclinics.com]

Ramsey Jurdi (BA ’01) has joined theglobal law firm of DLA Piper in Dubai asa Partner. Ramsey is an internationaldisputes, regulatory, and tradecompliance lawyer. He has particularexperience advising on compliancewith respect to economic sanctions andexport controls, defending white-collarcriminal inquiries, and conductingspecial investigations. Ramseycontinues to serve as the electedPresident of the American Chamber ofCommerce organization in Dubai andthe American Business Council ofDubai & the Northern Emirates.

Jihane W. Najjar (BA ’01, MA ’03) livesin Athens, Greece with her husbandChahan R. Bezirjian (BBA ’04) andtheir son Rodrigue Charles. Afterfinishing a master’s degree in PublicAdministration, Jihane lived in Qatar,UAE, and Lebanon where she heldseveral positions in the public andprivate sectors. Her last position was asHR leader for Tyco International,Middle East, a security systems and fireprotection company based in Princeton,New Jersey. In 2012, Jihane establishedLeverage HR Consultants, which shecurrently owns and manages. Jihaneand Chahan are expecting their secondbaby this year. [[email protected]]h

AUB Everywhere

“Life is generally good,enjoying the hustle bustleof London and do like theopportunity to catch upwith folks from AUB.”

Nabeel Anthony Saad(BS ’03)

Register for the AUB AlumniOnline Community! It’s yourone stop for all things AUB!

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In Memoriamgeorge Khalil haddad (BA ’36, MD ’40) wasborn in Cairo, Egypt, and passed away in BeitMery, Mt. Lebanon, last January at the age of101. His father Khalil graduated from AUB in1896 with a degree in Pharmacy. Encouragedto pursue medicine by an aunt who was anurse in New York, Dr. Haddad embarked ona long, exemplary career as a surgeonworking primarily in New York City publichospitals. One year he performed moresurgeries than any other physician in theentire city. A thoughtful and deeply

principled man, Dr. Haddad was widelyrespected for his professional judgement,selfless commitment to patients, unrivalledwork ethic, meticulous courtesy, andgenerous mentoring of staff. He was also aninnovator who devised methods to helpcurtail unnecessarily invasive abdominalsurgeries. Dr. Haddad spent his final years inhis mother’s hometown in Beit Mery, Mt.Lebanon. He is survived by his cherishedbrother Albert, cousins, nieces, and nephews.

Alumni

Notices forIn Memoriammay be sent [email protected]

Joseph Aziz Sabri (BA ’41, MD ’46) passedaway peacefully on September 6, 2016, at theage of 95 in Herndon, Virginia. Dr. Sabricompleted a residency at the University ofToronto and postgraduate work at theUniversity of Pennsylvania. After settling inArlington, Virginia, he spent much of theremainder of his medical career (1954-99) as a partner and intermittent chairman of theYater Clinic. He was an associate clinicalprofessor at George Washington University;chairman of the Department ofOtolaryngology at the Washington HospitalCenter (1970-71); and chairman of theDepartment of Otolaryngology at ArlingtonHospital (1977-97). Dr. Sabri publishedextensively on surgical techniques inotolaryngology journals and was consistentlynamed as a Top-100 Physician in Washington,DC, by Washingtonian magazine. He retired

from private practice on his 85th birthday. Dr.Sabri is remembered by generations ofpatients as an exuberant man, a talenteddiagnostician, and a compassionatehealer—qualities that cannot be taught. Inaddition, he mentored generations ofphysicians who recall his superior teachingskills and innovative surgical approaches.Some of these doctors became leaders in theirfield in the United States and the Middle East.Dr. Sabri is survived by sons Philip, Jeffrey,Andrew, Christopher, and Michael; daughtersKatherine and Elizabeth; and fivegrandchildren. He mentored three nephews:Rony, Roy, and Alain Sabri (BS ’88, MD ’92)during their educational years in the UnitedStates.

(Editor’s thanks to nephew Alain and daughter-in-lawLyndee for their contributions to this piece.)

Salma Mansur Jurdak (BS ’42), passed awayon March 20 in Washington, DC, at the age of97. Born in Beirut, Salma was the fourth ofsix children. She and her siblings—all AUBgraduates—grew up on the AUB campuswhere their father was the eminent professorof mathematics and astronomy Mansur

Hanna Jurdak (BA 1901, MA 1907).After World War II, Salma moved to theUnited States where she served as a secretaryat the recently opened Legation of Lebanonin Washington, DC. There, she joined herolder sister Angela Jurdak Khoury (BA ’37,MA ’38) who was serving as a diplomatic

george Khalil haddad (BA ’36, Md ’40)

Joseph Aziz Sabri (BA ’41, Md ’46)

5958

Alumni

Said Mohammad Abuhamdeh (BBA ’55) wasborn in Jerusalem, Palestine, and passed awaypeacefully, surrounded by family, on January15 at the age of 91 in McLean, Virginia.Photography was his lifelong hobby. At hisgraduation ceremony in 1955, the AUBPresident jokingly told him he should havereceived a degree in photography instead ofbusiness administration. After working brieflyas Emile Bustani’s personal assistant at theContracting and Trading Company (CAT), Mr.Abuhamdeh launched his career inphotography, and elevated the art of the

captured image into a credible profession inLebanon. Commissioned by top globalmagazines, including National Geographic,Time, and The Daily Telegraph (London), hewas also recognized for his documentaryfilms; photo essays of major events, worldleaders and artists; and work documentingindustrial projects throughout the MiddleEast. In 1980, after the onset of the civil war,Mr. Abuhamdeh moved with his family toMcLean, Virginia. He is survived by his wifeNawal Beidas Abuhamdeh; three sons Rami,Fadi, and Zahi; and six grandchildren.

Elias georges Abu-Saba (BEN ’56) passedaway on September 28, 2016, in Alameda,California, at the age of 77. A polymath andhighly regarded engineer, professor, poet,philosopher, and peace activist, Dr. Abu-Sabawon a fellowship to study at the Pacific Schoolof Religion in Berkeley while earning an MSand PhD in engineering from VirginiaPolytechnic Institute. He worked as astructural engineer and taught at King Saud

University, Bucknell University, and BradleyUniversity before settling down as a fullprofessor at North Carolina A&T StateUniversity in 1975, where he taught for twodecades. Dr. Abu-Saba authored the textbookThe Design of Steel Structures, as well asseveral volumes of poetry. He is survived byhis wife, Dr. Mary Bentley Abu-Saba;daughter, Leila; son Khalil; and fivegrandchildren.

vasken Najarian (BEN ’55) was born inKessab, Syria, on January 31, 1932, and passedaway on October 12, 2015, in La Habra,California. At the age of six, he relocated withhis family to Lebanon where he attended theArmenian Evangelical High School. Offered ascholarship from the University of California,Los Angeles, he earned a master’s degree andjoined Bechtel Power Corporation in LosAngeles. After three years, he returned toLebanon where he met and married MelineDeirmenjian. From 1960-67, Mr. Najarian wasthe Middle East representative for ARMCOSteel Corporation of Ohio. He then moved toLos Angeles and rejoined Bechtel PowerCorporation, where he worked for 25 years as

a nuclear power plant engineer. Known for hisdeep spirituality and generous support ofArmenia and the Armenian people, Najarianwas a highly valued member of the WesternPrelacy of the Armenian Church; the FortyMartyrs Armenian Apostolic Church of OrangeCounty and Minassian School; MashdotsCollege; and American-ArmenianInternational College, where he served on theBoard of Trustees. He is survived by his wifeMeline; his two brothers Vartkes (BA ’52, MD’57) and Vrej; two sons Paul and Haig, bothMD graduates of University of SouthernCalifornia; a daughter Eileen; and fivegrandchildren.

Said MohammadAbuhamdeh

(BBA ’55)

vasken Najarian (BEN ’55)

Elias georges Abu-Saba (BEN ’56)

representative of Lebanon to the UnitedStates. Angela was the mother of current AUBBoard Chairman Philip S. Khoury.

In 1955, Salma was part of the Lebanesedelegation to the Bandung Conference inIndonesia. She met Gamal Abdel Nasser,Jawaharlal Nehru, Zhou Enlai, KwameNkrumah, Marshall Tito and other founders ofthe emerging non-aligned movement. Shespent the remainder of her career in Beirut asthe personal assistant and secretary to Emile

Bustani (BA ’29, MA ’32), the founder of theContracting & Trading Company, the leadingconstruction and contracting company in theMiddle East at the time. In the late 1980sSalma made a permanent move to live withher sister Angela in Washington, DC. Salmasurvived her five siblings. She is survived bynine nephews and nieces, who have beenguided by her example and fondly rememberher warmth and generosity.

In Memoriam

John (Jack) Stanley dagilaitis (MA ’68) wasborn on February 8, 1927, in Kansas City,Missouri, and passed away on October 27,2016, in Tualatin, Oregon. At the age of 17 hejoined the US Navy and served as a medic inthe Pacific during World War II. After the war,Mr. Dagilaitis earned a BA at Trinity College,Dublin, where he excelled in mathematicsand philosophy and became active inDublin’s theater scene. In the 1950s, he taughtremedial English and mathematics at theUniversity of Maryland. In 1963, Mr. Dagilaitisseized an opportunity to work in the MiddleEast and teach English as a Second Languageat the University of Aleppo in Syria. He

worked in Aleppo for one year before movingto Beirut to head USAID’s American LanguageCenter (ALC), a position he held for the next50 years. Teaching undergraduate levelhumanities at AUB during the Lebanese CivilWar, Mr. Dagilaitis became a very activemember of the Beirut community, specificallywith Americans for Justice in the Middle East(AJME) and with the AUB Drama club. Hedirected and acted in several plays at AUBover the years. In recent years, he was astrong advocate for educating refugees inLebanon. He is survived by his daughterCassie Wait, son Blaise, and fourgrandchildren.

Larry Anna Patten Afifi (DIPLM ’58, MA ’80)was born on September 7, 1936, and passedaway on November 26, 2016. In addition toher AUB degrees, she earned a bachelor’sdegree in social work from LAU and adoctorate in education from the University ofIowa. Dr. Afifi enjoyed a long, fruitful careeras a nurse, educator, and public healthadvocate. Starting as a staff nurse at AramcoSaudi Arabia, she returned to AUB’s School of Nursing and Faculty of Health Sciences toteach, chair, and direct important publichealth initiatives during one of the mostdifficult periods in the history of Lebanon.She moved to the United States in 1984, andsettled with her family in Iowa City. There,she served as the executive director of theIowa City Hospice, taught in the University of Iowa’s College of Nursing, and served asDirector of Nursing at its Student Health

Clinic. Dr. Afifi was awarded a Certificate of Recognition from the Iowa House ofRepresentatives. She advanced healtheducation and health services throughout the Middle East in consultations with theMinistries of Health in Lebanon, Jordan,Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia; WHO; UNICEF;Aid to International Development (AID);AMIDEAST; The Ford Foundation; andCatholic Relief Services. A member of severalprofessional associations, Afifi was elected to Sigma Theta Tau, the Nursing HonorarySociety. She is survived by her husband AdelAfifi (BA ’51, MD ’57), a former AUB professorof anatomy and neurology; daughter Rima,Associate Dean and Professor, FHS; sonWalid, a professor at the University ofCalifornia, Santa Barbara; and fivegranddaughters.

Alumni

Notices forIn Memoriammay be sent [email protected]

John (Jack) Stanleydagilaitis(MA ’68)

Nadim Shamat (BEN ’69) was born in Jaffa,Palestine, in 1945, and passed away in St.Paul, Minnesota, on August 26, 2016. Hereceived a master’s degree and a doctorate inengineering at the University of Minnesota. Awell-respected engineer throughout hiscareer, Dr. Shamat worked for the Los AngelesCounty Sanitation District, the MinnesotaMetropolitan Council of Environmental

Services, ACE International, and Metcalf andEddy, International. He also taught civilengineering courses at the University ofMinnesota. He is best remembered for hisintelligence, compassion, sense of humor,and dedication to his work. Nadim lives on in the hearts of his wife of 32 years, SylviaSchwarz, and their two sons, Dylan and Hani.

Nabih Emile Najjar (BEN ’89) was born atBishmizzine, El Koura, Lebanon, onSeptember 1, 1965, and passed away atAUBMC on February 11, 2016. He was a civilengineer and project manager with a numberof major construction companies. His careerstarted when he joined Nasr Construction as asite engineer on the building of the AlMiramar beach resort in Tripoli. He later

moved to oil drilling projects in Nigeria andstructural design and project management ofhospitals in the Gulf. From 1994-98 Mr. Najjarworked with HLW architectural engineeringfirm as a senior civil engineer responsible forthe meticulous reconstruction andmodernization of College Hall. From 1999 to2014 he was project manager for Almabani ona number of major infrastructure projects in

Nadim Shamat(BEN ’69)

Nabih Emile Najjar(BEN ’89)

Larry Anna Patten Afifi(dIPLM ’58, MA ’80)

60 61

Alumni

Margot K. Baldwin, a longtime supporter ofAUB, passed away on December 7, 2016, inNew York City, where she was born in 1929. Afacile linguist, Mrs. Baldwin loved to traveland enjoyed living abroad in Argentina, Paris,Puerto Rico, and Lebanon in the 1950s andearly 1960s. While in Lebanon, she developeda close friendship with Lebanese artist AidaMarini. She married William Baldwin in 1963and settled in New York, taking full advantageof the city’s cultural riches and manyvolunteer opportunities. From 1970-85, sheworked as an executive secretary at BMI

(Broadcast Music Incorporated). Sheremained devoted to Beirut and AUBthroughout her life and recently gifted apainting by Marini to the AUB Art Galleries.Mrs. Baldwin will be remembered for herintelligence, broad curiosity, and keen senseof humor as well as for her passion andcompassion for the people of the Middle East.She is survived by her brother Don; sonsGlenn and Mark; five grandchildren; eightgreat-grandchildren; and twogreat-great-grandchildren.

Saloua Raouda Choucair (former student,DHL ’14), a pioneer of abstract art in the Arabworld, passed away on January 26 at the ageof 100. Born in Ain Mreisseh where she livedmost of her life, Dr. Choucair remained largelyunknown outside of a small circle ofcognoscenti until a 2013 solo exhibition at the Tate Modern in London that earned herenormous public and critical acclaim.Choucair worked in a multitude of media and art forms, but she is best known for hersculptures, particularly the modular worksmade of interlocking pieces that can be takenapart and reordered. She attributed heroriginal theories of Islamic art and Arabic

abstraction to inspiration derived fromscience and mathematics, Islamic religion,design, and poetry, as well as to AUBphilosophy courses. She studied in the studiosof painters Moustafa Farroukh and Omar Onsiin Lebanon and at the Atelier de l’Art Abstraitin Paris. Her 1947 exhibition at the ArabCultural Gallery in Beirut is considered tohave been the Arab world's first in abstractpainting. A retrospective exhibition waspresented at the Beirut Exhibition Center in2011. Dr. Choucair received an honorarydoctorate from AUB in 2014. She is survived by her daughter, artist Hala Schoukair.

howard Bliss Leavitt died peacefully onOctober 15, 2016, at the age of 95, in Amherst,Massachusetts. A graduate of DartmouthCollege, Dr. Leavitt was the son of LeslieWestbrook Leavitt, a president ofInternational College, and the great-grandsonof AUB founder Daniel Bliss. He taught at AUBas a professor of education from 1955-57 and,with a doctorate in education from ColumbiaUniversity, pursued a career in academia,teaching at Northern Illinois University,Boston University, and the University ofMassachusetts, Amherst. In 1962, Dr. Leavittjoined the US State Department’s Agency forInternational Development where he spentseveral years establishing US-sponsorededucational projects around the globe. He

then worked at the World Bank under theleadership of Robert McNamara. Recognizedas an expert in international education,Leavitt returned to academia to serve asCoordinator of International Programs atPennsylvania State University. He authored oredited several academic articles and books,including First Encounters, Native Voices onthe Coming of the Europeans in 2010. An avidoutdoorsman throughout his life, Dr. Leavittbecame interested in creating art in his lateryears; over a 20-year span, he producedwonderful oil paintings. He is predeceased byhis wife Margaret and son Ken Leavitt, andsurvived by his wife Joan Ibish; sons Hunt,John, and Don; six grandchildren; and twogreat-grandchildren.

Margot K. Baldwin

howard Bliss Leavitt

Friends

Saudi Arabia, including the Dir’h Al-Jaziramilitary project, the new passenger terminalbuilding at King Abdul Aziz InternationalAirport in Jeddah, and Najran DomesticAirport, as well as the Petrochemical City inRabigh for Kettaneh Construction. Najjar wasa member of the Order of Engineers, Tripoli,Lebanon, and of the Saudi Council of

Engineers. A man of deep spirituality, he andhis wife enjoyed participating in the seasonalactivities on their land in El Koura andrenovating the family home in Bishmizzine.He is survived by his mother Hala Sarkis; hiswife Najwa Achkar; his daughter Huda; andhis three AUB graduate sisters, Maha, Huda,and Nahla.

In Memoriam

6362

Maroun Semaan (BEN ’77) was born in DeirDeghaya, South Lebanon on December 30,1955 and passed away in Boston,Massachusetts on May 1. An influentialbusinessman, entrepreneur andphilanthropist, Mr. Semaan held projectmanagement positions at ConsolidatedContractors International Co. related to oiland gas pipelines, process facilities, and civilworks projects in Oman and Bahrain beforecofounding the highly successful oil and gascompany Petrofac International in 1991. Heled the company and its affiliates in seniorlevel positions, including Group COO andGroup President until his retirement in 2013,when he joined the AUB Board of Trustees.

Mr. Semaan had served in trustee positionsbefore at American University of Sharjah andas a founding member of the Arab Forum forEnvironment and Development, and he waswell versed in the mechanics of effectingtransformational change. In 2011 heestablished the Semaan Foundation as avehicle for his philanthropy and he set on acourse to create a new mission of innovationand sustainability at what is now aptly namedthe Maroun Semaan Faculty of Architectureand Engineering at AUB. In a life dedicated tobroad scope change in education, health andsocial welfare, and the development ofsustainable energies, Mr. Semaan never lostenthusiasm for his vision of a brightertomorrow for the talented youth of the MiddleEast. He spent his final years bravely battlingcancer while staying active in the energy,telecommunications and real estateindustries, and making sure that the BOLDLYAUB Campaign would fulfill its mission tolead, innovate, and serve for the next 150years.

Maroun Semaan is survivedby his wife Tania, his threedaughters Nour, Tala andMaya, and six siblings;brothers George andSemaan, and sistersMary, Nadia, Nasra, andSaydeh.

“Maroun was a genuinelygreat and humble man,whose work and whoseimpact will resonatethrough the ages. . . . Aninfluential entrepreneur and incredibly successfulbusinessman, Maroun Semaanwas also a true civic leader andengaged citizen. His inspiredphilanthropy has touched innumerable lives. Mr. Semaan and the SemaanFoundation, which he founded in 2011, haveprovided much-needed support in the fieldsof education, hospitalization, and socialwelfare, focusing on the Middle East.”President Fadlo R. Khuri

“The University today mourns the loss of itsstudent, alumnus, trustee, role model andphilanthropist Maroun Semaan. Marounbelieved deeply in the power of education andits role in preparing the citizen leader. Hislove for and service to AUB knew no bounds.Fittingly, his legacy will endure through theages, as generations of engineers andarchitects will graduate from the school thathe did, and which now most fittingly bearshis name.”Chairman Philip S. Khoury

“I will miss Maroun as a business partner anda very close friend and confidant, but mostlyas a great human being whom I wasprivileged to interact with for decades.”AUB Trustee Ayman AsfariCofounder, Petrofact International

“For believing that well-meaning people can change the world for the better, forbelieving in the Faculty’s mission to bringabout a more viable, livable, and equitableworld, and for investing in our ability to carryon this important work, we will be forever inhis debt.” Alan Shihadeh, Interim Dean, FEA

[For more on Trustee Semaan’s philanthropy, please seethe BOLDLY AUB Campaign insert in this issue.]

A memorial tribute was held in Assembly Hall on December 12, 2016, for Clovis Maksoud (BA ’48). Adistinguished diplomat, journalist, public intellectual, lawyer, author, and professor, Dr. Maksoudpassed away on May 15th, 2016 in Washington, DC (In Memoriam, MainGate, Spring/Summer 2016). In poetry and prose, friends, family, and dignitaries gathered to celebrate a long life dedicated to Arabnationalism, Palestinian rights, and better relations between the United States and the Arab world.Upon acceptance of a Daniel Bliss Award in 1990, Dr. Maksoud encouraged others to take up the cause with words that still resonate today: “In this trying period and in the momentous whirlwind ofdevelopments and of conflicting trends, we must all endeavor to bring forward the inner calm instilledin us by the liberal education AUB provided. Our responsibility at this juncture is to embolden our willto determine our national priorities, our conscience to guide our action, and our people to regaincontrol over their destiny.”

A Visionary Philanthropist

A memorial to remember

C o l l e C T i b l e S

STAMPS

To honor of AUB’s role and impact inLebanon and the region over 150 years,a commemorative stamp designed bythe creative team in AUB’s Office ofCommunications was issued byLibanPost, in coordination with theMinistry of Telecommunications. Thelimited collection was postmarked withthe issue date December 3, 2016—exactly 150 years after AUB’s foundingon December 3, 1866. The stamps andfirst-day covers are available atLibanPost offices.

This is the second stamp that theMinistry of Telecommunications hasissued to honor AUB. A special set ofcommemorative stamps was issued into honor AUB’s centennial in 1966.

CoINS

The Central Bank of Lebanon – Banque Du Liban (BDL) issued a limitedseries of official, pure silver commemorativecoins to honor AUB’s 150th Anniversary.One thousand sets of five distinctive coinsin three-dimensional shapes representiconic places on the AUB campus: MainGate (1 LL); College Hall (10 LL); AssemblyHall (10 LL); Lee Observatory (10 LL); andGreen Field (5 LL). In addition, 1,000individual coins of Main Gate (10 LL) and another 1,000 of College Hall (10 LL)were issued. BDL retained half of the coins for its archives and for internationalcollectors, and AUB received the remaininghalf. Bank Governor Riad Salameh (BS ’73)commented that the coins honor AUB’sspecial leadership role in academia andmedicine, community engagement andsocial welfare, in Lebanon and the regionas a whole.

The commemorative coins are availablethrough AUB’s Office of Advancement. Net proceeds will support the 150th Endowed Scholarship Fund.

For coin inquiries and requests forpurchase, contact:[email protected]

See the coins and learn more about theirhistory, including the unique design andintricate production process at:150.aub.edu.lb/ coins/

Lead,Innovate,

Serve.

Lead, Innovate, Serve: A Visual history of theAmerican University of Beirut’s First One Hundredand Fifty Years (AUB Press, 2016) is a stunningvisual narrative of an institution with anextraordinary story to tell. Historic photographsand copies of original documents from thearchives of AUB’s Jafet Library provide a richassortment of maps, charters, letters, newspaperarticles, drawings, and ephemera from theOttoman Empire to national independence, theLebanese civil war and post-war rebirth. Thisbeautifully crafted book, edited by Ada H. Porterand designed by alumnus Nour Kanafani, is amoving testament to the University’s strength,resilience, and endurance.

Proceeds from sales of the book support the 150for 150 Scholarship Fund.

To purchase a copy, visit AUB Press:aub.edu.lb/aubpress/

6564

The Munib and Angela Masri Institute of Energy andNatural Resources building, designed by BuildersDesign Consultants, is expected to open in Fall 2018.

For more information, visit:www.aub.edu.lb/facilities/fpdu/Pages/Munib-%26-Angela-Masri-Building-Construction.aspx

Return Address

American University of Beirut3 Dag Hammarskjold Plaza8th FloorNew York, NY 10017-2303

American University of Beirut Magazine. Spring 2017, Vol...

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