FOREWORD

Welcome to the American University of Sharjah (AUS), where Middle East and Western cultures blend to provide our students, faculty and staff a life experience rich in culture, continuous learning and personal fulfillment. We have prepared this Human Resource Policy Manual by following the vision and spirit of the founder of AUS, His Highness, Sheikh Dr. Sultan Bin Mohamed Al Qassimi, Member of the Supreme Council, Ruler of Sharjah and President of the American University of Sharjah.

You are entering a unique organization that is employing cutting edge practices in education in the Gulf region. Here are a couple of excerpts from our Mission Statement:

"AUS will admit students solely on the basis of their academic qualifications regardless of race, color, gender, religion, disabilities, age or national origin. The creation of a multicultural, coeducational, international academic community is both a means and an end in the mission of the University." "AUS will adapt the model of the great American universities of the 20^th century to the cultural setting of the Gulf in preparation for serving the educational needs of a new century."

This Manual represents our best effort to formulate guidelines that underscore and promulgate the Mission of AUS. The level of employee morale and productivity that we seek depends on our having human resource policies that are well conceived, clearly stated and consistently applied. Our aim is to achieve both the reality and the perception of fairness in our treatment of all members of the AUS community. I believe this Manual gives us the framework for accomplishing this aim.

The execution of the policy is fundamentally a matter of becoming knowledgeable of the Manual contents and committed to fair and consistent administration and interpretation of the policies. The success of written policies depends upon the quality of the manner of interaction with and the quality of the judgment used by our Deans, Directors, Managers and Supervisors in their dealings with subordinates and associates.

We must all seek to carry out these policies with consistency, sensitivity and good common sense. It is important to remember that we are an educational institution with a clear mission. Our goal is nothing less than the creation of an academic community. Our policies provide us with order and effectiveness, which allows us to maximize the resources, both financial and human, with which we have to work. Both the stated policies and our practice should reflect the values of the American University of Sharjah.

Winfred Thompson

Chancellor