The American University of Sharjah Alumni Association (AUSAA) held its annual AUS Alumni Sharjah iftar yesterday, August 6, 2012 at the AUS Main Building. The event this year was held in memory of the late Dr. Ibrahim El Sadek, Professor of Mathematics and Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.

Speaking at the event, AUS Chancellor Dr. Peter Heath, expressed his happiness at seeing so many of the alumni journey back to "their academic home," in busy family times like Ramadan. He said it was perhaps the best way to commemorate Dr. El Sadek's passing by pausing to reflect on why the AUS community will miss him so much. 

"Dr. El Sadek was one of the AUS pioneer faculty members; he joined the university when it was founded in 1997. More importantly, Dr. El Sadek lived and breathed the AUS vision of creating a university that would provide first-rate education for the youth of the UAE and the Gulf. Because he believed so strongly in this vision, he made sure that his own contributions to the university had great impact," remarked Dr. Heath. 

"Dr. El Sadek was a man of quiet intelligence, constant good humor, integrity and honesty. He represented the ideal of the devoted and caring teacher - someone who works each day to ensure that his students understand and enjoy the intricacies of the math courses he teaches. Ibrahim was a committed researcher, but teaching was his passion," added the chancellor.

Chancellor Heath extended his gratitude and appreciation to Sharjah Islamic Bank for its generosity in sponsoring the well-attended iftar which brought 500 AUS alumni back to the main campus. "Sharjah Islamic Bank has been a particularly distinguished corporate partner of American University of Sharjah, a partnership AUS is especially proud of," he said. 

Dr. Heath also thanked KAF for their generous support as part of the 'AUS Business Network' in contributing a US$10,000 scholarship to the AUS Alumni Scholarship Fund.

Welcoming the alumni back to AUS, Dr. Nada Mourtada-Sabbah, Vice Chancellor for Development and Alumni Affairs, said, "Although the holy month is a particularly busy time for family and friends, the sheer number of returning graduates in memory of the late Dr. Ibrahim El Sadek at this special iftar testifies to the very dear place Dr. El Sadek holds in their hearts and that AUS is part of their wider family."

"Dr. El Sadek was a treasured mentor to the AUS community and a cherished professor who many of us have worked with since 1997 when he came to AUS as a pioneer faculty," said Dr. Mourtada-Sabbah. "He came to epitomize the educational mission of AUS, in having you, our young alumni, join the ranks of the educated, well equipped in skilled ways of visualizing the world."

On behalf of the alumni, AUSAA President Ahmed Al Jbori announced the Dr. Ibrahim El Sadek Alumni Scholarship Fund that has been set up in order to commemorate Dr. El Sadek's unwavering devotion to education. The earnings of the Dr. Ibrahim El Sadek Alumni Scholarship Fund will be kept by the university as an endowment fund (waqf) and will also be matched by the university so that the impact of the scholarship is magnified and the amount allocated to its awardees is doubled.

Throughout his career, Dr. El Sadek helped many students find their educational niche. "In this way, the values that he dedicated his life to will continue under his name at AUS," said al Jbori. 

"We hope that you will join us in contributing whatever amount you think appropriate to this very worthwhile scholarship endowment fund in Dr. El Sadek's name so that AUS's world-renowned education may be made available to talented and deserving students and alumni as Professor El Sadek would have wished for them," stated Al Jbori.

Also pesent at the iftar were Mohammed Youssef, a representative of Sharjah Islamic Bank; Nour Foudeh, a representative of KAF; and other senior AUS officials. Members from Dr. El Sadek's family were also present at the event.