American University of Sharjah (AUS) has recently awarded the Sheikh Khalifa Scholarship to four of its outstanding students. The award is part of AUS initiative to encourage students' academic excellence and leadership skills.

Winners of Sheikh Khalifa Scholarship for this year were Ali Shadmanian, School of Business Administration; Nada Ramadan, College of Arts and Sciences; Moataz Abdrabou, College of Engineering; and Anaisabel Olvera Alacio, College of Architecture, Art and Design.

The Sheikh Khalifa Scholarship is awarded to AUS students who excel academically, show distinguished societal service and leadership skills, demonstrate talent in their field of study, and participate in university and extracurricular activities.

Dr. Thomas Hochstettler, AUS Acting Chancellor, congratulated the students and praised them for their achievements. "This is the high point of every academic year when we take the time to recognize and celebrate the achievements of some of our most distinguished students," said the Acting Chancellor. "It is a great honor to be awarded the Sheikh Khalifa scholarship and we are extremely proud of our students on their achievement," he added.

Kevin Mitchell, Vice Provost for Undergraduate Affairs and Instruction, congratulated the winners on being selected and praised them for their hard work and dedication. "This is the highest award given at AUS, and it is probably the one that has most scrutiny. The awardees have been through two levels of review. There is a comprehensive review of each candidate at the school and college level," explained Mitchell. "These recommendations are then forwarded to a committee at the university level. The committee comprises people from academics as well as from the Office of Student Affairs and the Office of Public Affairs," he added.

The Sheikh Khalifa Scholarship awardees receive funding that covers up to 16 credit hours for four consecutive semesters or until graduation requirements are met. The scholarship funds come from the revenues of an AED 10 million donation by His Highness Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, to AUS during a visit to Sharjah University City in 2005.