Sultan Presides over AUS Board of Trustees and approves the creation of Industrial Engineering Department

His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan Bin Mohammad Al Qassimi, Supreme Council Member, Ruler of Sharjah and President of American University of Sharjah (AUS) presided over a meeting of the AUS Board of Trustees at AUS today. The board approved the establishment of an industrial engineering department. Sheikh Sultan said he was pleased with the development and headway made by AUS in consonance with its mission and strategic initiatives and thanked the members of the board for their commitment to the university.

Following the meeting, Dr. Peter Heath, Chancellor of AUS, said the Department of Industrial Engineering was created to house the undergraduate program in industrial engineering and the graduate program in engineering systems management.

"This resolution came in line with the launch of the new bachelor's degree program in industrial engineering in Fall Semester 2012, which offers a distinctive curriculum that combines logistics, supply chain management as well as quality and maintenance engineering," Dr. Heath said. The program was created following survey research that showed that 89 percent of the companies surveyed would hire AUS industrial engineers.

"This program complements the extensive engineering majors the university offers, making it one of the largest engineering colleges in the region with the variety of engineering programs available. We offer most of the main engineering majors," said the AUS Chancellor. "It is aligned with the mission, vision and strategic initiatives of AUS as mandated by His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah, to produce highly-qualified graduates who will support and sustain the growing industrial and economic demands and development of the country," Chancellor Heath added.

Other resolutions approved by the board included changing the name of the Department of Design to the Department of Art and Design. The board extended the membership of trustee Dr. Roderick French and received updates from senior officials on various other important university matters.

To thank the Sharjah Ruler for his support to the university, the board passed a resolution expressing gratitude for the funding of additional facilities on campus including another dormitory for women, a sports pavilion, increased parking space and wheelchair access on campus. Work on these projects will begin this summer.

The board also passed a resolution extending its appreciation and gratitude to Abdul Hamied Seddiqi for his generous contribution to the AUS Endowment Fund towards the establishment of the Abdul Hamied Seddiqi Chair of Middle Eastern Studies. Through a generous gift of AED 15 million by Abul Hamied Seddiqi, Vice Chairman of Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons, the chair will meet the need to develop a focus in the scientific study of the distinctive cultural traditions of the Gulf.

The board approved a request placed before it for renovation funding, and also approved the audited financial statements for the fiscal year ending May 31, 2012. 

Subsequent to the meeting, His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan visited the Club Fair held at the Student Center and inspected stalls put up by scores of ethnic and interest-oriented clubs on campus. The Ruler was accompanied by members of the Board of Trustees and senior AUS representatives.

Organized by the Office of Student Affairs, the fair is a chance for the university to highlight campus diversity and to introduce new students to the student-led organizations on campus. The two-day event gives new students a chance to sign up for the many cultural and common interest clubs on the AUS campus. Fifty-four clubs are participating in the fair today, of which 28 are ethnic clubs and 26 are interest-oriented clubs, along with eight units of the Office of Student Affairs. 

The AUS Student Center has been divided into segments based on mutual territories, with corners for Asia, Africa, South America, the Middle East and the GCC. Special areas for the interest-oriented clubs include the business, engineering and entertainment corners. Students enjoy the two-day event, taking the time to interact with their peers from different majors.

Welcoming the visit of His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah to the Club Fair, Dr. Moza Al Shehhi, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs said, "We are proud to have His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah visiting the Club Fair this time. We aim for our students to avail the extracurricular opportunities offered to them and which they benefit from as out-of-classroom learning experiences. Club Fair is not just a membership drive, it is a reflection of the vibrant campus life we have at AUS."  Participating interest-oriented clubs this year included the Innovators Club, the Modern Visual Arts Club, the Psychology Club and the AUS Games Club, while ethnic clubs included the Libyan, Yemeni, Iraqi, Egyptian, Afghan and Turkish clubs, among many others.

Members of the AUS Board of Trustees are: His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan Bin Mohammad Al Qassimi, Supreme Council Member, Ruler of Sharjah, and Chairman of the Board and President of AUS; Dr. Ali Abdullah Al Shamlan, Director-General of the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences, Kuwait; Dr. MaryAnn Baenninger, President, College of Saint Benedict, Minnesota, USA; Mr. Joseph L. Brand, Senior Partner, Patton Boggs LLP, Washington, DC, USA; Professor Lord Alec Broers, Member of the British House of Lords, UK; Dr. Anthony George Coates, Director of the Museum of Biodiversity, the Bridge of Life, Republic of Panama, and Senior Scientist Emeritus, Smithsonian Institution, USA; Mr. Charles Cotton, Director of Cambridge Enterprise, University of Cambridge, UK; Mr. Abdul Jalil Yousuf Darwish, Chairman of UAE Enterprises Group; Dr. Leroy S. Fletcher, Regents Professor Emeritus and Thomas A. Dietz Professor Emeritus, Texas A&M University, USA; Dr. Roderick S. French, Chancellor Emeritus, AUS; Dr. Peter Heath, AUS Chancellor; Mr. Hamid D. Jafar, Chairman and CEO, Crescent Petroleum Company, Sharjah; Dr. Cornelius Kerwin, President, American University, Washington, DC, USA; Dr. S. Georgia Nugent, President of Kenyon College, Ohio, USA; Baroness Onora O'Neill of Bengarve, CBE PBA FMedSci, Member of the British House of Lords, UK; Mr. Riad T. Sadek, Chairman of Al Habtoor Leighton Group, Dubai; and Mr. Maroun A. Semaan, President and CEO, Petrofac International Ltd., Sharjah. The meeting was also attended by senior AUS officials.