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Appointment of the Next Dean of HUSS

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June 4, 2026

Dear AUC Community,

I am delighted to share that, following an extensive global search, Maurice Pomerantz has been appointed as the next dean of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences (HUSS) at AUC.

Pomerantz received his BA in classics and religion from the University of Chicago. His connection to AUC runs deep: he participated in the CASA program here in 1996, a singular experience that sparked a lifelong engagement with Arabic literature and Middle Eastern studies. He returned to the University of Chicago to complete his PhD under the direction of Professor Wadad Kadi, with a dissertation on the governmental letters of al-Ṣāḥib b. ʿAbbād, the celebrated vizier and adīb of the fourth/tenth century. He joined the Department of Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies at NYU in New York in 2008 and moved to NYU Abu Dhabi in 2013, where he has held a range of academic leadership roles, most recently serving as executive director of the NYU Abu Dhabi Institute. He is also a professor of literature and Arab crossroads studies.

Pomerantz is a noted expert on the prose literature of the Abbasid period, having co-authored articles and monographs on the famed Maqāmāt of al-Hamadhānī. He is also actively engaged in the academic community as an editor for several prominent book series and journals: Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al-Nahyan Series for Arabic and Islamic Texts published by AUB Press, Al-Markaz: Majallat al-Dirasat al-Arabiyya, al-Machriq, Alif, and the Journal of Arabic Literature. He was also a long-term member of the editorial board of NYU Abu Dhabi’s Library of Arabic Literature, a landmark translation series for classical Arabic literature. His international recognitions include a Mellon Fellowship at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton and Fulbright fellowships in Jordan and Lebanon.

He is a scholar of distinction whose approach to academic leadership is defined by collaboration, integrity and a personal investment in the communities he serves. He joins AUC with an abiding conviction that Egypt and the region stand at a consequential moment — and that the humanities and social sciences, at their best, offer indispensable tools for understanding and navigating it.

I would like to extend my sincere thanks to the members of the search committee, chaired by Hanan Khoulousy and including Alessandro Topa, Amina Elbendary, Atta Gebril, Bahia Shehab, Hani Henry, Ibrahim Awad and Zeinab Amin. Their dedication and thoughtful work throughout this process have been truly commendable.

I also take this opportunity to thank John Meloy for his service to HUSS and AUC in his role as Dean and I wish him all the best in the next phase of his journey.

Join me in welcoming Maurice Pomerantz, who will assume his role as dean of HUSS effective July 1, 2026.

Sincerely,

Ehab Abdel-Rahman
Provost