“I always insist on the collective because this is how you change history,” says Bahia Shehab (MA ’09), professor of practice in the Department of the Arts and co-editor of Revealing, Recording, Reflecting: Graphic Women from Southwest Asia and North Africa (SWANA), the first publication of its kind to document the work and legacy of contemporary women designers.

“This landmark book is about the ‘us’ of women,” says Shehab, who founded AUC’s graphic design program in 2011. ‘When people hold the book, I want them to recognize women’s voices in the Arab world. They are beautiful, they are colorful and they are varied. And they’re not limited to the geography of the Arab world. We are everywhere.”

Full of vibrant images, the book emerged from a collaborative initiative aimed at documenting and celebrating the contributions of SWANA women in the field of design. It all started when four women graphic designers from different institutions — Shehab from AUC in Egypt, Huda Smitshuijzen AbiFarès from Khatt Foundation in the Netherlands, Yasmine Nachabe Taan from the Lebanese American University in Lebanon and Soukeina Hachem from Shape interior design studio in Morocco — decided to research and showcase the work of Arab women designers. “We are four women from various parts of the region who came together to reflect, collect and reveal stories of Arab women designers,” says Shehab. 

Not only were they tapping into an undocumented frontier, but their research process was atypical. “The normal route usually involves archives and a lot of reading,” explained Shehab. “But for this book, we decided to do something else: We opened up our research to a bigger community. So we were four curators, not authors. The idea is that it is a collective story of over 80 Arab women graphic designers that we are telling together, so there isn’t a single authority or voice.”

The first step for the co-editors was to focus on themes, the types of stories they want to tell. For Shehab, the choice was clear. “I love everything about Arabic design — its calligraphy, letters and typography — so I chose to work on Ladies of Letters: women who are as passionate about Arabic letters as I am. Each of us worked on a topic that she felt eager to explore in-depth.” 

The book explores themes of Visual Storytelling by Women, Engaged Image-Making for Social and Political Commentary, Ladies of Letters (connecting generations of women writers and designers) and Navigating Diasporic Identities. Focusing on the work and impact of Arab women graphic designers, illustrators, calligraphers and typographers, the book includes critical writing, testimonials, primary documents and artwork.

 The co-editors proposed the project online, collecting reflections on the different themes through Zoom panels and collaboration with a cultural space in Berlin, Germany for people to share their insights and recommend women in the field who can be featured in the book. “That physical space became our living research space, with sticky notes, observations, posters and new books. It was the first time for us to experiment with collective crowd-sourced research, and it was an enriching experience,” Shehab says.

Questionnaires were then sent out to women graphic designers, asking them to tell their own stories. “In the book, we are not reflecting on how they feel or assuming the meaning of their work. They are choosing what stories they want to tell — in their own words,” affirmed Shehab. 

What are some of the biggest shifts in business school education?

The focus of business schools almost two decades ago was to produce leaders who transform corporations, boosting profit. Revenue was the prime goal. Now, business schools not only look at shareholder interest but also stakeholder interest — in other words, pressing societal concerns, such as sustainability, climate change, ethics, diversity, inclusion and governance. This represents a complete shift in business education around the world, and every school — from Africa to North America and around the world— is looking at how to consistently modify the curriculum to be timely and relevant. Shareholders are still key, but it’s all part of a bigger communal interest, now dubbed as social impact. This reflects the new role of business schools as a convener: a connector of stakeholders and an initiator of conversations around both global and local issues.

Now, business schools not only look at shareholder interest but also stakeholder interest — in other words, pressing societal concerns, such as sustainability, climate change, ethics, diversity, inclusion and governance. 

What challenges do business schools face in keeping their programs relevant?

The main challenge is working effectively within the market matrix. Some 40 years ago, business schools were looking at verticals, mainly disciplines that encompass marketing, finance, accounting, management, IT, strategy and HR. Twenty years later, they started examining horizontals, such as digital transformation, sustainability, data science, innovation, governance and others, and how they intersect with and complement the management verticals. But now, even this matrix, with the intersection between the verticals and horizontals, is not enough. We need to examine the implications on a variety of areas, including business, trade, services, industry, globalization and talent transfer. The difficulty lies in developing an adaptable curriculum that remains valid and relevant in this ever-changing landscape.

The difficulty lies in developing an adaptable curriculum that remains valid and relevant in this ever-changing landscape.

Do you see AI as a friend or foe?

AI has been around for much longer than many people realize, from Winston Churchill’s 1943 underground Cabinet War Rooms that housed the British government’s command center during World War II to human-computer interaction and expert systems in the 1980s to AI as we know it today. It has been gradually affecting our lives and is here to stay. In fact, we’re still scratching the surface. In education, AI affects not just what and how we study but also the facilities and resources available, enhancing productivity and efficiency — and it’s going to mature more and more. These are all positives, of course, but the downside is that AI raises concerns around issues such as ethics, bias, intellectual property rights, accuracy and trustworthiness. The key is learning to use it responsibly. In business education, AI is preparing students to lead in a fast-paced, tech-driven world. AI will not replace humans, but students who are better trained, educated, exposed and adapted will replace those who lack these fundamental skills. I like to think of it as augmented human intelligence backed by advanced technological innovations. It is not artificial.

Why would a business student choose to study business in Egypt instead of the United States or Europe?

Internationalization is not just confined to students traveling and studying abroad; it is an ecosystem. What we do here at AUC — similar to many business schools worldwide — is create cross-cultural exposure for students through international faculty, transnational case studies, incoming international students, global competitions and joint capstone projects in collaboration with other universities. For instance, our Doing Business in the Middle East program, now in its 16th year, gives AUC students the opportunity to interact firsthand with their peers  from prominent institutions around the world, including the University of Chicago, Harvard University, Princeton University, the University of Pennsylvania, Manchester Metropolitan University, China Europe International Business School and McMaster University. Students from both sides exchange perspectives on current business issues in the region through academic classes by our faculty experts, visits to industries and NGOs, as well as meetings with business executives, entrepreneurs, alumni and government officials. AUC students, in turn, also visit business schools in other countries and benefit from the same global experience.

What we do here at AUC — similar to many business schools worldwide — is create cross-cultural exposure for students through international faculty, transnational case studies, incoming international students, global competitions and joint capstone projects in collaboration with other universities.

How do you see business education evolving in the next decade?

The future of business education will highly depend on the intersection of people, technology and data. Just as open working spaces are becoming prevalent, there will be open learning spaces. Less time will be spent in the classroom, and more time will be spent off campus in companies, factories, as well as civil society and community development organizations. Business schools and higher education at large are going to be completely different. The knowledge is there online, so what can faculty uniquely offer that students don’t already have access to? It’s the critical thinking approach that they bring to the classroom. Faculty will not deliver content but will instigate conversations to come up with solutions, and this will be enhanced through hands-on programs such as Cooperative Education (Co-Op), internships and experiential learning opportunities. This approach — teaching students how to think, not what to think — develops leaders who are innovative, adaptable and creative problem solvers.

This approach — teaching students how to think, not what to think — develops leaders who are innovative, adaptable and creative problem solvers.
 

During Sherif Kamel’s tenure as dean, the Onsi Sawiris School of Business earned its triple crown accreditation, placing it among the top 1% of business schools worldwide; maintained its Financial Times global ranking in executive education; and expanded its international footprint through new partnerships and affiliations. Kamel has championed innovation in teaching and learning, launching the region’s first Co-Op Program as well as integrating sustainability and global challenges into the curriculum. He is the immediate past chair of the board of directors of the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business and serves on the board of directors of the Central Bank of Egypt. A renowned scholar, Kamel published his debut book, Leading Change in Challenging Times: Lessons of Disruption and Innovation in Egypt, a collection of his reflections and observations on the school’s institutional history as well as business leadership advice.

After completing his master’s degree in business administration at AUC, Amir Barsoum (MBA ’08) took the business world by storm, creating companies that serve millions of people and redefining the region’s tech-based industries. 

As the founder and CEO of digital healthcare platform Vezeeta, Barsoum was named a Fortune 40 Under 40 global health leader. He went on to create InVitro Capital, a venture builder based in California, and serves as a co-founder and investor of at least four other companies. 

Starting at AUC, Barsoum’s journey has taken him through a quick career in consulting, an executive degree at MIT and a lifetime of pursuing his passion of building companies. “I never expected anything. 

I was trying to build something that I liked and enjoyed and, at the same time, had a cause. But we were always hoping and dreaming that it would become a major player in the healthcare market,” says Barsoum of Vezeeta, his first company to take off.

"I was trying to build something that I liked and enjoyed and, at the same time, had a cause. 

A CEO in the Making

Barsoum encountered his business origins at AUC after completing a bachelor’s degree in pharmaceutical studies at Ain Shams University, though the plan was always to operate on the business side of things. “AUC provided a fantastic opportunity to start this early on in my career,” says Barsoum. “That’s when I really got to see the world from a business angle rather than only through pharmacology and the technical aspects.”

“AUC provided a fantastic opportunity to start this early on in my career."

Barsoum further describes the University as his “gateway to the world.” He says, “AUC opened my eyes to horizons I never imagined and made me believe they were within reach. It’s not just a university — it’s the region’s strongest fortress of innovation and talent. Without AUC, I wouldn’t have dared to start this journey, let alone push it through.”

When Layla Mohsen ’25 was in middle school, she got a note from her physics teacher predicting that she would be “Egypt’s first rocket scientist.” 

“That really impacted me because he believed in my potential,” she says. “I loved space as a child, read Stephen Hawking books when I was 13 and was enchanted by superheroes. My favorite superhero was Tony Stark [Iron Man], who was a genius in computer science and embedded systems, and I wanted to be like him.” 

Today, 23-year-old Mohsen is one step closer to fulfilling her dream. She is a software developer at Princeton Satellite Systems in New Jersey, working on all types of spacecraft vehicles. She worked there as a summer intern during her senior year at AUC. After graduation, she continued to work with the company. “I was determined to utilize my computer science skills in aerospace,” Mohsen says. “I applied to many aerospace companies around the world, but what I liked the most about Princeton Satellite Systems is how software-intensive it is and how life-changing the projects are. We work on nuclear fusion space reactors, for example, and I find that fascinating.” 

As a fresh graduate, Mohsen initially felt challenged by the fact that most of her work colleagues took aerospace engineering courses as undergrads at Ivy League schools. “I had to do intensive self-study and research so as not to fall behind,” she says, acknowledging the flexibility she had at AUC in choosing space-related topics for her projects. “In my Fundamentals of Machine Learning course, for instance, I focused my research on exoplanet detection. Those projects helped a lot with my job application because it showed I worked on research connected to the space industry.” 

What drives you?

Curiosity. I’m always challenging myself to try something new, step out of my comfort zone and explore things on the go. Whether it’s design, business or learning, I’m motivated by the excitement of growth and the chance to create something meaningful — all while inspiring others to also be curious and pursue their own passion projects because mine truly changed my life.

What do you find yourself thinking about the most?

Bringing something fresh to the Egyptian market. I’m passionate about introducing creative concepts in a way that motivates myself and others, building a community that values design and innovation.

"I’m passionate about introducing creative concepts in a way that motivates myself and others, building a community that values design and innovation."

What is the biggest decision you have made?

Leaving my corporate career in architecture. I was performing very well, getting promoted and acquiring recognition from upper management — all the things you aspire to as a fresh grad. But I chose to pursue my business full time and committed myself to that. It was scary because it meant complete independence, a heavy responsibility and endless uncertainty, but it was definitely worth it. The continuous self-learning I am gaining is invaluable.

What advice would you give your younger self?

Be comfortable with unpredictability, and constantly challenge the status quo. No one has it all figured out; that’s completely human. What actually matters is showing up, doing your best and being vigorously consistent. 

"Be comfortable with unpredictability."

How do you want to be remembered?

I would love to be remembered for my creativity, work ethic and passion. For being someone who wasn’t afraid to challenge the norm, who brings something fun and creative to the table. Someone who tried to make the best out of whatever came her way, both good and bad.

On stage at last year’s AUC Tahrir CultureFest, singing in Arabic for the Nostalgic Notes of Cairo performance was Aleksandar Columby, a Czech-Serbian independent artist and CASA@AUC student in the 2024-2025 academic year. Columby has a bachelor’s in Middle East studies and Arabic language from Charles University.

Singing Cairo

“I’ve been singing ever since I had a voice,” Columby says. After moving to Cairo for the CASA@AUC program, Columby has continued to venture down various musical pursuits. At the Tahrir CultureFest, Columby showcased his musical talent with AUC’s cocurricular Singing Club. 

The group performed traditional Egyptian songs, Touba, El-Helwa Di and Al-Qahira w Nilha, attracting a lively audience on the green at the Tahrir Square campus. “Learning these songs was not very challenging, as I have been singing in Arabic ever since I started studying the language five years ago,” says Columby. 

He has also performed Arabic music with his band Abaziya, an acoustic musical project of which Columby is frontman and singer. He was awarded a first-place prize by the Palestinian embassy in Prague for his participation in an Arabic singing competition as part of the Nad Prahou půlměsíc festival. Columby says, “I had the chance to visit Palestine as a result of my win, fulfilling my lifelong dream of visiting holy sites in Jerusalem, Jericho and the Jordan River.”

Columby accredits his sensibility for Arabic music to his background in traditional Balkan music, especially the genre of sevdah and Byzantine chants and singing. “Listening to and imitating various Arabic singers helped me understand how my voice can and should sound when singing Arabic music,” Columby says. Apart from singing, Columby wants to educate himself on Arabic music theory and Arabic scales, the maqamat.

“Listening to and imitating various Arabic singers helped me understand how my voice can and should sound when singing Arabic music."

Cairo By Chance

Columby originally came to Cairo two years ago as an exchange student at AUC after canceling his semester abroad in Morocco due to a car accident. “Because of the accident, I couldn’t fly to Morocco. Later on, I got an email saying, ‘Hey, there’s an Erasmus you can do in Cairo,’” he says. 

While Columby never expected to study in Egypt, it changed the course of his life. “If I hadn’t come to study at AUC, I wouldn’t be here now. I wouldn’t have shared the same experiences or met the same people here. I even acted in an Egyptian movie,” he says.

 “If I hadn’t come to study at AUC, I wouldn’t be here now. I wouldn’t have shared the same experiences or met the same people here."

Columby applied to CASA@AUC due to its strong reputation and the scholarships offered to international students. “There are other Arabic programs that are only open to Americans, so it’s great that Europeans can apply to AUC and study here on a full scholarship,” he says. “Also, part of me felt very accepted in Egypt and really wanted to stay. This is the reason why I came back.”

Peers, Priorities and Pursuits

The academic cohort at CASA@AUC is “very bright, driven and diverse,” Columby says. “My classmates have led me to new ways of thinking about my academic journey as well as my future career ambitions and priorities. Through shared discussions, I’ve gained a lot of insight about myself.” Columby believes that his experience at CASA@AUC brought him closer to his “authentic self.”

He also praises the curriculum’s immersive aspect: “The program took us on different day trips, visits, walks and even weekend getaways. Especially during the summer, when there is more focus on the dialect aspect of language, it felt like we were going on an excursion every week.” Columby reported huge improvements in his colloquial and standard Arabic over the year, in part due to the language pledge students are obliged to sign (a pledge to speak only Arabic on AUC grounds as well as with all faculty and students inside or outside campus).

 “My classmates have led me to new ways of thinking about my academic journey as well as my future career ambitions and priorities."

Within his cohort, Columby started rehearsing with fellow student Kira Weiss for a Balkan folk music project. In the CASA@AUC duo, Weiss played the violoncello, and Columby sang and accompanied with the guitar. “Once we are ready to perform, we are hoping to organize a concert in downtown Cairo or Maadi and invite everybody interested in traditional Balkan music,” he says.

After last year’s CASA@AUC program ended, Columby extended his stay in Cairo until the winter. “I’ve been pushed to think much more about the future because of the experiences and close relationships I’ve developed here,” he says. He signed for an apartment in Dokki with two other CASA@AUC alumni and spent the summer preparing for the release of his new project’s extended play musical recording, The Palace. He is also finalizing a documentary film he began last winter, has been working as a trainee at the Czech Centres in Egypt during the fall, and has launched his own perfume collection in Cairo, Prague and Belgrade. 

While he plans to pursue a master’s degree in Arabic studies or cinema, Columby is also considering work in art and culture in his home country, using Arabic as a language to bypass borders: “I want the language to connect us because I feel like that’s what it’s been doing for me: It’s been connecting me to the world and to people.” 

“I want the language to connect us because I feel like that’s what it’s been doing for me: It’s been connecting me to the world and to people.” 

Even though he is leaving Cairo soon, Columby will remember feeling inspired by the city as he walked through its streets, admired its architecture, listened to Egyptian music in the metro or simply observed the fast-paced life through the view of his downtown window. “I never thought about coming to Egypt throughout my studies, but I’m so glad I gave it a chance,” he says.

For students like Perihan Elsheikh, a political science major who came to AUC with an end-goal in mind, the journey is where the magic happens. As an undergraduate, Elsheikh has been involved in 10 student organizations, landed three internships and explored 12 countries on exchange — and she’s not done yet.

“My long-term goal is to open my own NGO dedicated to helping women and children in Egypt, especially those escaping domestic violence,” says Elsheikh, who has dreamed of having a positive impact on others and contributing to society since she was a child.

At the same time, Elsheikh is interested in international law and the global frameworks used to deal with human rights issues. After she graduates in Fall 2025, Elsheikh will begin her master’s in international human rights law, a program she has been interested in pursuing since she was first accepted to AUC.

Since Elsheikh already knows her career aspirations and master’s plan, what makes her time at AUC so special? The answer lies in her journey, from cocurricular experiences to global travel to high-caliber internships.

"My favorite personality will always be the Pery I met abroad because I realized I was capable of more than I thought."

Clubs, Clubs, Clubs 

Elsheikh has been involved in student clubs since the start of her freshman year, when she signed up to join seven organizations. Between the Political Science Students’ Association, Volunteers in Action (VIA), Mashroo3 Kheir, Theater and Film Club (TFC) and Student Union Explore, Elsheikh has gained diverse experiences that she credits for making her the person she is today.

With Mashroo3 Kheir’s Make-A-Wish committee, Elsheikh visited cancer institutes and talked to child cancer patients. “I left every single visit with a different approach to life,” she says.

“TFC also helped me develop communications skills and perform in front of huge audiences,” adds Elsheikh, who prides herself on her public speaking skills.

Perihan in Paris

In her junior year, the young humanitarian had the adventure of a lifetime on an exchange semester in Paris, where she learned European theories and perspectives from the second best political science school in the world — a welcome complement to the Middle Eastern perspective she had gained at AUC.

“My favorite personality will always be the Pery I met abroad because I realized I was capable of more than I thought,” Elsheikh says.

“My favorite personality will always be the Pery I met abroad because I realized I was capable of more than I thought."

Defying her own expectations, Elsheikh experienced self-reliance and even came to enjoy her alone time, which she spent walking along the Seine and exploring museums. She also planned her own travels, visiting 11 other countries while abroad. Meanwhile, Elsheikh studied and practiced French in its country of origin, fulfilling a dream that dates back to her self-study of French back in 2020.

Studying the Global South from a European stance also revealed Elsheikh’s desire to remain local in her work. Now, she seeks to contribute to her country and help underrepresented Egyptians speak up about their struggles. “I want to learn more about how Egyptians in cities beyond Cairo live on a daily basis and what they suffer from,” she says.

Nine-to-Five Discoveries

Her adventurous trajectory doesn’t end there. In addition to working as a political science teaching assistant at AUC, Elsheikh has completed three internships that have taken her across sectors to explore different areas of human rights and international law — from working at a public policy and business lobbying firm, N Gage Consulting, to the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development’s Human Rights Unit. “At the ministry, I learned about how Egypt is planning to promote human development, provide education and alleviate poverty under Vision 2030,” she says.

To those seeking a liberal arts education at AUC, the journey beats the destination — and for ambitious students like Elsheikh, the path can shape the course of a career, even when the destination is already figured out.

A gift of goats and sheep is one element of a broader project that the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) Middle East and North Africa is assessing to help thousands of Egyptians graduate out of poverty, with AUC’s help.

As a research institute, J-PAL Middle East and North Africa — housed at AUC’s Onsi Sawiris School of Business — has completed over 60 studies of different types of poverty interventions across the region. One of its most influential evaluations was of Bab Amal (A Door of Hope). In the initial pilot of this multifaceted program, over 3,400 households experiencing extreme poverty received a “graduation bundle” that included an income-generating asset (such as medium-size livestock, mostly goats and sheep), basic business training, regular coaching through home visits and short-term cash support.

“Across diverse low- and middle-income country settings, particularly in African contexts, we’ve seen the Targeting the Ultra-Poor model deliver lasting gains that often persist for years after programs are phased out,” says Ahmed Elsayed, associate professor of economics and executive director of J-PAL MENA at AUC. “With Bab Amal, we tailored this approach to Egypt’s realities, focusing on Assiut and Sohag, two regions in the country with high poverty rates. The program offers a scalable, cost-effective path out of extreme poverty.”

"The program offers a scalable, cost-effective path out of extreme poverty."

Building on cross-country evidence, J-PAL MENA at AUC worked in coordination with BRAC international development organization, the original ideator of the global Graduation approach, and the Sawiris Foundation for Social Development, which is funding the project, to collaboratively develop and test this model in Egypt. The Giving Without Limits Association in Assiut and the Human Development Egyptian Association in Sohag are implementing Bab Amal, and J-PAL MENA is supporting efforts to scale up the program in the country by providing technical assistance and leading the evaluation of its impact.

“Drawing on both global evidence and our knowledge of the local context, J-PAL MENA identified the Graduation approach as especially promising for Upper Egypt,” says Adam Osman, co-scientific director of J-PAL MENA. “We worked with partners to adapt and rigorously test it, and we also designed a lower-cost version that —  if successful — will be the world’s first experimental test of how big a ‘big push’ really needs to be to help people escape poverty.”

“Drawing on both global evidence and our knowledge of the local context, J-PAL MENA identified the Graduation approach as especially promising for Upper Egypt,."

The results of the study demonstrated a significant positive impact of the approach, including evidence that the program improved economic and social outcomes for participants even over 40 months after implementation, with high success rates.

The evaluation also comparatively analyzed which components of the program were most cost-effective. It found increased long-term wealth in the form of valuable livestock, a sustained decrease in food insecurity and confirmation that even a scaled-down “half-cost” version of the program still delivered meaningful results. The program also demonstrated a rise in women’s employment in some cases, from 13% to 30%.

“Our results offer policymakers a proven and adaptable strategy to reduce extreme poverty,” says Osman.

“Our results offer policymakers a proven and adaptable strategy to reduce extreme poverty."

Building on the successful pilot, J-PAL MENA at AUC will now start working with Egypt’s Ministry of Social Solidarity, the Sawiris Foundation for Social Development, and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia to scale up the program to 100,000 households.

Photo Credit: Sawiris Foundation for Social Development