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Education and Empowerment: Alumni in this category show outstanding creativity, commitment and inspiration in educational systems and empowering endeavors. They promote and advance the skills needed to produce successful 21st-century leaders.

Crossing Cultures

Freeman Hrabowski (SAB '69)

Study Abroad

President, University of Maryland, Baltimore County

Freeman Hrabowski's time studying abroad at AUC made him realize that "the world is not simply black and white"

Freeman Hrabowski's time studying at AUC with his girlfriend, Jacqueline Coleman, may sound at first like a typical study-abroad experience: "The people were very embracing, the students were kind to us, and we were fascinated by the Egyptian culture," he says. But, in many ways, their semester abroad was extraordinary. Hrabowski and Coleman, now his wife of nearly five decades, are African American. They arrived in Egypt during their junior year of college in January 1969, just months after the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy, and during a time of fraught American politics at home and abroad.

The conversations they would have at AUC shifted their view of themselves, their communities back home and the world itself. "Things are never simple; that's the lesson you learn as you go to other cultures. Everyone is seeking the truth, and yet the interpretations may be different," says Hrabowski, a mathematician who has been president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County since 1992. Hrabowski has been named by TIME among the 2009 Best 10 College Presidents and the 2012 World's 100 Most Influential People. He was also named among the 2011 Top American Leaders by The Washington Post and the Harvard Kennedy School's Center for Public Leadership.

From an early age, Hrabowski was deeply engaged on issues of race in the United States. He was jailed as a child for participating in civil rights protests in Birmingham, Alabama. The conversations he had about race while in Egypt were unique. He and Coleman weren't perceived as African Americans there, he says. People often assumed that she was Egyptian and that he was Ethiopian. Meanwhile, they were meeting people from all over the world who carried their own experiences of race, culture and religion. "It was the first time we realized that the world is not simply black and white," he says. "We came to understand the commonality of the human experience."

Hrabowski felt the responsibility of being a representative of the United States. Talking with his classmates about American politics gave him an opportunity to reaffirm what he thought about his own country. "It was really good for them to see that we were proud, to say that, 'Yeah, while we have problems, we believe in our country,'" he says. "We were proud Americans who had experienced discrimination, but who had hope that things could be better."

Today, Hrabowski makes deliberate efforts to connect with people from abroad studying on his campus and to help them find a community of their own. He knows the challenges and opportunities that arise from such an opportunity. "As students come to this country or study abroad, they have the chance to understand another perspective," he says. "The people who are privileged to have those experiences also have a responsibility to become a bridge between or among cultures."

 

Window onto the World

Lisa Anderson (CASA '76)

Arabic

"What AUC does is special for Egypt"

Lisa Anderson is best known within the AUC community as the first woman to lead the University as president. But in 1976, Anderson was a summer student at AUC's Center for Arabic Study Abroad -- "far and away the most prestigious program you could aspire to attend if you studied Arabic." There was "no air conditioning," and the rooms were "really, really hot," but "the professors were so important to me, and they were major figures in the field." When she returned to her doctoral program at Columbia University, she felt transformed.

The University itself has been transformed in many ways since then -- the classrooms are cooler, for one -- but certain things hold true, says Anderson, who is now a special lecturer and dean emerita at Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs: "In many ways, AUC is the world's window into Egypt and Egypt's window onto the world."

The future of higher education is global and competitive, Anderson says. The world's first-rate institutions will form a network for sharing ideas and new ways of teaching. AUC belongs among them. "The University has a responsibility, really, to ensure that the research access, the faculty mobility, the student exchanges and so forth can be sustained over time."

The University brings ideas and thought leaders into Egypt in a way that is distinct from the work of nongovernmental organizations, private businesses or government agencies. "It really is there to serve the Egyptian people," Anderson says. "What AUC does is special for Egypt, and it also serves, in a subtle way, as a kind of promoter of Egypt in the rest of the world."

 

Hoda Badran '57

Social Studies

Serving as the first secretary-general of the National Council for Childhood and Motherhood, Hoda Badran has received multiple awards for her impactful work, including the UNESCO Award for Distinguished Women in 1995 and the Emirates Women Union Award for Leadership in Women Activities in 1994. She was elected by more than 150 countries for two terms as the first chair of the International Committee on the Rights of the Child at the Geneva Centre for Human Rights Advancement and Global Dialogue. She is currently chair of the Egyptian Feminist Union.

 

Iman Bibars '81, '88

Political Science

Iman Bibars is the vice president of Ashoka Global; regional director of Ashoka Arab World, which she launched in 2003; and co-founder and chair of Egypt's first microfinance organization, Association for the Development and Enhancement of Women. With a PhD in development studies from Sussex University and more than 30 years of experience in strategic planning, policy formulation and community development, Bibars has worked with a range of nonprofit organizations, including UNICEF, Catholic Relief Services and CARE Egypt. She focused her career on giving a voice to marginalized groups and strengthening the social entrepreneurship ecosystem in the Middle East. Her writings on gender and entrepreneurship have been published nationally and internationally.

 

Madiha El Safty '72, '76

Sociology-Anthropology

The late Madiha El Safty was a sociology faculty member at AUC for 40 years. She served as chair of the Alliance for Arab Women as well as a member of the National Council for Women's Civil Society Committee and Committee for the Development of the Minya Governorate. She has more than 90 publications, including those written for the United Nations Development Programme, United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia and the Aga Khan Foundation

 

 

Maya Morsy '95

Political Science

Maya Morsy is president of Egypt's National Council for Women, which formulates and monitors national plans and provides policy solutions for the empowerment and advancement of women. With extensive experience at the United Nations Development Programme, Morsy served as the regional adviser on gender policies and programs at its Regional Centre for Arab States in Cairo and as regional gender team leader for its regional bureau in New York and regional center in Amman. She was also country manager for the United Nations Development Fund for Women and a consultant for the Girls Education and Empowerment Project of Egypt's Ministry of Education.

Digging Deep

Salima Ikram (YAB '86)

Study Abroad

Salima Ikram was a study-abroad student at AUC and is now head of its Egyptology Unit

There is no better place to study Egyptology than in Egypt itself. Salima Ikram knew this when she attended AUC as an international student in the 1980s and decided once and for all to pursue a career in the field. Now a distinguished University professor of Egyptology, she experiences the magic of Egypt each time she introduces her students to an ancient image of an object and then asks them, "Ok, would you like to go see where it is, in its original context?"

AUC offers a "unique chance to do Egyptology the way you can't really anywhere else," Ikram says, during a break in her work directing a dig at the tomb of Amenmesse in the Valley of the Kings. And it's not just about seeing the important sites. For students from abroad, it's also about experiencing the desert, seeing how a storm there behaves and how your body and mind react to it, she says. "I think that 90 percent of a culture is based on the people's reaction and interaction with the environments."

The renown of AUC's Egyptology program and the fact that courses are taught in English make it easy to attract visiting scholars who bring a wide range of expertise. "It's very important that one should not only be exposed to one's own professors, but to as many ways of thinking as possible," Ikram says. "That gives one mental flexibility."

Ikram believes strongly in the University's identity as a liberal arts University, a place where people come to think differently, read critically and argue cogently. Without a focus on those skills, "humanity loses," she says. "We must try and uphold the values and the ideals and the nuts and bolts of a liberal arts education -- and push this forward."

 

Opening Doors

Eva Habib el-Masri '31

Bachelor of Arts

Eva Habib el-Masri is the first female student to enroll at AUC

 

As the first co-ed at AUC, Eva Habib el-Masri was a pioneer, paving the way for future female students who now make up 56 percent of the nearly 7,000 students enrolled at AUC.

Born in an upper-middle-class family, el-Masri's decision to come to AUC was supported by her father, who said to his friends later on, "I believe that education is an end in itself, and not just a means to an end. Since this was her own choice, I would not stand in her way."

Born in an upper-middle-class family, el-Masri's decision to come to AUC was supported by her father, who said to his friends later on, "I believe that education is an end in itself, and not just a means to an end. Since this was her own choice, I would not stand in her way."

She recounts her first day, standing on a side street opposite AUC and becoming nervous. "I was half tempted to return home," she confessed. "Little did I know as I dashed through the crowd and ran up those stairs that I was building up my inward strength and influencing my future destiny!" After submitting her application, she recalled AUC President Charles Watson saying to her, "Upon you will depend whether we accept other girls or not."

At AUC, she was a member of the University orchestra, Glee Club, Debating Society, International Relations Club and Cosmopolitan Club. She was also editor-in-chief of The AUC Review during her time at the University. She was named valedictorian at her commencement, and later became editor-in-chief of the bi-weekly Arabic magazine Al-Misriyyah, founded by the leader of the Egyptian Feminist Union, Hoda Shaarawi.

El-Masri was the first Egyptian to join Smith College in the United States, finishing a master's in sociology in one year -- an achievement unmatched by any foreign student at that time. She later became a successful librarian at New York University. When reflecting on her life's accomplishments, el-Masri said, "God bless The American University in Cairo for all that with which it has enriched my life and the lives of the hundreds of co-eds who have entered its gates after me."

 

Nevenka Korica (MA '99)

Teaching Arabic as a Foreign Language

Nevenka Korica is director of the Center for Arabic Study Abroad program at Harvard University's Center for Middle Eastern Studies. She previously served as executive director of CASA at AUC. She also worked as a translator and news announcer in the Arabic service at Radio Yugoslavia. She is the co-author of Media Arabic: A Course Book for Reading Arabic News (AUC Press, 2014) and Umm al-Dunya: Advanced Egyptian Colloquial Arabic (AUC Press, 2013).

 

Up and Coming

Graduates of the last 15 years (2004 onward)

 

Amin Ashraf Marei '11

Business Administration

 

Amin Marei is the associate director of Professional Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) as well as co-founder and director of the Middle East Professional Learning Initiative, one of the largest international initiatives at HGSE. A teaching fellow at Harvard, Amin developed HGSE's professional education multiplier model, the MEPLI Fellowship, and managed the development of Harvard University's first professional education courses in Arabic.

 

Seif Abou Zaid '08, '17

Political Science; Public Policy

 

Seif Abou Zaid is the co-founder and CEO of Mavericks school in Egypt, which utilizes personalized and self- directed learning, real-life experiences and hands-on activities -- celebrating student strengths. "I was always interested in education as a vehicle for liberation and empowerment," says Abou Zaid, who previously worked in two education startups, including being co-founder and CEO of Tahrir Academy, one of the region's biggest online educational platforms.

 

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The Biggest Startup event of the year at AUC

 

By Nahla El Gendy

AUC was the main partner and host of #RiseUpSummit19, the one-stop-shop event connecting startups in the Middle East and Africa. Held at AUC New Cairo for the first time, the event featured more than 20 of AUC's alumni and faculty members as guest speakers.

In his speech at the opening of RiseUp Summit 2019, AUC President Francis Ricciardone emphasized the University's role in inspiring its students to utilize their education to better serve Egypt and the communities around them. "At AUC, Egypt's global University, we bring the world back to Egypt and we bring Egypt to the world -- and not only for tourism, which is a wonderful thing, but for learning, creating, researching and developing projects and products that will improve lives. That's what AUC is about. This is the right place for RiseUp Summit 2019," said Ricciardone.

In its seventh edition, the summit bustled with the region's top entrepreneurs, startups, investors, creative masterminds and Fortune 500 companies. This year's summit built on past ones, focusing on the Journey to Growth as its main theme, as well as drawing the line between the past, present and future. The three-day summit included talks and panels, in-depth workshops, boot camps, networking sessions with hundreds of investors, as well as talent matchmaking and exclusive satellite events.

Alumni in leading positions across different fields spoke at the event, including Maged Farrag '93, creative and managing director of 5dVR; Sahar Salama '95, founder and CEO of TPAY Mobile; Mohamed Rahmy '03, managing director of Endeavor Egypt; Yaseen Abdel Ghaffar '10, founder and managing director of SolarizEgypt; and Myrna Fahim '16, lead developer advocate for IBM in Egypt and Morocco.

International figures in various fields also took to the stage, including Brian Collins, chief creative officer and founder of COLLINS; Gerardo Mazzeo, global innovation director at Nestle; Karen Cheng, head of social at 9GAG; Marcel Muenster, founder and director of The Gritti Fund; Raya Abirached, TV presenter; and Samih Sawiris, board chairman of Orascom Development Holding.

"It feels very nostalgic to be back on campus for the RiseUp Summit this year," said Islam Shawky '15, CEO and co-founder of Paymob, an infrastructure technology enabler providing payment solutions. "I began school in 2008, so AUC New Cairo is the only campus I know. We started our company on this campus, as the six members of the founding team are AUC graduates -- so we are extremely nostalgic."

Among the workshops that took place throughout the entrepreneurial marathon was one held by Kim Fox, professor of practice in the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication, titled What You Need to Know About Starting Your Own Podcast.

"I'm such a fan of the RiseUp Summit because it brings together the vibrant community of thought leaders, creatives and more," said Fox. "The energy is contagious and inspiring. The ability to reach out to other attendees and speakers for potential collaborations and knowledge sharing is achievable and encouraging. It was nice to see so many of my former students and colleagues there."

Ramez Youssef, chief creative officer and co-founder of Tayarah, a creative production agency, also held a workshop titled From Trendsetters to Trend-Seekers. "RiseUp Summit feels so different this year being at AUC New Cairo. The content is also different," he said. "Overall, it was a great experience."

Startups from the AUC Venture Lab (V-Lab), Egypt's first university-based startup accelerator and a leading accelerator in the Middle East and Africa, also participated in the summit. In a special booth for the V-Lab, graduates of this year's cycle shared their experiences with the attendees and highlighted the impact of their businesses on the Egyptian economy.

"The AUC Venture Lab had a strong presence at the RiseUp Summit this year, with more than 24 startups presenting their innovations to the summit participants, investors and international partners," said Ayman Ismail '95, '97, Abdul Latif Jameel Chair in Entrepreneurship, associate professor at AUC's School of Business and founding director of the V-Lab. "AUC also announced that it will be launching a new platform for innovation, focusing on attracting corporate innovation labs to be based on campus and expanding collaboration with AUC faculty and students. Our end goal is to create a collaborative community of entrepreneurship and innovation at AUC and Egypt."

RiseUp Summit 2019 held a competition for the best educational applications at the event, where AGORA, a V-Lab startup, ranked first and won the African App Launchpad Cup and a monetary prize. AGORA is an ed-tech app that empowers children to explore the world around them and learn from it through augmented reality. The summit also included a Creative Marketplace featuring some of Cairo's creative startups that displayed their products, including Doodle Factory.

 

By Nahla El Gendy

A smart -- and comfortable -- hospital gown to track a patient's vital signs

 

It all started three years ago when Mariam Ibrahim '19, graphic design graduate, fell off her beach buggy and was diagnosed with brain hemorrhage, a broken collarbone and a compressed spinal cord.

"My doctors had no idea if I was going to live for the next two or three days, so they asked me to leave the Intensive Care Unit to say goodbye to my family and friends," said Ibrahim.

While taking her out of the ICU, Ibrahim's sister had to cover her back, which was bare due to the open-back hospital gown she was wearing. "That was too hilarious for me to understand," said Ibrahim. "I was under the effect of anesthesia, so I took things lighter than I should have, but I thought this was totally impractical."

Contrary to the doctors' predictions, Ibrahim recovered, and two years later, she started her graphic design thesis project at AUC. Her main drive was to design a comfortable and practical medical product for patients. "I wanted to see how far graphic design can help in the medical field," she said.

With the support of her own doctors, Ibrahim worked on designing a smart medical gown, Hale. derived from the words exhale and inhale, the name hale means strong and healthy. "It seemed like a good fit for my project, as I didn't really want to brand it. I just wanted to have a suitable name for it," said Ibrahim.

driven by her belief that a hospital gown should appeal to both the patient and medical personnel, Ibrahim conducted multiple focus groups in Egypt with patients, nurses and doctors -- formally and informally -- in order to come up with a product that caters to their needs and improves a patient's sense of well-being in the hospital.

"During my hospital stay, I had a lot of problems with the gown itself," Ibrahim reflected. "I had a problem with the gown's texture, sheerness and functionality. the nurses had to take off my gown for the simplest of procedures, which just didn't make any sense to me."

Ibrahim developed Hale as a series of garments equipped with sensors to track a patient's vital signs while in the hospital. Hale consists of three different gowns, covering the three stages of patient recovery in relation to the notion of dress. the first gown is disposable to be used before, during and immediately after surgery, and the second is the launderable gown, designed for stable patients. Finally, the upgraded sensor gown tracks the patient's blood oxygen level, body temperature, position and pulse, relaying the readings onto a web application that updates every 10 to 30 seconds, depending on the Wi-Fi signal and changes in readings. An average reading is then recorded, and a history page is available to map out the vital signs throughout the day. When the readings are outside of the normal range, a registered health care professional is notified via email.

Ibrahim's project was featured on CNN and at the Global Grad Show in Dubai. designed under the supervision of professional doctors and nurses in accordance with regulations by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Hale is designed to meet the needs of health care professionals while considering the patient's psychological state.

"Hale tries to address issues with the currently intrusive health monitoring system," Ibrahim said. "it makes the patient feel more in control and the doctor satisfied by the continuous monitoring of vital signs."

 

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Developing new pharmaceuticals from the Red Sea and beyond

RANIA SIAM
PROFESSOR OF MICROBIOLOGY
DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGY

 

 

Siam on an excursion to gold mines in the Eastern Desert near the Red Sea to collect samples

The Inspiration

I'm fascinated by biological life in extreme environments: the mere existence of life under presumably unlivable conditions. The Red Sea is home to brine pools that are incredibly harsh in a number of ways. They are deep (2,200 meters below the surface of the sea), hot (some reach up to 69?C), have very high saline content and lack oxygen -- or all of these at once. My question was: How can organisms thrive under these conditions? I answer this by investigating the evolution of microbial genomes in such habitats.

 

The Process

The project started with AUC's move to the New Cairo campus and the research expansion of the School of Sciences and Engineering. External research collaborations and funding opportunities were promoted, such as the collaboration with King Abdullah University of Science and Technology. Over the course of five years, collaborative research teams -- including scientists and graduate students from AUC, Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, Greece and the United States -- went on expeditions to the Red Sea. We worked 12-hour shifts, sampling water and sediments from different sites. Then we isolated the DNA, performed high throughput sequencing and developed a huge genomic dataset. Since then, we've been mining that data for biocatalysts and enzymes that might have unique biotechnological and pharmaceutical applications. Now the AUC Red Sea Marine Microbiology Group has graduated more than 50 Master of Science and PhD students, and some are still continuing their work on the Red Sea biocatalysts.

The IMPACT

First, we're understanding the evolution of microbes under harsh conditions. That knowledge can lead in many directions. We have discovered several unique Red Sea enzymes, including an esterase, nitrilase, mercuric reductase and an antibiotic-resistant enzyme. These enzymes have superior biochemical properties that would be attractive in several industries, including biotechnology, detergents and pulp. Recently, we've discovered new antimicrobial and chemotherapeutics agents. Humans have developed a resistance to many antibiotics as well as anti-cancer drugs. That's impeding infectious disease and cancer treatments. Therefore, the discovery of new drugs is mandatory for the treatment of resistant cases.

The Next Steps

We're going on expeditions to arid and semi-arid areas in the Caribbean, collecting samples from hydrothermal vents. We are also interested in sampling active volcanoes in the Caribbean -- and we'll continue to gather samples from the Red Sea. Additionally, we have a project for the transition of the Red Sea enzymes from the lab to the industry. It's thrilling to explore the unexplored. It's also thrilling to take what we've discovered and apply it in ways that could change people's lives.

Siam during an AUC-King Abdullah University of Science and Technology expedition to the Red Sea

The Future

AUC has put us on the cutting edge of the field. We've used state-of-the-art equipment in AUC's molecular biology and genomic labs. Students from AUC's biotechnology graduate program have played key roles in the project. AUC's faculty research grants helped us complete different parts of the project and ensured the publication of our research in peer-reviewed scientific journals. AUC has supported our collaboration with leading institutions around the world -- from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography to the Technical University of Berlin and ETH Zurich. I believe that AUC is building the next generation of thinkers, researchers and discoverers: the people who will solve tomorrow's problems.

 

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A U.S.-based alumna reflects on what it's like to be a health care professional during the pandemic.
 

By Yakin Ouederni

For Hanaa Ibrahim '90, heroes nowadays look very different from the ones we see in movies. Instead of capes, they're draped in white coats and scrubs, and instead of fighting off villains, they're treating and containing COVID-19. However, while they do not look the same, they share a common goal: to save lives. As many of them as possible.

Ibrahim is the director of pharmacy in Suffolk County, Long Island, New York. When the coronavirus hit the United States, New York became the epicenter of the pandemic, with more than 350,000 confirmed cases and over 40,000 in her county. Ibrahim -- whose responsibilities as pharmacy director include overseeing the Suffolk County central pharmacy, medical programs in two jails and vaccination programs for uninsured residents -- saw her duties expand with the rapid spread of the virus.

"I oversee the distribution of testing kits to the nursing homes, fire departments and other centers so they can test the public," she said. "We also created PODs, Points of Distribution, where we create sort of a mobile hospital to draw blood and test. We're also taking care of tracing patients and all those they had been in contact with in the past 14 days and possibly have been exposed to the virus."

Ibrahim is playing a large role in the county's coronavirus public health response. Her days are filled with meetings, site visits, emergency preparedness, tracking cases and ensuring people are properly tested and traced. When a vaccination for coronavirus becomes available, she will be in charge of the vaccination program in the county.

"The efforts played out beautifully," she said about the county's public health initiative. "We flattened the curve. Had we not flattened it, we would have been worse than Italy."

But that doesn't mean it's over. As the United States began reopening the economy, states have started to see a rise in the number of cases. And more recently, the country is witnessing a wave of public gatherings as people take to the streets to protest police brutality.

"How is this going to translate pandemically? I don't know," Ibrahim said. "It's like a perfect storm."

For now, Ibrahim and her colleagues have put together policies and procedures for all possible scenarios. "We have a plan A, plan B and plan C," she said. "It's emergency preparedness -- all 'what if' situations."

Thinking ahead is nothing new for Ibrahim. In 2008, she was the first in New York to introduce the practice of Emergency Room Pharmacists, now a common -- and deemed critical -- practice across the country. She was met with skepticism when proposing this idea but went on to become a health care pioneer in the state.

"I believed in what I was doing," she reflected. "In your job, don't look under your feet; look 10 years from now. The world 50 years ago is nothing like the world today. If you think your job is going to stay the same your whole life, you'll probably lose it."

And it's with that same mentality that she puts on her cape each morning, saying goodbye to her family as she and thousands of other health care workers go to the frontline. She says that she's tired and exhausted, and the slightest things have started to make her cry, but that doesn't stop her from heading to her office. If anything, it has made her stronger.

"Every day is a challenge, but every day is also a success story and milestone," she said. "I appreciate my family more, my friends more, my lifestyle and my religion even more now."

Ibrahim and her family

While Ibrahim is dedicated to doing her job, she wants everyone else to do theirs too. For now, she advises people to keep their social distance, wear masks, be conscious and not take the matter as a joke. For the future, she wants governments worldwide to be transparent and work together when fighting the same battle.

"What hit China hit the rest of the world in one month and a half," she said. "We're going to have more pandemics in time. When that happens, countries shouldn't point fingers. They should learn from each other's mistakes and think globally."

Even as Ibrahim's career progressed since graduating from AUC with a bachelor's in chemistry in 1990, followed by a bachelor's in pharmacy from St. John's University and a doctorate in clinical pharmacy from Shenandoah University, she says that AUC has been with her every step of the way. It's at AUC, she affirmed, where she was taught to think critically and solve problems creatively.

Ibrahim was a ballerina during her time at AUC

"Thank you, AUC, for everything you've done for me," she said. "Where I am now is all a product of AUC. It's not an institution; it's a culture and a family that taught me how to think."

And it's as an AUCian, "heart and soul," she asserted, that she will continue to fight for people's lives.

 

 

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I am a homebody, so I'm enjoying my stay at home. Remote work saved the time of driving daily to and from campus. It is great that once I finish work, I'm home. I think removing the commute time from my schedule is awesome. Now I can sleep more before working hours and spend quality time with my family after finishing work.
 

For some reason, the workload has increased significantly during the quarantine. I am not sure why, probably because the current conditions required so many arrangements on the IT side to cater for remote work. One thing I noticed is that the working hours used to be those spent on campus, but with remote work, they are not that fixed anymore. I am currently involved in different projects, including regularly updating our webpage with all the IT services and solutions we're offering; preparing feedback forms; and conducting research, whether focus groups or surveys, to better understand student needs during this period -- in addition to other software and mobile application projects. What's so different for me is that all our activities and announcements now only take place through online channels, such as Microsoft Teams and Google Forms. The number of meetings is also higher than usual. I actually used to find difficulty focusing during online meetings, but I'm much better now. It is an important skill I've gained during this period.

Another skill I'm acquiring is cooking. Not being able to order food as frequently as I used to encouraged me to experiment with online recipes. Although it wasn't of great success at first, it was a fun experience, and I'm hoping I will get better with time. I've delved into only one cuisine: Italian. I made green bean salad and spaghetti Bolognese, which I prepared with my daughter. She handled the spaghetti, and I made the sauce.

The main problem I'm facing during the quarantine is not being able to visit my mother. Given the fact that elderly people are at a higher risk, taking this decision was my only option. Aside from this, some other challenges I'm facing include closure of sports clubs and the lack of sports facilities -- and, of course, the hassle of sterilizing myself and whatever I bring back home before being able to use it.

I'm hoping this will all end soon. It's definitely a learning period for me in many ways, but I miss life as we know it, or rather as we knew it, and I miss the fresh morning breeze at the AUC gardens on my way to the office.

By Nahla El Gendy, as told by Mohammad Radwan (MA '14), customer experience manager in the Office of Information Technology

 

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I consider myself exceptionally lucky when it comes to doing my job during the quarantine.

While not ideal for the types of classes I teach, the transition to online instruction was a smooth one because I was reasonably well-prepared for the shift. This had been up in the air for two months before the decision was made, and all faculty members were obliged to take a course with the Center for Learning and Teaching on how to use Zoom, record lectures, and navigate synchronous and asynchronous teaching.

I was relieved that my students were still able to ask questions and answer mine throughout the Zoom calls. There had been room for us to talk to each other and for the students to ask questions as usual. Although it still wasn't ideal, it wasn't the disaster I had been fearing. I actually plan to integrate some aspects of being online into my teaching once things go back to normal.

The greatest challenge with moving online, however, was that the field trips to historic monuments in Cairo, which constitute a large part of my classes, had been canceled. We used to visit museums, areas in Islamic Cairo, and the Egyptian National Library and Archives, which had just reopened only to be closed again. That is where my years as a photographer came in handy. I used my repertoire of photographs in my slides. It wasn't the same, of course, but it was the best substitute. It made things more interactive.

During the day, when I'm teaching, preparing lessons or doing research, I go up to a room on the top floor of my apartment building -- my own library. Although I had been using this room for years, it became especially important while staying home full time.

With my two young children staying home full time too, my wife and I had to try to balance work during the day while keeping our kids occupied. This is not something unique; it's a challenge parents around the world have been faced with. I must admit that I am enjoying the amount of time we're able to spend together. When I am in my room upstairs, the kids are with their nanny or playing with other children. Then in the late afternoon, we run around playing tag or hide-and-seek. It's a way to entertain my kids and for me to stay active. The closure of all the sports centers was a sore loss, as I like keeping fit. When the tennis courts I used to play in reopened, I quickly went back to them, abandoning the wall in my garden that had been my tennis partner for the past few months.

I miss traveling, going out, playing sports, visiting places in Cairo with my students and taking part in regular activities outside of the house, but I'm thankful to be living in a community surrounded by colleagues, friends and family. We have potlucks in the garden every Thursday, which is a great way for the adults to socialize while the kids play with each other. I understand that things might get worse, and we may no longer be able to see each other, but for the moment, it's been nice to have this space, these people, and not be confined to one apartment. It's great to have a sense of community.

By Yakin Ouederni, as told by Bernard O'Kane, professor of Islamic art and architecture

 

 

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Tamima Hafez '20 details her new routine and how she learned to make the most of staying at home

Quarantining has taught me how to become disciplined. Every morning, my natural alarm clock wakes me up at about 8 or 9 am without needing to snooze my phone alarm for hours. Having that much free time and space in my day allowed me to create a system for myself, which I try to make the most of.

I wake up with a fresh amount of energy, make my morning coffee and enjoy the sun with some music for about an hour. Afterward, I either stretch, do a mini- workout or read. This allows me to gently wake up my brain and get ready for the tasks of the day. Depending on the amount of work or Zoom sessions I have, I plan my day accordingly to finish my work at around 4 pm. Sometimes, I don't have any work, and I can use this time to practice some of my hobbies, such as painting, singing and playing the guitar or piano. I was only taking three classes during my last semester, so I had lots of time to learn new skills and talents.

My experience with online classes was great. I loved working from home. Creating my own comfort zone and managing my time added so much discipline to my day.
 

When the sun sets, I use the nighttime to switch off and catch up on movies or series that I've always wanted to watch but never had the time. At first, this quarantining system was tricky because I realized that I lacked discipline -- not time -- but then I found a way to work around that and use my time preciously.

The best part about this for me is that I can use my time freely in the morning, which is different from having to be on campus to attend classes. I really appreciate my mornings, and now I actually have the time to enjoy them. So overall, this experience has absolutely affected me positively because it has allowed me to split my day according to my needs and preferences. The main drawback of the quarantine is not being able to spend my last semester as a graduating senior with my friends, but we'll make up for that after this is all over.

By Nahla El Gendy, as told by Tamima Hafez '20, a double major in theatre and English and comparative literature

 

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AUC's biotechnology alum is researching COVID-19 drug leads

By Yakin Ouederni

Reem Al Olaby (MSc '11, PhD '14) has one secret to her success: "It's never too late to try something new."

And that's why she hasn't taken a rest since the day she earned her PhD in biotechnology from AUC.

Kickstarting her career in medical sciences at AUC and venturing to different institutes in the United States and Qatar, Al Olaby is now an assistant professor at California Northstate University, where she teaches pharmacology, neuroscience, biochemistry, biology, and advanced cell and molecular biology. Over the years, most of her research has focused on developing drugs, most notably identifying drug leads against hepatitis C, malaria and Fragile X neurodegenerative disorder. But when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, she once again delved into new territory.

"I felt that I should start learning more about the pandemic and help raise awareness of it," she said. "I thought, 'Why not use the expertise I have on drug discovery and do something?'"

Al Olaby has used her social media platforms to post videos where she busts myths about the coronavirus and explains the use of certain drugs to treat it. She also writes blog posts in English and Arabic to inform her followers of different developments and safety tips.

"I plan to do more videos about new discoveries, new drugs, the importance of face masks and more," she said.

Working on a team with other researchers and some of her students, Al Olaby is using computational biology to find drug leads for COVID-19. While this research is still in its early stages, Al Olaby is keen on producing an impactful outcome soon.

"This time, I'm really determined to make sure that once I get something beneficial, I will do all that it takes to make it reach the bedside by finding the possible funds and sponsors," she said. "It's not just about patenting and revenue. It's about reaching the people that need to benefit from such drugs."

Her work on COVID-19 isn't limited to the sciences. A long-time advocate of diversity in the workplace, delivering lectures about racism in health care and health disparities, Al Olaby has been giving talks about the disproportionate effects of the virus and how it should be used as a wake-up call to eliminate biases in health care and the workplace.

"Viruses do not discriminate, but minorities and marginalized populations don't have the same quality of health care as privileged communities," she explained.

And while the pandemic has shifted her in new directions for her research, Al Olaby's life as a university professor didn't change too much. She was already using a blended approach in her classes, a mix of face-to-face and prerecorded lectures.

"The transition wasn't that hard for me," she said. "I continued doing the same thing I already do in class, so the students weren't impacted too much."

When it comes to things Al Olaby does outside of the classroom, the list goes on. Whether it's giving talks about diversity, encouraging people to be global citizens, helping college students with postgraduate decisions, building homes with Habitat for Humanity or taking up taekwondo with her family, Al Olaby always finds a way.

"It is never too late to learn something new, and nothing is impossible. Go after your aspirations, and visualize your success," advised Al Olaby.

Al Olaby credits her time at AUC for helping her realize her fervor for achievement and commitment to service. "AUC was a life-changer for me," she said. "My professors inspired me to be the professor I am today. Being a faculty member is a true blessing because we have the chance to inspire generations and leave a positive imprint in people's lives."

Her love for public health flourished at AUC as she took part in different competitions and campaigns, including one where she raised awareness of hepatitis C.

"This all gave me the experience that I'm using right now: the ability to share my ideas with others, public speaking, being a well-rounded researcher and looking at problems differently," she said.

After AUC, in 2017, Al Olaby earned her master's in public health from The George Washington University.

 

For Al Olaby, every class she teaches, every research project she conducts, every drug lead she finds and every personal decision she makes is grounded by her pride in who she is and her acceptance of diversity in all its forms. "I always introduce myself as Syrian-Egyptian," she said. "Be proud of who you are. It will impact your charisma, your confidence and how others treat you. Going around so much has made me resilient, more accepting of constructive feedback and different ideas. It made me appreciate the richness of diversity."

So whether it's finding that drug for the coronavirus, searching for new ways to give back to her community or taking up another new activity, Al Olaby knows one thing for sure: She's not anywhere close to stopping just yet.

 

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COVID-19 is changing the name of the game in the world of business.
 

By Nahla El Gendy

 

As the coronavirus pandemic continues to spread globally, pushing governments to make significant interventions, businesses are continuing to adapt to the new normal while satisfying the altering needs of their customers.

"The current circumstances that the world is facing are more of a game changer. Any business, regardless of its position in the market, has to consider this and adjust accordingly in order to survive," said Alain El-Hajj '15, computer science graduate and chief operating officer of Paymob, a digital payment enabler empowering the underserved, consumers and merchants with access to financial services. "Feeling forced to change your day-to-day operations isn't an easy thing, but, fortunately, we are quite used to it."

COVID-19, and any other crisis, shouldn't change business models if they are well-structured but could definitely lead to what El-Hajj described as a typical evolution, where companies could reinvent themselves, refresh their thinking or invest in something new. "The current circumstances made us shift our focus to certain products more than others," he said.

Paymob recently partnered with another electronic payment service provider, Klickit, to offer digital payment solutions to GEMS [Global Education Management Systems] schools in Egypt, enabling tuition fees to be paid online. "This initiative will help cater to consumer needs during the COVID-19 pandemic and is expected to be implemented in countries other than Egypt," said El-Hajj.

More Home, More Internet

For technology-based companies such as Paymob, working from home did not introduce a drastic change. "Luckily for us, as a fast-scaling company, our need for technologies that help us perform our day-to-day operations more efficiently are pretty much the same for working remotely, and due to our great team, we've adapted quickly to these new measures," said El-Hajj.

Some companies, such as [34]ML, already applied a remote work policy before COVID-19. Founded by two AUC alumni, Ahmed Saafan '11 and Ashraf Mourad (MA '19), [34]ML is a software company specialized in the design and development of mobile applications. It recently launched the Around Egypt application to promote tourism and show the beauty and hidden gems of Egypt in 360 degrees -- a service that comes in handy during the COVID-19 pandemic. Offering an immersive virtual reality experience, the Around Egypt app reached more than 1 million users on Facebook and over 30,000 downloads since its launch in April 2020.

 

"The app features more than 30 different virtual reality tours of sites all around Egypt -- from Cairo to Aswan, from temples to national parks, from religious sites to entertainment venues, from 80 million years ago to the 21st century," said Saafan, construction engineering graduate, business lead at [34]ML and a member of AUC's rugby team. "There couldn't be a better timing to launch this app. With the COVID-19 pandemic forcing everyone to stay at home, people are geared more toward the internet, online applications and technology in general. With tourism, this is particularly useful because mosques, churches, temples, museums and other tourist attractions in Egypt have been closed."

 

Around Egypt app

In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the company is also working on adding to its existing portfolio Software as a Service (SaaS) products, a form of cloud computing whereby a service provider hosts applications for customers and makes these apps available over the internet for a monthly fee. "The pandemic has triggered us to pivot into a more product-led company and transform our business offerings," said Saafan.
 

Adapting and Adopting

Breakfast team working under strict health and safety measures

It's not only the internet whose consumption has increased but also food -- and, of course, companies had to adjust. According to Deloitte, one of the world's largest management consulting firms, out-of-home consumption that typically generated the highest profits has fallen, coming to "nearly a standstill," whereas at-home consumption has risen. This has caused disruptions in supply chains and may lead to long-term changes in customer behavior and demand, as Deloitte described it.

Breadfast, an online supermarket that delivers freshly baked goods and groceries to people's doorsteps, is adjusting its operations in this unprecedented situation by implementing firm health and safety measures.

"We have placed strict precautions to mitigate the risk of the coronavirus, from sanitizing all workspaces and wearing face masks to reducing shifts and having an alarm that goes off every hour for employees to pause operations and wash their hands," said Yehia El Darawy '12, '17, petroleum engineering major and country manager of Breadfast.

COVID-19 pushed Breadfast to accelerate its online grocery shopping: evolving from a bakery delivery service to an online supermarket, and increasing its portfolio to include more categories such as cooking ingredients, health and household items, baby needs and even meat -- with plans to add a broad range of products such as chicken, toothpaste and garbage bags, among others. The bakery also went from next-day delivery services to delivery within an hour in several areas across Cairo. "We are humbled by the opportunity to provide a safer way of grocery shopping with a wider range of products to keep our teams and customers healthy," noted El Darawy.

What About the Nonprofits?

The business impact of COVID-19 is not merely restricted to business entities but social enterprises as well, such as Helm, which provides advisory and coaching services for institutions, professionals and governments to work toward the effective and sustainable inclusion of people with disabilities in the workplace. Like many entities, Helm pivoted from a physical academy to an online one and shifted the focus of its training -- whether individual or corporate -- to new, customized needs brought about by COVID-19. This has allowed people with disabilities under Helm's umbrella to not only work from home but also learn new skills online through different development courses. Consequently, Helm Academy's online platform became the first inclusive online learning platform in the Middle East and North Africa that is specialized for people with disabilities, according to Amena Elsaie '11 and Ramez Maher '12, co-founders of Helm.

"Since the start of the quarantine, our team has conducted a total of 180 client meetings per month instead of 20," said Elsaie. "We met virtually with e-learning experts across five continents to study the best technological solutions and learning management systems out there in order to provide the most suitable and accessible model tailored in Arabic
to fit our client needs."

One of Helm's employees while working from home

Within Helm, "we have temporarily shifted the organizational roles so that those whose jobs were affected are performing other duties and supporting other teams. We have also used this time to invest in the team's growth through bringing in consultants and organizations for capacity building and training to help lift the spirits of people during these turbulent times," Elsaie added.

Not only is COVID-19 affecting business operations at Helm, but it has also changed perceptions, ideologies and personalities. "We regularly give our people the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator in order to identify their personalities and make sure they are doing what's best for them," noted Elsaie. "It's surprising how these tests have shown a drastic shift in people's personalities both pre-pandemic and post-pandemic, as extraverts turned to introverts, including myself!"

Will Things Be the Same?

Regardless of how tough this period has been for almost all businesses, it has offered eye-opening lessons that are here to stay.

"Productivity skyrocketed in certain areas, including technology and product functions, and that is something we all want to capitalize on. When these tough days are over, we will surely go back to our meetings and gatherings, but work-from-home arrangements and other measures will be adopted more extensively," said El-Hajj.

[34]ML has already started to focus more on its marketing activities. "Since everyone is online more now, we are investing more time into creating content for our marketing outlets," said Saafan. "We are also considering sticking to virtual meetings even after the end of COVID-19. From a business perspective, the pandemic has actually accelerated digital transformation across several functions and industries. For example, people are now more comfortable with online meetings and digital signatures."

Saafan also stressed how much he and his team have learned about unforeseeable circumstances suddenly changing set plans. "We now recognize the importance of a clause in our agreements for force majeure, which we never really understood before," he said.

These unforeseen circumstances have taught Helm's team to step out of their comfort zones and never take no for an answer. "When you think there is only one way of doing business, COVID-19 comes to show you that there are always other options. We just have to expand our horizons and think outside the box," reflected Elsaie.

And be flexible. "The most important lesson we learned is that you have to be very agile in order to make the best use of opportunities that come your way. There are a lot of competitors out there, so you have to change rapidly, adapt and try to read the trend as best as you can," said El Darawy.

For Paymob, COVID-19 proved "how betting on the right people and finding the right team are key for surviving all hardships," affirmed El-Hajj. "We will always continue to work hard to find the right talent and maintain the right culture through our growth, as COVID-19 is not the first challenge and will definitely not be the last."