THE FIRST UNIVERSITY-WIDE COMMENCEMENT CEREMONY SINCE COVID-19
June 25, 2022, Cairo – The
American University in Cairo (AUC) held its undergraduate and graduate commencement
ceremonies this week for the Class of 2022, the first University-wide
commencement ceremonies since COVID-19. The ceremonies witnessed the graduation
of 603 bachelor’s degree candidates, 82 Master’s degree candidates and two
doctorate degree students. The ceremonies also witnessed the graduation of 24
international undergraduate and graduate students from Greece, Nigeria,
Palestine, Japan, Korea, USA, Brazil, and more.
In the
ceremonies, AUC President Ahmad Dallal emphasized the University’s mission to
serve Egypt and the world since it was founded in 1919, preparing students to
meet the challenges of the day with courage, confidence, and innovation. Dallal pointed out the challenges the world
faced during COVID-19 and its impact on people’s lives. “Tonight, we are
gathering after two years of tremendous struggle and perseverance on the part
of our students, faculty, staff, and all of our friends and families. As we
look at the changed world around us, it is clear that all of our lives have
been impacted in ways that would have been unimaginable before the pandemic,”
Dallal said.
Eve M.
Troutt Powell (CASA '84, '89, '05), Christopher H. Browne distinguished
professor of history and Africana studies
at the University of Pennsylvania was the speaker of the undergraduate
commencement ceremony and the recipient of the AUC Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters. Powell shared memories
of her time at AUC back in the 1980s. She described how the University enabled
her to immerse herself in a new city and a new country that changed everything
for her. I” met my husband here, I found Arabic here – and that has been a long
road of learning and discovery for me.” She also stressed how much her
experience at AUC inspired her entire career as a historian of the Nile Valley
and the Middle East. “There are faculty on this stage who gave me the tools to
ask and inquire. Because of them, I learned to feel like I am home when I am
here, with my family,” she said.
In her speech at the graduate
commencement ceremony, Maya Morsy ‘95, president of
Egypt’s National Council for Women, advised the students to constantly have faith and confidence in their capabilities. “Everyone has
his own stamp, for this, it is important that you
don’t let yourself get into the trap of questioning your own capabilities.” Morsy congratulated the students for their achievements and
perseverance in achieving
success. “Today is an
opportunity to reflect on the progress and the
downfalls, the highs and the lows, the lessons learned, the changes you had to
go through, all of which have led to this moment of celebrations.”
Morsy also pointed out and applauded two notable Egyptian
women, who paved the way for Egyptian women in
today’s world; Eva Habib, the first Egyptian woman who graduated from AUC in
1931 as well as Doria Shafik who led "a feminist congress" from Ewart
Memorial Hall in 1951 to the Egyptian Parliament, demanding women's rights
to vote and hold office.
This year,
in commemoration of award-winning Palestinian-American female journalist
Shireen Abu Aqleh, who was shot and killed in May 2022 while reporting on a
raid in Jenin in the West Bank, AUC Professor Soraya Altorki presented Shireen
Abu Aqleh Award to a high-achieving Palestinian student from the West Bank or
Gaza. The award was given to Alamir Yacoub.
Distinguished students
were also recognized for their achievements at the ceremony. The President's
Cup and the Mohamed EL Beleidy Academic Award were given to Abdelrahman Hatem,
Hany Adel and Ramez Adel, who ranked highest in the graduating class. The
Jehane Ragai and John Thomas highest Achiever in Chemistry Award was presented
to Mariam William.
The Omar Mohsen Athletic
Achievement Cup was presented to Aisha Said and Dr. Ahmed Zewail Prize for
Excellence in the Sciences and Humanities was awarded to Ahmed Ibrahim. Ahmed
El Mehallawi Family Award was given to Amina Hisham, The Parents Association
Cup was presented to Mohamed Ossama and the Student Government Cup was awarded
to students Salma Tamer and Tia Ashraf. Ahmed Salah Eldin received the Valerie
Farag Music Award. Hany Adel and Ramez Adel received the Mohammed Bin
Abdulkarim A. Allehedan Award which is offered to the highest performing STEM
(Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) students.
Dareen Hussein received
The Doria Shafik Award that is presented to the student who worked on women's
empowerment in any discipline, field or activity. Mohammed Osama received the
Dr. Ahmed Abdel Rahman El Sawy award that is given to the student with the
highest-grade point average in the engineering department and who has been a
Public-School Scholarship recipient.
For graduate students'
awards, Salah Eldin Seoudy was given the 25th of January Award for Scholarly
Excellence, which is awarded for a student's outstanding thesis work on a topic
related to democracy, human rights, citizenship or sustainable development in
the Middle East and North Africa. Mohamed Saleh received the Mohammed Bin
Abdulkarim A. Allehedan Award.
For regular updates from the University during
coronavirus visit www.aucegypt.edu/coronavirus
For more information about the university
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