October 27,
2016, Cairo – The Board of Trustees of The American University in Cairo
(AUC) elected Atef Eltoukhy ’74, money manager and chairman of Aurum
Capital Management in Woodside, California, as its next chairman, succeeding
Richard Bartlett, who this October completed his second, three-year term as
chairman. Eltoukhy is the first American of Egyptian origin and the first
alumnus to hold this position.
The board also elected
as vice chair David Tirrell, the Ross McCollum–William H. Corcoran professor of
chemistry and chemical engineering and director of the Beckman Institute at the
California Institute of Technology. Tirrell succeeds Moataz Al Alfi, who
has also served two terms as vice chair. The election took place at the October
2016 trustees meeting held at AUC.
An AUC trustee for more
than four years, Eltoukhy was a professor at the University of Southern
California in Los Angeles, a scientist at IBM and an entrepreneur in
Silicon Valley. Eltoukhy authored more than 15 patents and publications in the
semiconductor and magnetic thin film technology. He holds a PhD from the
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he received the Distinguished
Merit Award for alumni in 2015. Eltoukhy received his master’s and bachelor’s
degrees from Cairo University, and was a graduate student and an instructor at
AUC’s Department of Material Science in the 1970s.
Shifting from science
to business, Eltoukhy launched a new career in investment management in the
early 1990s, co-founding two registered entities in San Francisco: a
broker-dealer and an investment adviser. A successful entrepreneur, he also
co-founded two Silicon Valley companies in the digital storage industry and
took them public, playing an instrumental role in the industry’s shift from
particulate to thin film magnetic recording media. He served as a board member
at the International House, a multicultural program center and campus residence
at the University of California, Berkeley.
Eltoukhy is well-known as a Silicon Valley
philanthropist, particularly in the field of education. The Eltoukhy family has
sponsored the Atef and Fofa Eltoukhy Family Endowed Scholarship at AUC for
the benefit of talented and deserving Egyptian students. The Eltoukhy
Family Foundation has also established a school in the Egyptian governorate of
Sharqiya and sponsored endowed fellowships for the benefit of Egyptian and Middle Eastern
students at the University of California, Berkeley and Stanford University. In
addition, Eltoukhy has been involved with several nonprofit
organizations that support education, entrepreneurship and cross-cultural
understanding.
AUC Trustee Lisa Brown,
vice president and general counsel at Georgetown University who led the board
committee overseeing the process to elect the new board chair, described
Eltoukhy as a distinguished business leader, philanthropist and supporter of
education who is deeply dedicated to AUC. “Dr. Eltoukhy has the
commitment, know-how, expertise and passion to take on this role at the helm of
AUC’s Board of Trustees,” Brown said. “We are delighted and eager to work with
him as we steer AUC on its path of educational excellence and global impact.”
Eltoukhy’s chairmanship
coincides with the University welcoming its 12th President
Francis J. Ricciardone and preparing for its 100th anniversary.
“I am honored and grateful for this opportunity, particularly at this pivotal
moment in the history of the University, with its centennial on the horizon,”
said Eltoukhy. “I look forward to working with President Ricciardone to
maintain AUC as a center of excellence and leadership in Egypt, the region and
the world. I also want to thank Richard Bartlett for his able leadership of the
board during the past six years and promise to build on his successes as AUC
prepares for its next 100 years, while preserving its unique identity as
Egypt’s global University.”
Bartlett emphasized
Eltoukhy’s philanthropic dedication, professional accomplishments and longtime
support of the University. “Dr. Eltoukhy has not only been an active board
member for the past several years, but is also a valuable University supporter,
with exceptional expertise and success as a scientist, entrepreneur and
business investor,” said Bartlett. “He also has a deep commitment and passion
for philanthropy. We are confident that under his guidance and President
Ricciardone’s leadership, the University will continue to grow and advance as
it enters its second century of distinction and excellence.”
Distinguished for their
professional accomplishments in the areas of business, law, education,
philanthropy and scholarship, members of AUC’s Board of Trustees are all
volunteers who dedicate their time and resources to supporting the University.
Primarily Egyptians, Saudi Arabians and Americans, the trustees do not receive
any compensation. They provide
generous financial support to the University, in addition to their fiduciary
responsibilities.
For more information about the university news
and events follow us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/aucegypt
