Georgetown has appointed Safwan M Masri, a global academic leader and entrepreneurial educator, professor at Columbia University and scholar on the Middle East and North Africa, as the new dean of Georgetown University in Qatar (GU-Q).
Masri will begin his role at GU-Q on October 1. He is the executive vice president for Global Centres and Global Development at Columbia University, where he oversees its network of nine global centres that span four continents and directs a number of university-wide global initiatives.
Masri is also a senior research scholar and instructor at Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs.
“Please join me in welcoming Dr Safwan Masri to the Georgetown University community,” president John J DeGioia wrote on April 27. “I also wish to extend my sincere appreciation to Dr Clyde Wilcox for his service and leadership as interim dean of GU-Q during the last year.”
Masri, who will also serve as distinguished professor of the practice at Georgetown’s Walsh School of Foreign Service, was drawn to Georgetown’s Qatar campus for its unique role at the frontiers of higher education in the Middle East, commitment to the common good, and its values of “developing minds, discovering truth and engaging with the world.”
“I am truly honoured and privileged to be joining Georgetown University, one of the world's leading global research universities,” said, Masri. “I look forward with great excitement to building on the strength of this institution, to advancing its contribution to higher education in Qatar and the broader region, and to leading the exceptionally strong faculty, staff and students at Georgetown University-Qatar and collaborating with partners in Education City and beyond.”
For nearly 35 years, Masri has served as a professor and mentor to thousands of students. He has also pioneered innovative academic programmes and institutes in the US and across the globe.
The Jordanian native moved to the US at 16 to study engineering at Purdue University. He earned his master’s in industrial engineering from Purdue and his PhD in industrial engineering and engineering management at Stanford University, beginning his teaching career at both Stanford and Santa Clara University.
After graduating with his PhD in 1988, Masri taught technology and operations management at Columbia Business School. At 30, he was appointed vice dean of the university’s Business School, where he oversaw the redesign and expansion of its curriculum, technology and programming for graduate students – helping to boost the school’s MBA ranking from top 15 to top three in the US.
Masri is also a senior research scholar and instructor at Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs.
“Please join me in welcoming Dr Safwan Masri to the Georgetown University community,” president John J DeGioia wrote on April 27. “I also wish to extend my sincere appreciation to Dr Clyde Wilcox for his service and leadership as interim dean of GU-Q during the last year.”
Masri, who will also serve as distinguished professor of the practice at Georgetown’s Walsh School of Foreign Service, was drawn to Georgetown’s Qatar campus for its unique role at the frontiers of higher education in the Middle East, commitment to the common good, and its values of “developing minds, discovering truth and engaging with the world.”
“I am truly honoured and privileged to be joining Georgetown University, one of the world's leading global research universities,” said, Masri. “I look forward with great excitement to building on the strength of this institution, to advancing its contribution to higher education in Qatar and the broader region, and to leading the exceptionally strong faculty, staff and students at Georgetown University-Qatar and collaborating with partners in Education City and beyond.”
For nearly 35 years, Masri has served as a professor and mentor to thousands of students. He has also pioneered innovative academic programmes and institutes in the US and across the globe.
The Jordanian native moved to the US at 16 to study engineering at Purdue University. He earned his master’s in industrial engineering from Purdue and his PhD in industrial engineering and engineering management at Stanford University, beginning his teaching career at both Stanford and Santa Clara University.
After graduating with his PhD in 1988, Masri taught technology and operations management at Columbia Business School. At 30, he was appointed vice dean of the university’s Business School, where he oversaw the redesign and expansion of its curriculum, technology and programming for graduate students – helping to boost the school’s MBA ranking from top 15 to top three in the US.