Seven New Members to Join the AUB Board of Trustees

Raja Trad

Ayman Asfari, Carol Bellamy, Carlos Ghosn, and Gabriel Rebeiz have been elected to join the American University of Beirut's 37-member Board of Trustees in New York. Three alumni, Yusef Abu Khadra, Abdulsalam Haykal, and Raja Trad were also proposed for nomination to the Board as a result of global alumni elections held earlier this year. The announcement was made by Board of Trustees Chairman Thomas Q. Morris, who stated: "We are proud to welcome these new Board members, who are international leaders in their respective fields. Their collective, diverse expertise will prove invaluable to providing guidance for the future of the university. Our new alumni trustees will serve to strengthen ties and increase communication between the Board of Trustees and the Worldwide Alumni Association of the American University of Beirut (WAAAUB)."

Brief biographical sketches of each new Board member follow.
AUB's Board of Trustees, which has governed the University since it was founded in 1866, meets three times a year in New York City, where AUB is incorporated. Members of the Board are leaders in higher education, business, politics, medicine, and finance worldwide. A full list of the current Board may be found at http://www.aub.edu.lb/about/bot.html.

This announcement comes at the end of the University's successful five-year Campaign for Excellence, which has surpassed its goal of raising $140 million in 2007, the 140th anniversary of the American University of Beirut. The campaign was spearheaded by board member and campaign chairman Kamal A. Shair.

Trustees elected to the AUB Board of Trustees:

Ayman Asfari is the group chief executive of Petrofac Limited, which designs, builds, commissions, and operates facilities for oil and gas production, gas processing, and oil refining both onshore and offshore. He was previously the chairman and chief executive officer of Petrofac International; managing director of Petrofac UK; and managing director of Desert Line Projects (DLP) in Muscat, Oman.

Carol Bellamy is president and chief executive officer of World Learning, a non-profit international organization that promotes international and intercultural understanding worldwide through education and development. She is formerly the executive director of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF); director of the United States Peace Corps; and managing director of Bear, Stearns & Co. She was named one of the "100 Most Powerful Women in the World" by FORBES Magazine in 2004.

Carlos Ghosn is the president and chief executive officer of Nissan Motor Co. and Renault S.A. He is currently a director at Alcoa Incorporated. He is a former director of IBM and Sony and acted as chairman, president, and chief executive officer of Michelin North America, from 1990-96. Ghosn was made Commander of the British Empire in 2006. He received an honorary doctorate from AUB in 2003.