April 25, 2014 - Laurentian University’s Board of Governors today approved the appointment of Dr. Osman Abou-Rabia to the position of Dean, Faculty of Science, Engineering and Architecture, for a term of five years, beginning July 1, 2014.
Dr. Abou-Rabia has a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering (University of Ottawa) and completed his MSc and BSc at Cairo University. He joined Laurentian in 1985 as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science. He has since served the Department as Chair and his Faculty as Vice-Dean, and is currently Acting Dean of the Faculty. Following a national search, the selection committee unanimously recommended his appointment to the position.
“Dr. Abou-Rabia has a unique appreciation of this Faculty and its needs, and he is absolutely the right choice for this critically-important role at the University,” said Laurentian University President and Vice-Chancellor, Dominic Giroux. “He has a management style that is consultative, his leadership qualities are well-regarded, and the recommendations we received from his colleagues and from others across the university community were highly positive and supportive of his candidacy.”
Dr. Abou-Rabia is bilingual and has served on several Laurentian University Senate committees, including the Committee of English Language Programs and the Comité des programmes en français. He has also served as Chair of the Science and Engineering Faculty Council. He has been active in student recruitment both in Canada and abroad. He has played an integral role in the development of new agreements with universities in Chile, Egypt and South Korea. He has also been a key player in the creation of a new academic plan for Laurentian in Barrie, and a strong advocate for the developing relationship between Laurentian’s Forensic Science program and the OPP and RCMP. In the recently re-organized Faculty structure, the Dean will now assume responsibility for the School of Architecture, which began operations in 2013 and is led by founding director Terrance Galvin, the award-winning Bharti School of Engineering, a new School of Environment, along with all other Science departments and programs at Laurentian.
"I am honoured to be leading the re-organized Faculty at such an exciting juncture in the evolution of this University. Our Faculty is equipped to make its mark in Canada and abroad, and I am very optimistic about our prospects for greater successes," said Dr. Abou-Rabia.