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School of SCE Update: Retirement of Dean James Ketterer and Appointment of Interim Dean Mahmoud Allam

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  3. School of SCE Update: Retirement of Dean James Ketterer and Appointment of Interim Dean Mahmoud Allam

May 25, 2023

Dear AUC Community,

I am writing to inform you that James Ketterer, the Dean of the School of Continuing Education (SCE), has decided to retire from AUC effective July 1, 2023. He made this decision due to personal reasons, which should in no way reflect on his strong commitment to AUC and the school's mission.

Prior to joining AUC in 2019, Dean Ketterer served as Dean of International Studies at Bard College and as Vice Chancellor for Policy and Planning at the State University of New York. Additionally, he worked in Egypt as Country Director at AMIDEAST. During his time at AUC, he provided exceptional leadership to the SCE team. He supported the growth of its programs and had both national and regional impacts. SCE programs are aiding learners across all of Egypt's governorates in various sectors, including language learning, career development, translation and teacher training. SCE has also recently expanded its offerings in life enrichment areas, including a popular partnership with Azza Fahmy Design Studio. In addition, in the last several years SCE has more than doubled its portfolio of projects supported by the U.S. Embassy, including teaching training, the Access project for Egyptian high school students and the English Language Resource Center at Al Azhar University.

Shortly after Dean Ketterer's arrival at AUC, the COVID-19 pandemic hit. He led his team in implementing online learning options for many SCE classes, with over 11,000 online learners in the first year of the pandemic. Under his guidance, and in partnership with the Center for Learning and Teaching, the Academy of Liberal Arts, and the Digital Technology team, SCE administers the newly launched and highly impactful "AUC Road to College Program," which offers learners throughout Egypt and the world access to high-quality English language learning. Overall, online and face-to-face enrollments continue to grow and SCE's annual participation rate has returned to historically high levels. As SCE prepares for its centennial anniversary in 2024, the school is in excellent shape, expanding its programs and supporting the University's outreach mission across Egypt and beyond.

While the search for a new dean will begin shortly, I am pleased to share that Dr. Mahmoud Allam has agreed to step in as Interim Dean of SCE. Dr. Allam brings with him a wealth of experience, having previously served as the Founding President of the Knowledge Hub Universities, the Associate Dean for Industrial Partnerships and Extended Education at AUC’s School of Sciences and Engineering, AUC, and in various senior administrative and academic positions at Nile University, and the Université Française d’Égypte.

Dr. Allam holds a PhD from the University of Wisconsin, and an MS and BS from Cairo University. We are confident that his expertise and leadership will be valuable assets during this transitional period.

Please join me in thanking Dean Ketterer for his service to AUC and extending our best wishes as he prepares to return to the US. Additionally, I would like to extend a warm welcome to Dr. Allam in his role as Interim Dean.

Sincerely,

Ehab Abdel-Rahman, Provost