Professor Nizar Hamzeh - AUK Provost

Following an extensive international search, AUK President, Dr. Winfred Thompson, announced the appointment of Professor Nizar Hamzeh as University Provost, effective this Spring Semester.

Hamzeh, who joined AUK in 2005, is an expert on Middle East politics, Islamic movements, international law, research methodology, and Western and Islamic political theory. He served at AUK as Associate Professor of Political Science, Head of the Social Sciences Division, and Director of the Gulf Studies Center until August 2006. In May 2007, Hamzeh was promoted to Full Professor based on reviews by an external Advisory Committee, which was created in the United States with assistance from Dartmouth College. He was appointed Dean of the College of Arts & Sciences at AUK in the same year. In 2011, Hamzeh was appointed Acting Vice President for Academic Affairs.

"I am pleased to appoint Dr. Hamzeh to his new position, which recognizes not only his long and distinguished service to the university but also the increased responsibilities he has assumed. I look forward to working with him in his new role," said President Thompson.

Prior to joining AUK, Hamzeh was a lecturer at the University of Southern California from 1987 to 1989, Assistant Professor and Associate Professor from 1989 to 2004 at the American University of Beirut, and Chair of the Political Science Department 1990 to 1999, member of the AUB Senate from 1997-1999, and Acting Dean of Student Affairs from 1999 to 2000.

As a 1979 graduate of the Lebanese University Faculty of Law, Hamzeh pursued graduate studies at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles receiving his M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in Political Science in 1982 and 1986, respectively. Building on his dissertation, Conflict in Lebanon: A Survey of Opinions and Attitudes, Hamzeh has become an internationally recognized authority on the culture and politics of Lebanon, with special focus on the development of Hizbullah and Islamist movements across the Middle East. Hamzeh is the author of In the Path of Hezbullah, published by Syracuse University Press, December 2004, a work that received the U.S. Choice Magazine Outstanding Academic Book Award for 2005. He has co-authored two other volumes on Lebanese Politics, and his articles appear in scholarly international referred journals such as International Journal of the Middle East (IJMES), Third World Quarterly, and Middle East Quarterly. His research work is also published by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Washington D.C.

"I am honored to be appointed to this new post. I look forward to continue serving the students of the American University of Kuwait to the best of their interest and future," said Hamzeh. He added, "I also look forward to working closely with the University President, Dr. Win Thompson, AUK BOT, faculty and administrative colleagues, and our Dartmouth partners, to enhance the academic programs that sustain AUK's distinctive intellectual environment".

The AUK Provost is the chief academic officer of the university, responsible for the academic and administrative functions of the Colleges of Arts & Sciences and Business & Economics and oversees all other academic support units and centers, such as the Registrar, the Library, the Writing Center, the Academic Advising Center and the Center for Gulf Studies. With oversight of curriculum development and implementation; faculty recruitment, development, and evaluation; policy development; and budgetary and outreach supervision, the Provost works closely with the President and serves as a member of his leadership cabinet.

Released by the Office of Public Affairs on the 5th February 2013