NEOM, Saudi Arabia, June 23,
2022 /PRNewswire/ -- NEOM, the sustainable regional
development in northwest Saudi
Arabia, announced today the appointment of Dr. Andreas
Cangellaris as the Founding President of NEOM U – NEOM's first
university. Dr. Cangellaris is joining NEOM from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, where he
is the M. E. Van Valkenburg Professor in Electrical and Computer
Engineering and has been serving as Vice-Chancellor for Academic
Affairs and Provost since 2018.
Education is central to the well-being of societies and the
development of vibrant ecosystems. NEOM aims to establish a
world-class Education, Research and Innovation (ERI) hub that
empowers future generations while using technology to engender new
ways of learning from early years on, through primary, secondary,
post-secondary education and beyond. These goals support the
transformation of Saudi Arabia's
educational sector. NEOM U, as one of the key pillars of NEOM's
vision for its education sector, will contribute to this endeavor
by creating a nexus of innovation and knowledge that will attract
students from all over the Kingdom and the world.
Dr. Cangellaris will lead the development of NEOM U on its
journey to become a pre-eminent knowledge institution that supports
NEOM's vision as an innovation hub and a society enhanced by the
opportunities of new technology. It will be a university without
boundaries, leveraging next-generation educational technologies
with both on-site and online learning. Its graduates will be known
for digital/technological thinking and the ability to design
innovative solutions in context. The development of NEOM's
different sectors will provide a unique living laboratory for
immersive ERI. Initial academic and research programs will cover
computer science, engineering and design, media, art and
entertainment, as well as business. One common theme will be a CS+X
undergraduate core curriculum rooted in the natural sciences, arts,
humanities and social sciences.
Dr. Cangellaris has overseen the academic and research programs
of a highly regarded US academic institution with over 50,000
students, 15 colleges and 150+ programs of study and in excess of
USD 600 million in annual research
expenditures. A distinguished scholar in the fields of
computational electromagnetics and electronic design automation, he
received his Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering
from the University of Thessaloniki,
Greece and his graduate degrees, a Master of Science and
Ph.D., in Electrical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley.
Commenting on the new appointment, Nadhmi Al-Nasr, CEO of
NEOM, said: "Education is central to achieving NEOM's vision and
ambitious goals. I am delighted that we have attracted a person of
the caliber of Dr. Cangellaris to lead one of the critical pillars
of our education sector. NEOM U is our first step toward developing
a postsecondary education that is accessible to all, attracting the
brightest students from all over Kingdom and the world. We want it
to be a differentiator and a powerful signal of NEOM's commitment
to pioneering ideas in a world inspired by innovation."
Commenting on his appointment, Dr. Cangellaris said: "I
am thrilled and honored to have been given the opportunity to be
the Founding President of NEOM U, to help build it and to lead it
in its quest to inspire, catalyze, foster and enable the positive
change NEOM aspires to bring to the world. To change the world for
the better, you need everyone to become a change agent. And this is
what NEOM U will do, by bringing together learners from the Kingdom
and the world in NEOM's living laboratory and immersing them in the
learning of how the deliberate, responsible, innovative use of
technology can improve our world and the human condition."
Dr. Jean-Lou Chameau, the chair of the International
Steering Council (a council composed of world leaders in education
and research that advise NEOM in matters pertaining to the
Education, Research and Innovation sector), added, "Dr.
Cangellaris, a distinguished scholar and teacher with extensive
experience in academic leadership, brings a world-class perspective
to NEOM U. The ISC and I were impressed by his vision and ideas for
higher education and research: He can drive NEOM U's efforts
to become a destination as a global university for the best
scholars and students as well as foster new pathways to academic
degrees."
About NEOM
NEOM is an accelerator of human progress
and a vision of what a New Future might look like. It is a region
in northwest Saudi Arabia on the
Red Sea being built from the ground up as a living laboratory – a
place where entrepreneurship will chart the course for this New
Future. It will be a destination and a home for people who dream
big and want to be part of building a new model for exceptional
livability, creating thriving businesses and reinventing
environmental conservation.
NEOM will include hyperconnected, cognitive towns and cities,
ports and enterprise zones, research centers, sports and
entertainment venues and tourist destinations. As a hub for
innovation, entrepreneurs, business leaders and companies will come
to research, incubate and commercialize new technologies and
enterprises in groundbreaking ways. Residents of NEOM will embody
an international ethos and embrace a culture of exploration,
risk-taking and diversity.
For further information email media@neom.com or visit
www.neom.com and www.neom.com/en-us/newsroom.
This material is distributed by Teneo Strategy LLC on behalf
of NEOM Company. Additional information is available at the
Department of Justice, Washington,
DC.
Photo -
https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1846339/NEOM_CEO.jpg
Photo -
https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1846338/NEOM_U_Founding_President.jpg
View original content to download
multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/neom-appoints-founding-president-of-its-flagship-university-neom-u-301574175.html
SOURCE NEOM