ABSTRACT
Dr Abdulla Y. Al-Hawaj, the President of Ahlia University, ranks in the top echelon of educational leaders in the Arabian Gulf. His incumbency in numerous managerial posts in prestigious organizations associated with educational development at a national level and his academic accolades from esteemed institutions, attest to Dr Al-Hawaj being in the vanguard of higher educational reform in the Kingdom of Bahrain. In recognition of Dr Al-Hawaj’s trail-blazing contributions in the sphere of educational advancement in the Kingdom of Bahrain, he was appointed-by Royal decree in 2000 and 2006, respectively-not only as a member of the Supreme Committee for the Kingdom National Charter, in which he serves as the co-ordinator of its Educational Committee, but also as a member in the Higher Educational Council. Among his portfolio of managerial responsibilities, moreover, Dr Al-Hawaj, since 2001, has served as the President of the Bahrain Association for Academics. He holds a Ph.D. and an M.Sc. in Applied Mathematics from the University of Manchester (UK) and a B.Sc. (Hons) in Mathematics from the University of Kuwait. Dr Al-Hawaj launched his distinguished academic career at the University of Bahrain, in which he held the successive posts of Dean of Student Affairs, Chairman of the Department of Computer Science, and Chairman of the Department of Mathematics. He attained the rank of Professor of Mathematics at the University of Bahrain and continued to serve the University of Bahrain in that capacity until 2005. Dr Al-Hawaj’s profound contributions to the fields of Mathematics, Computer Science, and Education through numerous research papers, books, media debates, and public discussions are vast. His unstinting dynamism, paradigm-shattering innovation and superlative achievement in the academic and social arena have accorded him a number of prestigious awards and honorariums. Dr Al-Hawaj has extensive experience in leading large multi-dimensional institutions. His signature use of pragmatic and innovative thinking in solving complex educational and business issues stems from his strong managerial and educational background. He is widely acclaimed as a pioneering architect of the private university in the Arabian Gulf and a leading proponent of excellence in Higher Education in the whole of the Middle East.
