Unveiling: The Onsi Sawiris School of Business | Full Celebration Video

Your Excellencies, Ministers, Ambassadors, members of the AUC family, Board of Trustees, distinguished guests, friends and partners, and members of the AUC community, good afternoon and a very warm welcome to all of you to the American University in Cairo. Greetings for a happy New Year and Merry Christmas. Today we come together to honor a significant milestone in the history of AUC School of Business. We celebrate not just the name, but a legacy—a legacy of excellence, innovation, and profound impact. It is with immense gratitude and deep respect that we celebrate the unveiling of the Onsi Sawiris School of Business, recognizing the remarkable personal and professional legacy of the late Onsi Sawiris.

It is a true honor to associate his legacy with the School of Business. It embodies and aligns with the school's values and aspirations, which include excellence, integrity, inclusion, resourcefulness, and collaboration—values that will continue to drive the school's ambitions and inspire future generations of business leaders. Before we start, I would like to share a video with you.

AUC is one of the oldest modern universities in Egypt and in fact in the region. What's unique about AUC is two things: first of all, it brings American higher education standards to Egypt, and secondly, it's the institution that has the luxury of experimenting with the most modern, up-to-date trends in higher education. The School of Business at AUC dates back to 1947. Throughout the last 77 years, the school has gone a long way, becoming one of only 1% of business schools around the world that are known for being Triple Crown. We went to the Financial Times ranking, we started new programs, but then comes December 2024, and we go into a partnership through which the school has been renamed Onsi Sawiris School of Business.

We as faculty have the privilege of shaping tomorrow's leaders. Teaching at AUC is not just about delivering knowledge; it's about helping our students think critically, helping them to grow academically, personally, and professionally.

My journey at the school has been nothing short of extraordinary. From winning competitions like P&G and Business Association competitions to being awarded a scholarship to study abroad in Vienna, these experiences have shaped my strategic thinking in so many ways and have helped me gain skills to apply into my career.

Over the past decade, we've built a world-class entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem at AUC. AUC Venture Lab is the leading startup accelerator in Egypt, Africa, and the Middle East. We provide a platform for aspiring entrepreneurs to build and grow their innovative startups, solving real-world challenges.

Our time at the School of Business was instrumental in shaping who we are today. This gave us the tools to launch Clickit and make an impact in the fintech and education sectors.

Till to date, I'm still learning from AUC. I learn from my students; they keep me updated, alive, and young. And it's one of the most enjoyable things that I do is teaching at AUC.

Being an alumni of the School of Business, it's had a profound impact not just on my profession, career, but also on setting me up as an individual. Being a graduate of AUC has for sure put me at a very high pedestal when it comes to interaction with the outside world. It was the transferable skills that I took with me from the school that helped me and still help me today in my career in education. I'm very happy to be really part of this ecosystem that until this very day runs into my veins.

I want to thank the Sawiris family for the single largest gift in the history of AUC. The partnership itself has more than one dimension. In addition to the academics that the students are going to receive at the school, there's also going to be exchange for students and faculty so that the most recent global trends can be transferred to the students in Cairo. This will help the AUC School of Business to have much more impact on Egypt and maybe the Middle East. This new chapter for the school builds on our legacy, growing the next generation of business and entrepreneurship leaders in Egypt, Africa, and the Middle East. The successful legacy of the Sawiris family in business is undeniable, so naming the School of Business at AUC after the patriarch of the family and the founder of the business, Onsi, is a tremendous vote of confidence that we're proud of. We're looking forward to a new chapter, a new vision, new grounds with Onsi Sawiris School of Business. Now I have the pleasure of introducing our distinguished speakers who will share their reflections and insights on this special moment in the journey of Onsi Sawiris School of Business. I'm pleased to introduce the chair of AUC Board of Trustees, whose leadership and support have been crucial to making today's celebration a reality. Please join me in welcoming Mark Thompson.