Trustee Dr. Kamal A. Shair
Chair of the Campaign for Excellence

I am very proud to have had the opportunity to serve as the chair of the Campaign for Excellenceâ??a campaign that has received support from all members of the AUB community. The approximately 13,000 men and women who supported the campaign include a number of trustees, many of whom have made particularly generous gifts to help pay for the construction of new facilities on campus and to establish and endow academic programs. Their leadership has been critical to the success of this campaign, but so too have the contributions we have received from alumni, parents, faculty and staff, friends, and institutional funders.
     AUB alumni have always been loyal and strong supporters of their alma mater. During this campaign, a number of them have demonstrated that they are generous supporters as well! This campaign has also benefited from donations from current and graduating studentsâ??many of whom have made gifts to the Fingerprints Endowed Scholarship Fund, a fundraising program by students for students that has raised more than $650,000 since 2002 for financial aid at AUB. AUB staff and faculty have also provided unprecedentedâ??and growingâ??support for this campaign. It has been particularly gratifying that the parents of AUB students have also responded generously to our appeals. No one is in a better position to appreciate the transforming role that AUB canâ??and so often doesâ??play in the lives of individual men and women than their parents.
     There have been many targeted appeals throughout this campaign that have provided all of us with an opportunity to reflect on what this very special university has meant to us personally and as a community that cares about the future of this part of the world. I believe strongly as I said at a recent occasion on campus that â??by working to keep AUB strong we are making sure that life will be abundant with the gifts of freedom and dignityâ?â??not just for our students, but for all of us who live and work in this region.