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Women’s Faculty Forum to host event on recruiting and retaining female faculty in STEM

Published Nov 25, 2020

TAMUQ-WFF-logoThe Women’s Faculty Forum at Texas A&M University at Qatar will host a webinar on recruiting and retaining female faculty in STEM fields 1 Dec. from 5 to 6:15 p.m. on Zoom.

The discussion will feature panelists Dr. Hanan Farhat, founder and senior research director of the Corrosion Center at the HBKU Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute (QEERI); Dr. Yusra Mouzughi, vice chancellor of Muscat University in Oman and the first female head of a university in that country; Dr. Rabia Nagiub, associate professor in the Public Policy Program at Doha Institute for Graduate Studies; and Dr. Rochelle Williams, senior director of programs at the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) in the United States. Texas A&M at Qatar faculty Dr. Mary Queen and Dr. Tehmina Pirzada will moderate the panel discussion.

Topics of discussion will include the role of gender in faculty hiring and promotion; strategies to attract a more diverse pool of women faculty applicants and how these strategies might change based on disciplinary, geographical, or cultural contexts; and what male colleagues should be aware of to support recruitment and retention of women faculty.

Register to attend the discussion here.

Dr. Farhat’s research area of interest is atmospheric corrosion and environmentally assisted cracking. With more than 25 years in the oil and gas industry, Farhat is one of the leading experts on corrosion and materials engineering in the region. Her résumé also includes oil and gas technical service management, as well as senior inspection and lead corrosion engineering positions. Prior to her current position, she held a faculty of engineering position with the College of the North Atlantic-Qatar for seven years. She earned a Ph.D. in corrosion engineering and a master’s in materials and mechanical engineering from the University of Saskatchewan (Canada). Her bachelor’s degree was in materials and metallurgical engineering from Tripoli University (Libya).

Farhat is a registered professional Canadian Engineer and holds international certifications in corrosion and inspection engineering. She represents Qatar in the International Association of Oil and Gas Producers and the International Standard Organization for corrosion standards. She is also the chairperson of Qatar’s Forum for Corrosion and Materials Engineering.

As vice chancellor of Muscat University, Professor Mouzughi’s role is to create the strategic vision to achieve the objectives of the university in a growing and competitive higher education landscape. Mouzughi leads multicultural, diverse teams and builds on the strengths and unique perspectives of different genders, backgrounds and cultures to achieve organizational goals. Under her leadership, Muscat University has grown in staff and student numbers, and gained an excellent reputation for quality education, graduated its first cohort, and attracted research funding and strong industry collaborations. Mouzughi joined Muscat University as the inaugural deputy vice chancellor of academic affairs in 2016. In 2018, she was promoted to the vice chancellor position.

Prior to joining Muscat University, Mouzughi worked for more than 14 years in the UK higher education sector, and developed expertise in education management with a particular focus on professional doctorates. She earned her Ph.D. in knowledge management in the UK and has developed a cross-disciplinary research profile spanning knowledge sharing and the sustainability agenda. Prior to joining academia, Mouzughi worked as a project manager in the financial services sector in the UK.

Dr. Nagiub holds a Ph.D. in strategic management with a minor in philosophy from HEC Montréal. She has a variety of teaching and research experience in Canada, the UK, and GCC universities. Prior to joining the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, Naguib was a faculty member at the University of Sharjah (UAE) where she held the position of director of the Executive MBA Program and where she received the distinguished Faculty Member Award for Scientific Research and Teaching (2011). Naguib taught postgraduate students at the University of Leicester and supervised DBA students as a visiting fellow at Nottingham Trent University. She acted as a supervisor, co-supervisor, second reader and external examiner for several EMBA, MPA, MPP dissertations, as well as DBA, and Ph.D. theses.

Naguib has published in international peer-reviewed journals, such as the Journal of Business Ethics, Gender in Management, Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, among others. She has also been the recipient of a number of research grants, notably from GERPA (Gender Economic Research and Policy Analysis), and QNRF (Qatar National Research Fund) as LPI and PI. She is an active reviewer for academic journals American Sociological Review, Journal of Business Ethics, and Management International. She also serves as member of the editorial board of Istishraf for Foresight Studies and Hikama. Naguib regularly serves on recruitment committees for Public Policy and Public Administration and the College of Business Administration.

At NSBE, Dr. Williams serves as the chief programs officer responsible for achieving strategic outcomes of the society and the logistical planning and implementation of programs for the pre-collegiate, collegiate and professional demographics serviced by the society. Additionally, Williams is responsible for the administration of scholarships, dissemination and communication of awards and recognition initiatives, strategic partnerships, professional program development, and organization strategic partnership management.

Before joining NSBE, Williams was the project director and co-principal investigator for the ADVANCE Resource Coordination (ARC) Network with the Association for Women in Science (AWIS) where she focused on bridging the gap between researchers and practitioners dedicated to achieving gender equity for faculty in higher education science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. Prior to joining AWIS, Williams served as a research scientist in the Office for Academic Affairs at Prairie View A&M University and, from 2011 to 2016, was the director of programs and research at ABET headquarters in Baltimore, Md. At ABET she led the creation and facilitation of educational offerings for science and engineering faculty around the world. In 2016, Williams was selected to be a Christine Mirzayan Science and Technology Policy Fellow with the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine in Washington, D.C. As a fellow, she worked with the Committee on Women in Science, Engineering, and Medicine to drive policy that mitigates the sexual harassment of women faculty in STEM departments in academia. Williams received her Bachelor of Science in physics from Spelman College and both her Master of Engineering in mechanical engineering and Ph.D. in science and mathematics education from Southern University and A&M College.