The first president of KAUST

Professor Shih Choon Fong, president of the National University of Singapore, has been appointed as the first president of King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST).

The appointment purely based on the system of meritocracy will attract the best brain in the world irrespective of races to fulfill the vision for the new institution as one of the world’s leading research institutions.

Located along the Red Sea 50 miles north of Jeddah in Thuwal, KAUST aims to be a world-class graduate research university that will support scientific discovery and human advancement. King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz laid the foundation stone for the university in October 2007, and it is expected to open in September 2009.

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz met with Professor Shih January 12 to congratulate him on the appointment. He is expected to assume his new duties in December 2008.

King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Saudi Arabia (KAUST) is a world-class graduate level science and technology Research University which is anticipated US$10 billion, located on the Red Sea at Thuwal. Opening in September 2009, KAUST welcomes exceptional researchers, faculty and students from around the world.

Shih received his PhD from Harvard University in 1973. He led the Fracture Research Group at the US-based GE Corporate Research Lab before joining the prestigious Brown University in 1981.

A member of KAUST’s International Advisory Council, Shih is among the highly cited researchers in the world for engineering as compiled by the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI). He has served a consultant to the National Aeronautics Space Administration (NASA), Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.