Meaningful service to society through comprehensive education and research excellence is the vision of Prof. Tyseer Aboulnasr, the newly appointed dean of UBC’s Faculty of Applied Science.
Aboulnasr joins UBC from the University of Ottawa, where she was a professor and served as dean of the Faculty of Engineering from 1998 to 2004. Prior to that, she served as associate dean and became full professor in 1997.
“Dr. Aboulnasr led Engineering at the University of Ottawa through impressive growth in student enrolment, research funding and faculty recruitment,” says David Farrar, Provost and Vice President, Academic at UBC. “Her leadership will help propel UBC Applied Science on its current trajectory of excellence.”
“What attracted me to UBC is its clear mandate to prepare students to become exceptional global citizens and to contribute meaningfully to society through the creation of new knowledge,” says Aboulnasr, 54.
“I was extremely impressed with the university community’s commitment to achieving education and research excellence, not as a goal in and of itself, but as a tool to better the world we live in.”
An electrical engineering professor, Aboulnasr is an expert in the processing of digital signals, with applications varying from cancellation of echo on telephone networks to the design of smart hearing aids that can automatically sense surrounding environments and adjust controls accordingly. She received her Bachelor of Engineering from Cairo University and MSc and PhD in Engineering from Queen’s University.
Aboulnasr chaired the Council of Ontario Deans of Engineering from 2001 to 2002 and is a 2004 recipient of the Order of Ontario and a 1999 recipient of the Ottawa-Carleton YWCA Women of Distinction Award (Education). She is a mother of three young adults and has a first-degree black belt in TaeKwonDo.
Aboulnasr succeeds Michael Isaacson, who stepped down after 11 years of service. Her appointment for a six-year term began last month.
The UBC Faculty of Applied Science has more than 4,000 undergraduate and 1,400 graduate and professional students in engineering — on both the Vancouver and Okanagan campuses — nursing, architecture and landscape architecture. For more information, visit www.apsc.ubc.ca.
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