Office of Public Relations — Newsroom
News Release
For Immediate Release:
Contact: Tonya Ewers, 303.315.6374, pager 303.266.0941, Tonya.Ewers@uchsc.edu
UC Denver’s College of Architecture and Planning Partners with Private Saudi Arabian Women’s College to Establish Architecture Degree Program
Innovative educational partnership highlights sustainability of global communities
DENVER (May 13, 2008) – Zuhair Fayez was 18 the first time he came to Colorado in pursuit of an educational dream that he could use to benefit his country. After receiving two undergraduate degrees from the University of Colorado-Boulder and his Master’s degree from the University of Colorado Denver’s College of Architecture and Planning, Fayez worked as an architect for two firms in Denver and then attended the University of Michigan to pursue a doctorate degree before returning to his homeland, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, to successfully build the largest architecture and engineering firm in the Middle East, ZFP, from the ground up. His success and belief in the education he received led him to give back to his alma mater over the years, establishing a yearly scholarship for students of UC Denver’s College of Architecture and Planning, and generously giving more than $1 million to the College.
This week, Fayez returned to UC Denver’s College of Architecture and Planning (CAP) to be honored not only for his support of the university but also for his vision in establishing an innovative educational partnership between CAP and Dar Al-Hekma, the first private, not-for-profit women’s college in Saudi Arabia, of which he was the designer and a major founder and now chairs the Board of Trustees.
The partnership will serve as a building block to develop an undergraduate degree in architecture that will meet the accreditation standards of the United States for the women at Dar Al-Hekma, as well as numerous other collaborative opportunities between the two institutions. Future plans include sending professors from CAP to Saudi Arabia to help establish the program and to serve as guest speakers/professors, while students from Dar Al-Hekma will travel to Denver as exchange students.
“UC Denver’s College of Architecture and Planning welcomed Mr. Fayez’s vision of an educational exchange between the two universities and the proposal to partner with Dar Al-Hekma College,” said Mark Gelernter, PhD, dean of CAP. “Further collaborative opportunities between CAP and Dar Al- Hekma are being explored to serve communities in both countries including urban planning solutions related to sustainability and historic and cultural preservation.”
Moving to a knowledge-based economy
More and more U.S. schools and colleges are partnering with educational institutions in the Middle East as countries like Saudi Arabia are transforming from commodity-based into knowledge-based economies and bringing quality education to greater numbers of global communities. Both UC Denver’s College of Architecture and Planning and Dar Al-Hekma College share educational goals for architecture and design students and faculty – both are interested in exploring architectural design and urban planning solutions related to sustainability and historic and cultural preservation.
“Saudi Arabia’s focus on higher education is opening doors to new educational possibilities and this kind of global partnership allows for unprecedented collaborations for our programs, students, faculty, and researchers,” said UC Denver Chancellor M. Roy Wilson, MD. “Collaborations like this one build bridges for cultural understanding and growth.”
A Memorandum of Understanding
In January 2008, UC Denver Chancellor M. Roy Wilson, MD, UC Denver’s College of Architecture and Planning Dean Mark Gelernter, PhD, and Richard Larson, associate vice president for Development at the CU Foundation, traveled as a group to Saudi Arabia to discuss partnership opportunities with Zuhair Fayez, CAP alumnus and donor. Fayez, as a major founder, board member and building architect for Dar Al-Hekma College, had pre-arranged a Memorandum of Understanding that was signed by all parties during the trip, solidifying the partnership between Dar Al-Hekma and CAP.
While there, the group met with many representatives from Saudi Arabian universities and colleges to discuss opportunities such as student and faculty exchanges, student competitions and potential forms of partnership and collaboration between UC Denver and Saudi higher education institutions. The group met with His Excellency Dr. Khaled Al-Sultan, the President of King Fahd University for Petroleum and Minerals in Dhahran, Dr. Abdullah A. Al-Othman, University Rector (President) of King Saud University in Riyadh, and Dr. Osama S.S. Tayyab, President of King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah. The group also visited the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST).
The College of Architecture and Planning is among the largest colleges of architecture and related design and planning disciplines in the U.S. Located on the University of Colorado Denver’s downtown campus and the University of Colorado-Boulder, CAP brings together faculty, students and practitioners who share common pursuits in communities of interest including: emerging practices in design, sustainable urbanism, the creation of healthy environments and the preservation of cultural heritage. CAP is one of 13 schools and colleges at UC Denver. The University offers more than 100 degrees and serves more than 28,000 students in Metro Denver and online. For additional news and information, please visit the UC Denver newsroom.
The University of Colorado Denver is one of three universities in the University of Colorado system. Located in Denver on the Downtown Campus and at Ninth & Colorado Blvd., and on the Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora, Colo., University of Colorado Denver is Colorado's premier research university offering more than 100 degrees and programs in 13 schools and colleges and serving more than 28,000 students in Metro Denver and online. For more information, visit the website at administration.ucdenver.edu or the UC Denver Newsroom at www.uchsc.edu/news.
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