Academics

Prof. Dr. Aly Gabr is the Dean of the School of Engineering at New Giza University (NGU). Dr. Aly Gabr is also a Professor of Architecture at Cairo University and was recently appointed Vice Dean for Education and Student Affairs at the Faculty of Engineering for a six-year term. With over 35 years of teaching experience, he received his MA in Architectural Engineering in 1989 with a thesis on Color and Form in Egyptian Vernacular Architecture. He obtained his Doctorate Degree from the University of Edinburgh in 1992 with a thesis on meaning in traditional Bahri Mamluk Architecture.

Since returning to Egypt, he has co-authored four books documenting the architectural styles of two 19th-century palaces, Abdin and el-Tahra, the famous Club Mohamed Ali, and the Bicentennial Anniversary of the Engineering School. In 2002, Dr. Gabr was appointed Commissar of the Egyptian Pavilion in the Architecture Biennale in Venice, and his work has been mentioned in several contemporary art books since then. He has also served on the jury for several national and international events and has audited several architecture programs in both private and governmental universities. Additionally, he was a member of the promotion committee for associate professors and professors in the fields of architecture and urban design and planning for six years. For ten years, he was involved in the scientific committee of NMEC, the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization in Fustat.

Prof. Ismail is a professor of Environmental Planning and Design. He is a Fulbright scholar with a Ph.D. from the Ohio State University, the USA in 1998 and holds two Masters, one from UCL in 1991 and the other from OSU. He is a certified planner of the American Institute of Certified Planners. He earned his bachelor’s degree in architectural engineering from Cairo University.

Prof. Ismail served twice as the Architecture Department Chairperson at the Faculty of Engineering at Fayoum University. He taught at the CAAD (College of Architecture, Arts and Design) at the American University of Sharjah (AUS) and the College of Environmental Design at King Abdulaziz University (Jeddah). He traveled around the globe and was awarded several post-doctoral scholarships including DAAD Deutsche Academic Exchange Junior Scientist Grant (in Koln, Germany), the Erasmus Mundus EU Fellowship in ITC (Holland), and the Chinese Government Scientist Award in (Wuhan, China). He served as the Program Director of the School of Business at Nile University. His research is in Urban Development, Innovation in Architecture Education, and GIS. He is the founder of the Architects Got Talent which was taught at MSA/Greenwich, MUST, and Cairo University. His practice covers consulting a wide range of planning projects in local private and international planning projects including for the UNDP, UNEP, Swiss Development Fund, and World Bank as well as the General Organization for Physical Planning, Ministry of Planning, Ministry of Irrigation, and the Arab League.

He has published over 45 papers in international journals and conferences. His philosophy of teaching that guided his career is “involve me and I understand”.

Mohammed Nafie received his B.Sc. degree with honors from Cairo University in 1991; the M.Sc. degree with Distinction from King’s College, the University of London in 1993 and the Ph.D. degree from the University of Minnesota in 1999 where his research interests were in the area of low complexity detection algorithms.
After his graduation, he joined the Wireless Communications lab of the DSPS Research and Development Center of Texas Instruments. He was a primary contributor to TI’s effort in the IEEE wireless personal area networks standardization process. In 2002, Dr. Nafie co-founded SySDSoft, a company specializing in the design of wireless digital communication systems. He was the Chief Technology Officer of SySDSoft till December 2006. Dr. Nafie has been a Professor at the Faculty of Engineering, Cairo University, since 2013. Dr. Nafie was an Associate Professor at the Wireless Intelligent Networks Center of Nile University, for which he was a director from August 2009 to August 2012.
His research interests are in the area of wireless and wireline digital communications and digital signal processing and include equalization, LDPC coding, MIMO, relaying systems, and caching among others. Dr. Nafie has published numerous Journal and Conference papers and has nineteen issued US patents as well as few others pending. He has several patents in Europe and Japan as well.

Prof. Yasser Anis is an academic in mechanical engineering, specializing in automation, robotics, control, and microfluidic systems. Born in Giza, Egypt, he earned his B.S. and M.S. degrees in mechanical engineering from Cairo University in 2001 and 2004, respectively. He furthered his education by pursuing a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from the University of Toronto, Canada, successfully completing his doctorate in 2007. His doctoral research focused on the automation of the microassembly of MEMS devices using vision-based feedback control.

Following the completion of his Ph.D., Dr. Anis held roles at the Center for Ecogenomics within the Biodesign Institute of Arizona State University, where he served as a postdoctoral fellow and later as an Assistant Research Scientist. During this tenure, his research centered on the automation of micromanipulation techniques for single cells and the development of microfluidic devices for live cell manipulation.

In 2010, Dr. Anis returned to Cairo University as a Professor of Mechanical Engineering and concurrently assumed the role of Mechanical Engineering Program Director at Newgiza University. Additionally, in 2014, he spent six months as a visiting Assistant Professor at the Electrical Engineering Department of Stanford University.

Throughout his career, Dr. Anis actively engaged with various professional organizations, notably the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), including its Robotics and Automation Society (IEEE RAS), and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). He also contributed significantly as a technical reviewer for esteemed journals such as Lab on a Chip, IEEE Trans. on Automation Science and Eng., IEEE Trans. on Robotics, ASME/IEEE Transactions on Mechatronics, and Measurement. From 2015 to 2021, he served as a member of the Industry Technology Research Council at the Academy of Scientific Research & Technology (ASRT).

Dr. Anis’ contributions to the field of mechanical engineering have earned him numerous prestigious awards, including several best paper awards, the Egyptian State Award in Technological Sciences in 2012, and Cairo University’s Invention Award in 2019.

Dr. Haitham Samir is an Associate Professor in the School of Engineering at Newgiza University. He received his Bachelor of Science and Ph.D. from the Faculty of Engineering, at Cairo University. Dr. Haitham also received a Master of Economics and Valorization of Cultural Heritage from Catania University, Italy. He has more than 25 years of academic and professional experience. Dr. Haitham’s teaching experience spans over twenty-five years. He worked with different academic institutions in Egypt and Saudi Arabia. Dr. Haitham is keen on engaging in various academic activities besides teaching, such as program reviews, national and international accreditation, conference organization, and community involvement activities.

Dr. Haitham worked as an associate professor at Effat University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia for more than six years. He was appointed as a member of Effat University Council for two subsequent years. He served also as a member of the university scientific council. Dr. Haitham taught different courses for both graduate and undergraduate levels. Courses include but are not limited to Architecture Design Studios, Capstone project, Comparative architecture thoughts, Building Construction, Electrical and Mechanical and life safety systems, and Computer Aided Design.

His professional experience has always influenced his teaching approach as a practitioner architect since he worked in the architecture profession for many years. Consequently, he has aimed to tailor his design studio courses to mimic real-life situations from the early stages of the design process onwards and encourage a collaborative working environment that features the architecture profession.

He believes that educational research must become a priority for any educator. It fulfills the overall development of pedagogy and learning programs. As a result, he has been concerned with research that draws from my teaching practices and his systematic investigation to apply empirical methods to solve challenges in education. Dr. Haitham has also published more than fifteen papers in the field of Architecture Heritage, Sustainability, and placemaking. He supervised thirteen theses of postgraduate students from different master’s degree and Doctoral programs.

Dr. Mamdouh Salem is an Associate Professor at the School of Engineering – Newgiza University. He received his Bachelor of Science and M.Sc. degrees from the Faculty of Engineering – Cairo University. Dr. Mamdouh received his Ph.D. degree from Florida State University – USA. Dr. Mamdouh Salem is also an Associate Professor in the Mechanical Design and Production Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering – Cairo University.

The main research focus of Dr. Mamdouh is in the area of materials engineering and manufacturing. His research interests include computational materials science and solid mechanics, discrete dislocation dynamics, computational fluid dynamics, severe plastic deformation techniques and additive manufacturing.

Dr Ahmed received his Ph.D. in Transversal Studies in Architecture & Urbanism  from the Polytechnical University of Madrid (Universidad Politécnica de Madrid -UPM), Spain. His MSc is in “Intervention in the City, (Máster Universitario en Proyecto Avanzado de Arquitectura y Ciudad (MUPAAC)), School of Architecture University of Alcalá (Universidad de Alcalá, UAH), Alcalá de Henares. His B.Sc. in Architectural Engineering with a Pre-Masters, major in Architecture and Urban Design in July 2015, from Faculty of Engineering, German University in Cairo.

He has worked with various reputable multinational firms where he has worked on several projects that span multiple disciplines. He has worked on many projects in several countries in the Middle East and in Europe serving both the public sector and the private sector. He has received honorable mention in the global competition of the Salón De Reinos Extension of The Prado Museum by Nieto Sobejano in 2016.

Ahmed’s main research interests lie in the field of sustainability ranging from theory to design to application. Ahmed mainly works on the problems associated with climate change and both sustainable architecture and sustainable planning. His research is multi-disciplinary where he works across integrating renewable energy sources into buildings, thermal performance, wind effects, lighting, innovative structural materials, indoor environmental quality, adaptable structures, and structural systems and construction.”

Dr. Aboudina received her BSc in Electrical and Communication Engineering and MSc in Mathematical Engineering from Cairo University, Egypt, in 2006 and 2010, respectively. She received her Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from the University of Toronto, Canada, in 2016. Dr. Aboudina received several prestigious international awards, including the Cannaught award, the FORTRAN scholarship, the (HCAT) Heavy Construction Association of Toronto Graduate Scholarship in Intelligent Transportation Systems, and the TAC Foundation Scholarship. Her main teaching and research interests are in the fields of engineering mathematics, transportation economics, operations research, optimization techniques and their applications to engineering systems, and machine learning.

Dr. Heba holds a BSc in Architectural Engineering, Cairo University (2010), and a MSc (2014) and PhD (2023) in Architectural Engineering from Cairo University with a focus on situating and theorizing socio-spatial aspects of coffee shops and coworking spaces in Cairo, respectively, within broader urban and architectural studies.

Dr. Heba collaborated with Cairo Lab for Urban Studies, Training and Environmental Research (CLUSTER) on the publication of the tool kit “Creative Initiatives-Economic Impact on Downtown Cairo” (2019), as well as the Critical Arabic Urban lexicon project (CAUL) on “Creative and sharing urban economy”. She has been involved with the Housing & Building National Research Center HBRC (since 2011) in building code committees like the Egyptian Code for the design of outdoor spaces and buildings for the use of people with disabilities, and the engineering committee of hospital projects revision, as well as the organization of international conferences and workshops, and the participation in national research projects on gated communities and eco-tourism. Dr. Heba is also involved in auditing hotels all over Egypt according to their environmental performance and social standards with the green star hotel eco-certification program since 2011.

Coming from an electronics engineering background, Mariam conducted her Ph.D. at the Faculty of Education, Cambridge University, with a focus on Mathematics Education. She holds two Masters degrees, one of which she conducted at Cambridge University and the other at the American University in Cairo. The former was in the field of Industrial Systems Manufacturing and Management while the latter was in Comparative Education, with a particular focus on STEM subjects.

As an instructor, she is certified by the American Society for Engineering Management (ASEM) and has been heavily involved with the School of Continuing Education at the American University in Cairo. As a researcher, she is a member of the British Educational Research Association (BERA) and an active member and publisher at the British Society for Research into Learning Mathematics (BSRLM). She is a fellow at the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA) and she has authored and peer-reviewed publications, presented at the International Group for Psychology in Mathematics Education (PME), the International Congress on Mathematics Education (ICME), and the European Society for Mathematics Education (CERME), along with other teacher journals. In collaboration with Cambridge University Press, she has been involved in publishing the Learning Passport, a UNICEF project for supporting refugees. As a participant in the High Levels Futures Literacy Summit, she has been involved in authoring the Egyptian Youth Future Rethink Roadmap 2050 in collaboration with the United Nations and the Ministry of Youth and Sports.  Throughout her involvement with the University of Cambridge, she has been an active participant in the Mathematics Education Research Group (MERG) at the Faculty of Education and a presenter at Newnham College.

Dr. Mariam Nabil received her BSc and MSc in Electrical Engineering with specialization in Communications Engineering from Alexandria University, Egypt, in 2010 and 2015, respectively. She received her Ph.D. in Electronics and Communications Engineering from the American University in Cairo, Egypt, in 2022. Before joining NGU, Dr. Mariam Nabil was a lecturer in the Electrical Engineering Department, Alexandria University. She has participated in many research collaborations with national and international academic and industrial institutions such as Mid-Sweden University, Sweden and Vodafone, Egypt. Her main teaching and research interests are in the fields of smart systems, communications engineering, machine learning applications and energy efficiency.

Dr. Antoine Dimitri graduated from the Mechanical Design Department, Faculty of Engineering, Cairo University, with distinction and honors. He also earned his PhD in mechanical engineering from the same institution, focusing on the development of smart integrated bearings for industrial rotors. His thesis received the Excellence Award in Postgraduate Studies for best PhD thesis at the Faculty of Engineering, Cairo University, in 2016.

With several years of teaching experience, Dr. Dimitri has taught mechanical engineering courses at prestigious institutions such as Cairo University and the American University in Cairo. He also serves as an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at Cairo University.

Throughout his research career, Dr. Dimitri has contributed to many research grants. He has worked on the development of smart bearings and the analysis of industrial pumps, for which he has numerous publications. His research interests are diverse and include rotor dynamics, vibration measurements, system dynamics, and the development of magnetic actuators.

Maram Salaheldin is a dedicated engineer with a passion for mechanical design and fluid mechanics. She graduated with honors from Cairo University’s Faculty of Engineering in 2018, earning a degree in Mechanical Design Engineering and demonstrating a strong commitment to problem-solving. During her undergraduate studies, Maram led a graduation project focused on improving accessibility for individuals with disabilities through the “Design and Manufacture of a Stair Climbing Wheelchair Mechanism.” This project received acclaim for its practicality and earned an A+ grade during evaluation.

Following graduation, she pursued advanced studies in mechanical power engineering with a focus on fluid mechanics and obtained a Master’s degree in 2023 with a GPA of 3.5/4. For her master’s thesis, titled “Numerical Simulation of Bidirectional Impulse Turbine for Thermoacoustic Engines,” she employed sophisticated computational fluid dynamics (CFD) techniques using ANSYS CFX software to understand the bulk and instantaneous behavior of the turbine, analyzing aerodynamic and streaming losses occurring during flow oscillations with the aim of optimizing turbine performance.

Maram’s study interests encompass fluid mechanics, CFD, turbomachinery, and machine learning, with teaching interests in the theory of machines, mechanism design, thermofluids, and turbomachinery.

She has 5 years of experience as a teaching assistant in several universities, such as Cairo University, AUC, and the Universities of Canada, in addition to practical experience in HVAC design at EGAT Company.

Dr. Aya has finished her Master of Science in Architectural Engineering at Cairo University in 2023 in the field of creative education by using music as a creativity enhancement tool to architectural design studio students. Winner of the international architectural Tamayouz Award in its Dewan prize for both cycles 2021 and 2022.

She graduated with honors as the top rank of the class of 2018 with a B.Sc. in Architectural Engineering from MUST University. Her graduation project was selected as one of the world’s best graduation projects, representing Egypt in the ArchiPrix International Architectural Competition Chile 2019.

Dr. Aya has four years of experience in academia as a teaching assistant at MUST and Nile University. She was granted the ACCESS scholarship program of leadership for a two-year study at AUC in 2010, became involved as an active board member in many community service activities and NGOs such as iEARN, ENACTUS, E-Youth, and ASEP. Her fields of interest are Architectural musicology, creative educational tools, innovative Architectural Design, Architectural History and theories.

Eng. Esraa Elareef, is a building engineer that has research in building envelope design, artificial lighting, and materials performance. Esraa has a strong professional education with a Master’s degree focused on Architectural and Building Sciences/Technology – buildings performance and facade engineering from Politecnico di Milano, Italy in 2019.

Yet, her master’s study-oriented in investigating the optical properties of interiors and their effect on the circadian rhythm in human beings as well as energy consumption in terms of lighting. Her bachelor was a double degree in architectural engineering from MSA University, Egypt, and the University of Greenwich, England with the first honorary degree. Besides the professional experience in the consolidation construction management industry throughout various internships and full-based work in Italy and Egypt. She worked as a former architect in Gebhard and Gandds studio and DC studio in Milano.

She was the lead director of the Egyptian team in a landscape-based workshop in Thessaloniki, Greece in 2017. Also, she was a guest lecturer at Ain shams university, 2020. Nevertheless, she won the first award for a food Hub renovation design.

Nariman Nashaat holds a BSc. in Architectural Engineering from Modern Sciences and Arts University (MSA). In 2023, she obtained her master’s degree from Cairo University, with a thesis titled “Performance of Wayfinding in Public Buildings: Academic Buildings as a Case Study”. She is currently a PhD candidate at Cairo University.

Before Joining NGU, Nariman was a Lecturer Assistant and Researcher at the American University in Cairo, AAST, MSA. She was also a BIM Automation Developer at Autodesk Research Community.

Taher Abdel-Ghani is an architect, urban researcher and assistant lecturer at Newgiza University. He is also an award-winning independent filmmaker and an advisory member on Public Space for City Space Architecture. His research explores the intersection between cinema and cities, public spaces and public art, spatial culture and architectural education.

Taher earned his masters’ degree from Bauhaus University in Weimar, Germany, and is currently a PhD candidate at Cairo University. His academic record includes more than 15 peer-reviewed publications, co-chairing the 2022 AESOP Annual Congress in Estonia and serving as an editor and reviewer on a few academic platforms. Additionally, he delivered more than 25 lectures, including guest lecturers in the UK, South Africa, Hungary and Saudi Arabia. Moreover, his short films have been screened in Egypt, Germany, France, Portugal, Italy and USA.

Yomna ElGhazaly is an academic and architect with a bachelor’s degree in architectural engineering from Cairo University (2018), and a master’s degree in architectural design and history from Politecnico di Milano University in Italy (2023). Her master’s thesis, titled “Stratification of Changes: The Curia and The Church of San Lorenzo in Miranda in The Roman Forum” explores the evolution of architectural forms in historical contexts. She has extensive experience in teaching and architectural research, having worked as a lecturer assistant at the American University in Cairo and Cairo University.

Additionally, Yomna has been involved in significant adaptive reuse projects at Takween Integrated Community Development, collaborating with the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, USAID and FHI360. She has also worked as an architect at Archiplan Studio in Mantova, Italy, and Abdel-Halim Ibrahim Studio (CDC) in Cairo. Her academic and professional journey reflects her passion for architectural heritage, design and innovation.

Alaa Hesham Hendy holds a bachelor’s degree in architectural engineering from Misr University for Science and Technology. She graduated with honors in 2022.

Alaa started teaching in September 2022 and published a paper in HBRC journal. Currently, Alaa is studying for her master’s degree at the Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport (AASTMT).

Aya Ghobashi graduated with high honors from the Faculty of Engineering, Department of Architecture, October University for Modern Sciences and Arts (MSA) in 2020. Her bachelor’s degree is a double degree in architectural engineering from MSA University, Egypt, and the University of Greenwich, England.

Before joining NGU, Aya was a teaching assistant at MSA University, and worked in the interior design field.

Aya Mashhour is an architect, teaching assistant and digital marketing strategist. She holds a BSc. in Architectural Engineering from Cairo University. Currently, she is pursuing a Master of Science (MSc) degree at Cairo University, with a focus on the impact of the Internet of Things (IoT) on urban mobility performance.

Aya had previously worked as a teaching assistant in the Credit Hours System, Architectural Engineering-Cairo University. She has a comprehensive experience in academia and industry, spanning Egypt and the UAE, including teaching visual perception, creativity and art and basic engineering courses.

Moreover, Aya holds a Digital Marketing Diploma, and she is skilled in implementing digital marketing strategies for architectural firms.

Aya Elshahed received a bachelor’s degree in electrical and communications engineering from Cairo University. She has completed the pre-masters courses in Mathematical Engineering from Cairo University. Her research interests lie in the field of artificial intelligence and anomaly detection. She has been a teaching assistant at MSA and Nile University for 7 years.

Eng. Khaled M.Naguib has done research in telecommunication technologies, the Internet of Things (IoT), and Artificial Intelligence (AI). Khaled is MSc holder in the field of cellular networks and their impact on devices communication by using caching techniques. He has researches published in international journals and conferences. He is doing his Ph.D. in the field of IoT and AI integrated with 6G cellular technology.

He is experienced in mathematics, physics, communication networks, mobile communication, Matlab, C/C++, VHDL, AutoCAD, machine learning techniques, artificial intelligence, python, cloud services, and IoT technology. He was certified as AI, and IoT instructor from IBM, and AI, and 5G instructor from Huawei. He was awarded the best instructor (1st award) from Huawei in 2020. Also, he has achieved the award of excellence (From MSA): appreciation award “Grand Prize”. He was a part of the initiative in cooperation between the Ministry of Communications and IBM in 2021.

Yet, he has been an assistant lecturer in MSA for 8 years, technical support in TEData for 1 year and control engineer for 1 year, technical training leader for 7 years.

Mayar Sanad is a dynamic and dedicated Teaching Assistant at NGU’s School of Engineering. With a Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering (Mechatronics Major) from Cairo University, Mayar brings a diverse range of skills and experience to the academic community.

Throughout her academic journey, Mayar has demonstrated a strong commitment to academic excellence and interdisciplinary learning. Graduating with honors, she has continually sought opportunities to expand her knowledge and skills across various fields within mechanical engineering and related disciplines.

Notably, she led a multidisciplinary team in the design and implementation of a retrofitting project, converting a 1979 Heckler and Koch milling machine into a 3-axis CNC milling machine. This project, which received recognition at her university’s engineering exhibition, highlights her ability to apply theoretical knowledge to real-world engineering challenges.

As a Teaching Assistant, Mayar plays a crucial role in supporting faculty members and facilitating student learning experiences. Drawing from her background in mechatronics engineering, she brings a unique blend of electromechanical and software expertise to her role, enriching the educational experience for students in courses such as Engineering Design and Practice. Committed to fostering a collaborative and inclusive learning environment, Mayar strives to create an atmosphere where all students are encouraged and empowered to succeed.