2014-15 Distinguished Visiting Scholars

George Rupp

George Rupp, is a Columbia University President Emeritus, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs, adjunct professor of religion, public health, and international affairs at Columbia University, and a founding principal at NEXT: Transition Advisors, a consulting partnership for academic, cultural, and social service organizations.
Dr. Rupp served as President of the International Rescue Committee from 2002 to 2013.  As the IRC’s Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Rupp led a staff of more than 12,000 colleagues and oversaw the agency’s relief and development operations in over 40 countries and its refugee resettlement and assistance programs in 22 cities in the United States.  During his tenure, the budget of the IRC tripled (to over $450 million).  The IRC also closed out a $60 million capital campaign at $110 million.  Along with the growth of programs in service delivery, advocacy efforts were increased in Washington and New York and also in London, Brussels, Geneva, Nairobi, and Bangkok.

Before joining the IRC, Dr. Rupp served as president of Columbia University.  During his nine-year tenure, he focused on enhancing undergraduate education, on strengthening campus ties to surrounding communities and New York City as a whole, and on increasing the university’s international orientation.  Earlier, Dr. Rupp served as president of Rice University and before that was the John Lord O’Brian Professor of Divinity and dean of the Harvard Divinity School.

Educated in Europe and Asia as well as the United States, he is the author of numerous articles and five books, including Globalization Challenged: Commitment, Conflict, and Community (2006).

George Rupp and his wife Nancy have two adult daughters, both professional anthropologists, one with a specialization in Japan and the other with a focus on Africa, and six grandchildren.

Emad Shahin

Emad Shahin is professor of Public Policy at the School of Global Affairs and Public Policy (GAPP), the American University in Cairo (AUC) and editor-in-chief of The Oxford Encyclopedia of Islam and Politics. He is currently a Public Policy Scholar at Woodrow Wilson Center. His areas of interests include comparative politics, public policies, Islamic law and politics, and democracy and political reform in Muslim societies.

Before rejoining the AUC faculty in 2012, Shahin was the Henry R. Luce Associate Professor of Religion, Conflict and Peacebuilding at the University of Notre Dame’s Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies (2009-2012). He was visiting associate professor in the department of government at Harvard University (2006-2009), faculty affiliate with the Kennedy School of Government, and visiting scholar in the Islamic Legal Studies Program at Harvard Law School (2006-2007). Shahin holds a Ph.D. (1989) from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, M.A. (1983) and BA (1980) from the American University in Cairo.

His publications include Political Ascent: Contemporary Islamic Movements in North Africa; co-editorship with Nathan Brown of The Struggle over Democracy in the Middle East and North Africa; and co-authorship of Islam and Democracy (in Arabic). He is the editor-in-chief of The Oxford Encyclopedia of Islam and Politics and co-editor with John L. Esposito of The Oxford Handbook of Islam and Politics.

Shahin has made frequent contributions to major media outlets, such as CNN, BBC, New York Times, Washington Post, The Guardian, The Atlantic, Foreign Policy and Al-Jazeera, among others.