The investiture of the university’s 10th president, Dr. Chaouki T. Abdallah, will take place on April 3, 2025, at 6:00 p.m. on the Beirut campus.

Presidential transitions and the formal investiture of a new president with the university’s leadership at the beginning or during his first year of service are longstanding traditions in American institutions of higher learning, and LAU is no exception.

The event holds great significance for the institution, as it symbolizes continuity, renewal, and commitment to its mission and values. The investiture brings together faculty, students, alumni, and community members to celebrate the new president’s vision for the future, reinforcing the university’s dedication to academic excellence, innovation, and service.

As LAU embarks on its second century at a time of national rebuilding, it is only fitting that it reaffirms its commitment to the country’s youth and to remaining united in renewal.

At the ceremony, the university will confer the highest leadership authority upon Dr. Abdallah, who took the reins six months ago. He succeeds Dr. Michel E. Mawad who steered the university to safety from 2020 to 2024 through some of Lebanon’s most trying times.

Before joining LAU, Dr. Abdallah held several leadership roles as president and provost of the University of New Mexico, and more recently as the executive vice president for research at the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech), where he oversaw a research budget exceeding $1.4 billion.

When he assumed the presidency on October 1, 2024, Dr. Abdallah expressed his belief in “the bountiful opportunities to contribute even more to educating future generations of leaders and doers.” He underlined the university’s plans to fortify local, regional and global partnerships to drive positive change in Lebanon and beyond.