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Dr. Yaomin Dong is Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Kettering University. He received his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Kentucky in 1998. Dr. Dong has extensive R&D experience in automotive industry and holds multiple patents. Dr. Dong's areas of expertise include metalforming processes, design with composite materials, computer graphics, computer-aided engineering and finite element analysis.

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Dr. Arnaldo Mazzei is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Kettering University. He specializes in dynamics and vibrations of mechanical systems and has conducted research in stability of automotive drivetrains, modal analysis, finite element analysis and computer aided engineering. His current work relates to system vibrations and automotive engineering. Dr. Mazzei received his Ph. D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor) and both his M. Sc. and B. Sc. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Sao Paulo (Brazil). He is an active member of SAE and SEM.

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Azadeh Sheidaei received her BSc in Aerospace Engineering from Sharif University of Technology and MSc and PhD degrees in Mechanical Engineering from Michigan State University. Before joining Iowa State University, she was an Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Kettering University in Michigan. Sheidaei’s main research area is “multiscale characterization and computational modeling of advanced material systems such as polymer reinforced composites”. During her graduate study at MSU (2007-2015), she worked at Composite Vehicle Research Center (CVRC) where she worked on numerous research and industrial projects. Those span over the areas of structural integrity of composites, development of constitutive models and computational tools to predict the mechanical behavior of novel materials such as nanocomposites, computational modeling of soft tissue and power sources such as lithium-ion battery and fuel cells. Sheidaei is a member of the American Society for Composite (ASC), Society for Engineering Education (ASEE), Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) and Society of Women Engineers (SWE). Sheidaei has received several research and educational grants from NSF, CAAT (Center for Advanced Automotive Technology) and KEEN (The Kern Entrepreneurial Engineering Network). Sheidaei is a recipient of the Zonta International Amelia Earhart Fellowship, which is presented to women pursuing a doctoral degree who demonstrate a superior academic record in the field of aerospace-related sciences and engineering. She has also received dissertation competition award while being selected as the outstanding graduate student by the ME Department at Michigan State University.

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Dr. Basem Alzahabi became the second President of Al Ghurair in July 2017.

Dr. Alzahabi came from Kettering University in the United States of America where he

was a Professor in the Mechanical Engineering Department and served as the Director

of the Office of International Programs (2011-2017), an Associate Department Head

(2010-2012), and a Director of the Mechanical Engineering Graduate Program(2004-2006).

Dr. Alzahabi attended advanced training in Higher Education Leadership &

Management at Harvard Graduate School of Education in 2012 and 2015.

At Kettering University, Dr. Alzahabi provided significant and vital institutional and

departmental leadership related to curriculum development, improvement, and assessment.

These contributions were critical to Kettering receiving consecutive 6-year accreditation

NGR (Next General review) ratings in two ABET reviews visits in 2003 and in 2009.

Dr. Alzahabi is a highly recognized educator who won numerous educational awards.

They include the "Educational Scholar" award, the "Professor of Excellence" award,

the "Professor of the Year" award, and the Greek Life "Faculty Advisor of the Year".

In addition to his teaching excellence and extensive departmental and institutional

leadership roles, Dr. Alzahabi maintained a high level of technical research activities

and industrial consulting that resulted in $1,500,000 of external funding and 45

technical and educational publications. He is a member of the Editorial Board of

the International Journal of Multiphysics since 2012.

Nationally, Dr. Alzahabi served as a reviewer for the National Science Foundation

"Assessment of Student Achievement" (ASA) Program proposals in 2001 and 2002 and

attended multiple national conferences and workshops on curriculum development,

assessment, and ABET Accreditation.

Internationally, Dr. Alzahabi participated in collaborative research and educational

activities with multiple international institutions, including the Technical University

of Belfort, France (1999), Wessex Institute of Technology, England (2004), Alhosn

University, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (2010), Balamand University, Tripoli,

Lebanon (2010), the University of Maribor, Slovenia (2005 and 2013), the University of

Modern Sciences, Dubai, United Arab Emirates (2013), and The University of the Arctic, Tromso, Norway (2017).

Dr. Alzahabi conducted technical training to the automotive industry in the United

States (General Motors, 2003-2006), South Korea (Hyundai, 2000-2001), and most

recently in China (SGMW, 2014-2017).

Before joining Kettering University in 1998, Dr. Basem Alzahabi had 11 years of

extensive industrial experience in the automotive industry at the Ford Motor Company,

Optimal CAE Inc., Novi, MI, and Automated Analysis Corporation, Ann Arbor, MI.

Dr. Alzahabi holds three graduate degrees from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor:

a Ph.D. in Structural Mechanics (1996), a M.S. in Applied Mechanics (1988), and

a M.S. in Structural Engineering (1986).

He obtained his undergraduate degree in Civil Engineering in 1981 from the University of Damascus.

President Alzahabi along with the AGU Board of Trustees is developing a very ambitious vision for the future of the institution.

He hopes to lead AGU into a remarkable academic and physical transformation.

Dr. Alzahabi and his wife, Sana, recently moved to Dubai.

They have four adult children, Rasha, Reem, Majed, and Ahmad, who all live in the United States.

Dr. Alzahabi enjoys reading, sports, and traveling. Expect to see him teaching in the classroom.

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