The American Concrete Institute (ACI) has announced the first recipient of the Middle East Fellowship for the 2019-2020 award year.

Nancy Kachouh is a first year PhD student and research assistant in the Civil Engineering Department at the United Arab Emirates University. Her primary research interest is ‘Structural/Material Engineering’ with an emphasis on studying the behaviour of concrete structures made of sustainable construction materials and the use of sustainable composite-based systems to strengthen concrete structures.

Her doctoral research is focused on the use of steel fibber recycled aggregate concrete in sustainable construction. She holds a Master of Engineering degree with Distinction in Civil Engineering from the American University of Beirut, Lebanon, and a Master of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Bahaman, Lebanon. She also obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from the Lebanese University of Sciences, Lebanon.

Nancy worked as a design civil engineer in a Beirut office, and as a secondary math and physics teacher. She has been recognized on the Dean’s List several times for her undergraduate and graduate performance and graduated in the top 10% of her class for civil engineering at the American University of Beirut.

Funded by the American Concrete Institute and administered by the ACI Foundation, the Middle East Fellowship is open to graduate students currently attending a university in Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, or the United Arab Emirates. The winning student receives $10,000 in educational support, full funding to attend two upcoming ACI Conventions, and more.

The new fellowship was announced in 2018 and fulfils ACI’s comprehensive plan to increase knowledge-sharing in the Gulf region. Applications for the 2020-2021 academic year will open in summer, 2019.

ACI Foundation fellowship and scholarship awards are made possible through generous contributions by ACI, ACI chapters, corporate donors, and individuals within the concrete community. Fellowship applicants must be sponsored by an ACI Faculty Network member. – TradeArabia News Service