Dr. Tod Laursen is Chancellor of American University of Sharjah (AUS), coming to AUS after almost eleven years as leader of Khalifa University in Abu Dhabi, SUNY Polytechnic Institute in New York, and Wigwe University in Nigeria, with an additional two years of service as the chief academic officer (provost) of the State University of New York system. Prior to becoming President of Khalifa University, Dr. Laursen was a member of the faculty of Duke University (USA), between the years of 1992 and 2010. During that time he had appointments in civil engineering, biomedical engineering and mechanical engineering. He served as Chair of the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science from 2008-2010 and Senior Associate