By Mike Emery, 713-743-7197

It was an event nearly three years in the making, but the Cougar Chairs Leadership Academy (CCLA) awards luncheon was well worth the wait.

Nearly 60 University of Houston faculty members were honored during the Sept. 20 event, which celebrated their successful completion of this career-enhancing program.

Presented by the Office of the Provost, CCLA cultivates and prepares faculty leaders through rigorous training seminars facilitated by Idahlynn Karre, noted expert in higher education leadership. CCLA seminars address real world issues within academia and the UH community, as well as critical areas of transformational leadership.

The recent luncheon showcased CCLA cohorts from 2020, 2021 and 2022. CCLA recognition events had long been delayed during the pandemic, and those faculty who completed the program were grateful to accept their framed certificates and finally celebrate their colleagues’ accomplishments.

“The network of colleagues I formed across the entire University has been an unparalleled experience, with long-term benefits,” said Emran El-Badawi, associate professor and program manager for Middle Eastern Studies. “It creates a cohesive community of future UH leaders and empowers them to be both colleagues and friends.”

El-Badawi was among the faculty comprising CCLA’s class of 2022. In addition to applauding the program, he is thankful to those who guided its progress — including CCLA founder and Provost Emeritus Paula Myrick Short — despite the challenges of the pandemic.

“I express my gratitude to Drs. Idahlynn Karre and Paula Myrick Short, who made CCLA work,” he said.

Nouhad Rizk, instructional professor and director of undergraduate studies in the Department of Computer Science, also appreciates the efforts of those who made this initiative possible. Rizk, a member of CCLA's 2021 class, is the first woman in her department to complete this program.

“CCLA provides an amazing opportunity to build  the framework for unleashing an executive’s full potential, by increasing their emotional intelligence and becoming more conscious of their thought processes,” she said. “Through this program, my colleagues and I have developed the tools and confidence to create a powerful organizational tone that embraces change and new ideas.”

A list of CCLA participants is as follows:

CCLA Class of 2020

David Berntsen, College of Optometry

Bernhard Bodmann, College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics

Samuel Brower, College of Education

Lindita Camaj, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences

Angelika Dimoka, C. T. Bauer College of Business

Medhat El Nahas, College of Technology

Julianna Fernandez, College of Pharmacy

Akash Grover, Conrad N. Hilton College of Global Hospitality Leadership

Janet Heppard, UH Law Center

Jessica Mantel, UH Law Center

Fatima Merchant, College of Technology

Volkan Muslu, C. T. Bauer College of Business

April Peters-Hawkins, College of Education

David Politzer, Kathrine G. McGovern College of the Arts

Raul Ramos, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences

Benjamin Rayder, The Honors College

Samina Salim, College of Pharmacy

Amber Thompson, College of Education

CCLA Class of 2021

Roger Barascout, C. T. Bauer College of Business

Burak Basaran, College of Technology

Keith Butcher, College of Education

Jose Contreras-Vidal, Cullen College of Engineering

Jeronimo Cortina, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences

Shea Culpepper, College of Education

Tiffany Davis, College of Education

Birol Dindoruk, Cullen College of Engineering

Stacey Gorniak, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences

Kristen Guiseppi, UH Law Center

Billy Hawkins, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences

Rachel Helbing, UH Libraries

Tahir Hussain, College of Pharmacy

Monique Mills, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences

Luca Oliva, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences

Nouhad Rizk, College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics

Kristi Santi, College of Education

Ariana Santiago, UH Libraries

MariVi Tejada-Simón, College of Pharmacy

Gina Warren, UH Law Center

Sissy Wong, College of Education

LeChauncy Woodard, Tilman J. Fertitta Family College of Medicine

Jie Zhang, College of Education

Graduating Class of 2022

Laura Cizek, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences

Sally Connolly, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences

Toya Conston, College of Education

Emran El-Badawi, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences

Wenli Gao, UH Libraries

Susie Gronseth, College of Education

Kristen Hassett, College of Education

Beena Joseph, College of Nursing

Lucy Kehinde, College of Optometry

Ashok Kumar, College of Pharmacy

Tiffany Legendre, Conrad N. Hilton College of Global Hospitality Leadership

Michael Myers, Cullen College of Engineering

Barbara Stewart, College of Technology

Katherine Turner, Kathrine G. McGovern College of the Arts

Jonathan Williamson, The Honors College

Di Yang, Cullen College of Engineering

Weihang Zhu, College of Technology