A tale of two Alexandrias: Transcontinental partnership bridges two namesake cities
Highlighting a partnership that spans continents and connects namesake cities, the president of Egypt’s Alexandria University (AU) visited Virginia Tech’s Blacksburg campus and attended the grand opening of Academic Building One in Alexandria, Virginia.
During the visit, the two universities formalized a long-standing relationship by signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that aims to encourage student mobility and joint research initiatives between the two Alexandrias.
“We are very excited to advance the next phase of our collaboration,” said Virginia Tech President Tim Sands after meeting with AU President Abdelaziz Konsowa. “Alexandria University is a valued partner, and an important part of our growing education and innovation network.”
The memorandum of understanding envisions a dual-degree pathway structured as a 4+1 program. This framework will enable Egyptian students to earn their bachelor’s degrees at Alexandria University before pursuing a Master of Engineering in computer science or computer engineering at Virginia Tech’s new facility in the greater Washington, D.C., metro area. The agreement also paves the way for collaborative community projects between Alexandria, Egypt, and Alexandria, Virginia.
Among the longer-term goals is Virginia Tech’s involvement in AU’s recently announced corporate research center and technology park. The Egyptian facility, designed to foster research providing practical industry solutions and encourage student entrepreneurship, is poised to be a complementary partner to Virginia Tech’s Innovation Campus and VT India initiatives.
The Center for International Research, Education, and Development (CIRED), part of Outreach and International Affairs, has been instrumental in fostering this partnership.
“We have worked with colleagues in Egypt for many years,” center Executive Director Tom Archibald said. “Building on the long-standing relationship that CIRED already has with Alexandria University, President Sands signing this MOU signifies that Virginia Tech is poised to accelerate this relationship to be more formal and active. Now, CIRED’s role will be to help operationalize this MOU.”
Beyond initiating and developing the relationship between the universities, the center will manage and implement projects emerging from this newly formalized partnership.
During his visit to Blacksburg, Konsowa met with Sands, Executive Vice President and Provost Cyril Clarke, Vice President Guru Ghosh, and other key faculty members in engineering, agriculture, and health sciences. He toured various facilities, including the Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science lab, the Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center, the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC, and the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine. Konsowa then traveled to Alexandria, Virginia, to witness the grand opening of Academic Building One.
In Northern Virginia, Konsowa met with Alexandria Mayor Alyia Gaskins. During her public remarks at the grand opening, Gaskins highlighted potential partnerships between the two Alexandrias.
“We started talking about our shared challenges. … As we talked, we didn’t just share our challenges, we started to share ideas,” Gaskins said.
As the dual-degree pathway begins to take shape, students from Alexandria, Egypt, will begin arriving in Alexandria, Virginia, to complete their graduate programs, strengthening connections between the two cities.
“Dr. Konsowa’s visit represents a significant milestone in our international collaboration efforts,” said Ghosh, vice president for outreach and international affairs. “The deliberations between Virginia Tech’s faculty, leadership and between Mayor Gaskins and Dr. Konsowa revealed numerous areas for potential cooperation. Within just days of formalizing our partnership, we identified several promising initiatives that align with both institutions’ strengths. This agreement establishes a foundation for sustained collaboration where faculty expertise, industry partnerships, and student research will address shared challenges in Egypt and the United States through evidence-based solutions.”
