Safa Zaki is a psychologist, cognitive scientist, and academic administrator serving as the 16th president of

Bowdoin College Bowdoin College ( ) is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Brunswick, Maine. It was chartered in 1794. The main Bowdoin campus is located near Casco Bay and the Androscoggin River. In a ...

in Brunswick,

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

. She is the first woman to lead Bowdoin since its founding in 1794. Prior to her work at Bowdoin, Zaki served as dean of faculty at

Williams College Williams College is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim ...

Early life and education

Zaki was born in 1968 in

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

and raised in

Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t ...

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...

, and

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago, officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean, comprising the main islands of Trinidad and Tobago, along with several List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, smaller i ...

. Zaki graduated from the

American University in Cairo The American University in Cairo (AUC; ) is a private research university in New Cairo, Egypt. The university offers American-style learning programs at undergraduate, graduate, and professional levels, along with a continuing education program. ...

with a BA in psychology. She continued her education in the United States at

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public university, public research university in Tempe, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 as Territorial Normal School by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, the university is o ...

, earning her master's degree and PhD in psychology.

Career

Prior to her appointment at Bowdoin, Zaki served on the faculty of Williams College for 22 years. She joined the Williams faculty in 2002 as an assistant professor of psychology. She was appointed the dean of faculty at Williams in 2020. Zaki was elected President of Bowdoin College on March 9, 2023 and began her term on July 1, 2023. She was officially inaugurated on Saturday, October 14, 2023.

Personal life

In 1995, Zaki married Huff Templeton, a fellow graduate student at Arizona State.

References

External links

Bowdoin College Office of the President
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zaki, Safa Arizona State University alumni Presidents of Bowdoin College Living people American cognitive psychologists Women cognitive scientists 21st-century American women scientists 21st-century American psychologists American women psychologists Women heads of universities and colleges Williams College faculty 1968 births