CHAIRMAN
Mr Omar Al Futtaim
Mr Fadi Hammadeh
Mr Fadi Hammadeh
Fadi Hammadeh has been the General Counsel of Al-Futtaim Group since 2009 where he oversees legal, corporate governance, risk management, education, CSR and corporate communications functions. He has been practicing law in the UAE for more than two decades and before that worked in Damascus, Paris and London. Fadi has authored a book in 2018 titled ‘Family Business Continuity in the Middle East & Muslim World: Betting against the Odds’. He teaches law at the Sorbonne University in Dubai and holds a LLB in law from Damascus University, three LLMs from Paris II-Assas, Paris I- Sorbonne, LLM and London University and most recently completed a MSc in Psychology & Neuroscience of Mental Health at King’s College in London.
Mr Edward Quinlan
Mr Edward Quinlan
Edward Quinlan has lived in the Arabian Gulf for a number of decades. He was UAE managing partner of a Big 4 accountancy firm until his retirement in 2010.
Edward is a chartered accountant and is currently Chairman of the ICAEW Middle East Members' Advisory Board. He is also a non-executive director of one of the largest privately-owned groups in the Middle East and a number of its subsidiaries. He has served on a pro bono basis on boards or audit committees of several not for profit organisations including the Rotary Club of Dubai, Capital Club of Dubai, Cass Business School, Dubai Classical Concert Committee, International Cricket Council and Jersey Finance Middle East.
He is currently on the boards of Al Futtaim Education Foundation, Deira International School and Universal American School, in addition to serving as Chairman of Dubai College, all of which are not-for-profit organisations.
Ms Mira Al Futtaim
Ms Mira Al Futtaim
Mira Al Futtaim is the Director of Education Futures at the Al Futtaim Education Foundation (AFEF) and a member of the AFEF Board. In addition, Ms Al Futtaim is the Chair of the Emiratisation Council for the Al-Futtaim Group. In her role at AFEF, Ms Al Futtaim is focused on people, technology and the learning environment.
Working closely with the schools, she is focused on ensuring that excellence in teaching and learning is standard practice and that delivery in the classroom is in keeping with the recent trends in academia, social behaviour and the future readiness of students.
Mira Al Futtaim is invested in establishing partnerships with external providers whose programmes/offerings compliment and augment the aspirations of the Foundation. One of Mira’s main advocacies is for schools to provide a balance between modernity and preservation of local heritage.
Dr Farah Sarraj
Dr Farah Sarraj
Dr Farah Sarraj currently holds the dual role of Acting Managing Director of Al Futtaim Education Foundation and Director of its Centre for Excellence in Arabic. Her advocacies include bilingual education, raising the profile of Arabic as a language for thought and life, global citizenship and openness to new ways of living and thinking that contribute to improving the human condition.
Dr Sarraj held several senior leadership roles in the UK before she moved to the UAE in 2011 to serve on the senior leadership team of a start-up school in the northern emirate of Ajman. She then moved to Ajman University, where she lectured in the College of Education at undergraduate and post-graduate levels. Dr Sarraj holds an MA and PhD in English Literature/Early Women’s Writing from the University of Manchester, a PGCE at Brunel University , London and will soon complete an MSc in Educational Leadership from the University of Portsmouth. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society for Arts.
SECRETARY TO THE BOARD:
Mr Chandy Jacob
Mr Chandy Jacob
Chandy Jacob has an MBA from one of India’s premium business schools and worked for over 20 years in multinationals Philips and Citizen in senior positions in India, before moving to the middle east, where he had over 10 years of experience in the auto industry, and exposure to several international markets and customers. He has been with the Al Futtaim group since 2012.
In his career he has worked in accounting, sales and marketing positions before becoming a generalist.
