Hanya Salah Named Director of Amman Center

Hanya Salah has been named director for Columbia Global Centers | Amman. Salah has served as deputy director since 2012.

“Hanya’s new role is an acknowledgement, a celebration, and a natural extension to her decade long tenure as the center’s deputy director, and of the many outstanding accomplishments the center realized under her guidance and support,” said Wafaa El-Sadr, executive vice president for Columbia Global.

Working closely with Global Centers leadership, Hanya has played an instrumental role in creating opportunities for shared learning and positioning the Amman Center as a hub for programs and educational initiatives.

When Hanya first joined the Global Centers in August 2010, she brought with her the skills and experience acquired from a distinguished career in nonprofit and global development. She was the inaugural director of The Children’s Museum in Jordan, and was responsible for implementing and coordinating the final phase of the museum’s development and launch and setting it on a path for long-term success. Prior to that, Hanya directed the Ali Jabri Human Heritage Foundation, where she curated and oversaw the opening of the Foundation’s inaugural exhibition and managed the Foundation’s operations. She has also held various roles over a 10 year period with UNICEF and the United Nations in New York.

As deputy director, Hanya has overseen and managed the activities at the Center. This includes supporting and engaging faculty, enhancing students and scholars learning opportunities, promoting knowledge exchange and building capacity.

Hanya received her B.A. in Art History from Williams College and studied for her M.A. in Near Eastern Studies and Museum Studies at New York University.

“On behalf of the Columbia community, I would like to express appreciation for the enduring partnerships, regional expertise, and her contributions to the collective impact of the Columbia Global Centers,” El-Sadr said. “I look forward to working with her as part of President Lee C. Bollinger’s newly-created Columbia Global, which aligns the University’s key global initiatives: Columbia Global Centers, the Columbia World Projects, and the Institute for Ideas & Imagination.”