Dr. Eric Kamal Hilgendorf was most recently Vice President of MENA at The Quad Initiative, where he concentrated on organizational performance and development, education entrepreneurship, leadership development and succession, and organizational advancement and diversification. Dr. Hilgendorf was also Associate Dean of Community and Education Engagement at New York University Abu Dhabi, where he created innovative programs that advanced national and institutional priorities for the university. Over his seven years, he created sustainable programming in the areas of K-16 pipeline building, teacher advancement and professional development, organization and school development, leadership and identity, resource and enterprise planning, and institutional advancement. Prior to this, Dr. Hilgendorf served as Director of Education Operations for Vanderbilt University in the UAE, where he steered several educational programs encompassing educational leadership, coaching and assessment models, trajectory planning and professional development for 20+ schools. In advance of that, he was Co-Director for Technical Support for the National Center for Performance Pay (TIF) at Vanderbilt University, where he won an Emmy for a film he co-produced (A Matter of Principals).
Dr. Hilgendorf also served as Director for Charter Schools and Choice, at the State of Tennessee Department of Education, where he crafted and received an unprecedented $22 million federal grant designed to encourage the creation and development of high-quality leaders, governing bodies and schools. Over four years, he quadrupled the number of charter schools in the state and founded the Charter Institute for School for Leaders in Education (CHISLE). He is an active writer and has won several awards (The Atlantic Monthly and Emirates Writers Festival).
Expertise
Assistant Professor
University City, Sharjah
United Arab Emirates
