In the presence of His Excellency Professor Hamid M. K. Al Naimiy, Chancellor of the University of Sharjah, and Her Excellency Sheikha Hoor bint Sultan Al Qasimi, President of Sharjah Art Foundation, the College of Fine Arts and Design held its first Advisory Board Meeting through video conferencing technology, organized by the Office of Vice Chancellor for Community Affairs, to discuss the college progress and its academic programs, as well as review proposals made to promote the college role in serving the local community, and providing internship opportunities for its students.

At the beginning of the meeting, the Chancellor welcomed the Advisory Board members, stressing the university's aspiration to benefit from their technical and practical experiences, as well as take advantage of their recommendations and proposals that will contribute to the development of the college locally and internationally. He also thanked Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed Al Qasimi, Deputy Ruler of Sharjah and President of the University of Sharjah for his unlimited support to the university, as it became one of the largest universities in the United Arab Emirates in terms of the number of academic programs it offers, and the number of its students and graduates, institutes and research centers, as well as its Medical Colleges Campus distinguished in the Arab region.

The Chancellor also expressed his pride in the university's remarkable achievements accomplished during this year at the international level, according to the results of the World University Ranking in the fields of scientific research and sustainability. He also praised the achievements of the College of Fine Arts and Design in developing its academic programs in response to the evolving requirements of the labor market, as well as its efforts in adopting many community initiatives and participations with various local and regional entities, organizations and institutions.

The Advisory Board meeting was chaired by Sheikha Hoor bint Sultan Al Qasimi, in which she praised the great progress made by the college in fine arts and design particularly in the field of fashion design, which meets the local plans and aspirations. She also stressed the importance of offering a variety of training opportunities for students in various fields, as well as students exchange with international universities and specialized institutions, besides focusing on the fundamental role of art in serving the community.

For her part, the Dean of the College Professor Nadia Alhasani provided an overview of the College, its programs, number of faculty and students representing diverse cultural backgrounds, as well as the college's last two years achievements in launching new study plans that promote art, culture, and history of Islamic art in a contemporary context, besides its efforts in communicating and cooperating with governmental and private institutions including Sharjah Art Foundation, Sharjah Department of Culture, Sharjah Economic Development Department, Sharjah Institute for Heritage, Sharjah Museums Authority, Sharjah Police and Shurooq, to offer the best training opportunities for its students. The Dean also presented the college proposed plans particularly in launching postgraduate programs and enhancing the college's position regionally and globally.

During the discussion, members of the Board presented a set of proposals including: shedding light on Islamic art and civilization, promoting the role of the college in community cooperation, exchanging information and experiences with specialized agencies locally and internationally, continuing its efforts towards interdisciplinary collaboration, and finding opportunities to exchange faculty and students from different cultures to benefit from their experiences.

Members of the Advisory Board included Professor Nadia Mehdi Alhasani, Dean of the College of Fine Arts and Design, Her Excellency Manal Ataya, Director General of Sharjah Museums Authority, Mr. Tarek Abou El Fetouh, Director of Performance and Senior Curator at Sharjah Art Foundation, Professor Salah Hassan, Director of The African Institute at Sharjah, Sheikha Noora Al Mualla, Director of Learning and Research at Sharjah Art Foundation, in addition to Ms. Maria Magdalena Campo-Pons, Professor of Fine Arts-Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Ms. Christine Tohme, Curator and Founding Director of Ashkal Alwan in Beirut, Mr. Peter Eleey, Curator at Large Ullens Center for Contemporary Art in Beijing, and Ms. Yuko Hasegawa, Artistic Director of 21 Century Museum of Contemporary Art in Kanazawa.