A new, locally developed software package that improves university governance is set to save Saint Joseph University (USJ) ‘millions of dollars per year in possible expenses to foreign software vendors,’ Dany Mezher, Rector’s Delegate for IT Affairs at USJ, said Thursday.
Speaking at a conference hosted by the USJ on ‘Technology and Innovation in the Future of Education,’ Mezher explained that the software in question is a Student Information System (SIS). The software is designed to enable data-driven decision-making at education institutions by centralizing all student and operational data and placing it at the fingertips of administrators. USJ’s new SIS was developed by tech company CME Lebanon, in partnership with the university, and was launched in September 2022.
According to Mezher, development of the SIS started in late 2020 and provided USJ with a viable alternative to signing a contract with one of the foreign SIS vendors in the market, which charge expensive annual licensing fees to use their software. In doing so, it prevented the flight of vital hard currency from Lebanon as the Lebanese Lira collapses.
Addressing the audience alongside Mezher, the co-founding CEO of CME, Wissam Youssef, added that the SIS ‘has the potential to be rolled out at other universities in Lebanon and beyond, with the option to co-develop new modules and tailor existing ones to suit needs.’
Salim Daccache, Rector of Saint Joseph University, saluted the ‘active visionary partnership’ between USJ and CME, heralding the new software’s launch as ‘an important moment in the digital technology revolution and its role in education and higher education institutions.’
Several other speakers delivered keynotes at the conference, including Ziad Traboulsi, Global Director of Business Engineering for Reality Labs at Meta; Farshida Zafar, Director of the Erasmus Center for Entrepreneurship; and Maha Bali, Professor of Practice at the Center for Learning and Teaching at the American University in Cairo.
Demonstrating how the physical world can be recreated in the digital world, Traboulsi gave an overview of the latest developments in the metaverse, and their potential applications in education. Zafar explored how to cement the role of universities in supporting and driving innovation, emphasizing the need to adopt an entrepreneurial mindset and build alliances between innovators. ‘We need innovative ecosystems to create systemic change, and we should revolutionize education by designing for tomorrow,’ she stated. Bali talked about how to embrace new technologies, particularly artificial intelligence, in a way that builds trust between students and teachers, and creates a learning environment centered around the principles of equity and care.
The day-long conference, which included a plenary session, two workshops and a roundtable discussion, ended with a call for greater coordination between universities and the private sector. Summarizing the sentiment of the day, Jip Dresia, who co-facilitated the roundtable and is Education Program Manager at the Erasmus Center of Entrepreneurship, said that there appears to be plenty of opportunities and willing individuals to support entrepreneurship in Lebanon, and that great accomplishments could be achieved with proper collaboration and investment in partnerships.
The roundtable participants agreed that, in the near total absence of support from the Lebanese state, businesses and education institutions must articulate a common vision on how to support entrepreneurship, and based on that, define a strategy to move forward.
‘The real challenge is to connect the dots between the islands of innovation, so that Lebanon starts to think ahead and realize its potential,’ Carole Alsharabati, Research Director at Siren Associates said during the roundtable. ‘We must look to each other and lift each other up.’

Source: National News Agency – Lebanon