Lives of Consequence
Elizabeth Bernard Khalifa '78
Executive Director, Binational Fulbright Commission in Egypt.
Elizabeth "Liz" Bernard Khalifa's '78 life and career have always functioned as a bridge between cultures and continents. During her junior year of high school, she traveled overseas as an AFS-USA summer student to Beirut, Lebanon. As a William Smith student with an independent major in international relations and minor in French, Khalifa studied abroad in Paris, France, where she met her spouse, an Egyptian.
After she attended New York University's Stern School of Business, she worked for Chase Manhattan Bank and served clients located primarily in the Middle East. In 1983, she relocated to Egypt.
Eleven years later, she left the financial sector to begin a new career in international education, working first with AMIDEAST Egypt and then with the Institute of International Education. The missions of both organizations foster cultural and education exchange and scholarship.
Today, as executive director of the Binational Fulbright Commission in Egypt, she facilitates interaction between American Fulbright recipients and Egyptian students, "to support enhanced cross-cultural understanding," Khalifa says.
The Binational Fulbright Commission in Egypt was established in 1949 and is the oldest and largest Fulbright program in the Arab world.
"Our work creates enrichment opportunities that have the potential to transform people's lives and enable them to pursue interests, perhaps the door to a new career, innovation, or insight, which would otherwise not be possible," Khalifa says. "We're connecting people across cultures and hopefully enhancing their ability to understand each other and help build a more empathetic, connected, and peaceful world."
Besides her work with the Fulbright in Egypt, Khalifa plays several other important roles; she is a mother of three children; an avid swim mom and personal videographer for her youngest son's swim competitions; a proud French bulldog owner; and a new grandmother.