While we debate the contours of education in Arizona it is hard to believe there is an entire slice of the world beyond us that doesn’t have access to the best in education at all.
– --- Francis Najafi
Education often dominates the news here in Arizona. Are public schools being funded sufficiently? Should we raise taxes more to do so? Do we have too much school choice or not enough? What should be the interplay between our community colleges and universities?
These can be raucous debates with stark political lines. They seem to always question if Arizona is an educational leader or laggard?
Well, there might be something new that we can all agree is good news, portraying Arizona in a most favorable light. At least I hope so. My wife Dionne and I are banking on it, literally.
Most readers will recognize Arizona State University (ASU) and the very innovative school it has become. It has a President, Dr. Michael Crow, that encourages our state and all in its orbit to think big.
And so we have.
In our midst and now a part of ASU is the Thunderbird School of Global Management. Once a campus in Glendale it now resides in downtown Phoenix as one of the top ranked business schools in the world. What a resource it is. Indeed, it profoundly impacted my life as a young immigrant from Iran as I was trying to find my way in the business world. My wife, Dionne, is also a proud alumna.
So I got to thinking, how could we fund a program with Thunderbird worthy of its mission and distinct history? How could my wife and I not just donate but transform? We have been fortunate and blessed in life. How can we truly do that for others?
While we debate the contours of education in Arizona it is hard to believe there is an entire slice of the world beyond us that doesn’t have access to the best in education at all.
This inspired us. Motivated us. And ultimately got us to enthusiastically fund, via a $25 million donation, a new global initiative to educate and empower 100 million learners around the world.
It will offer, at no charge, five world-class accredited online business classes offered by Thunderbird. The courses will be translated into 40 different languages, emancipating future entrepreneurs from the burden born by most business courses that are in English. We will be in Iran, Kenya, Mexico, Indonesia, Egypt, India, Senegal, Brazil and Vietnam to start. By year two the program will be expanded to other countries in Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Latin America.
Quite simply, it may be one of if not the most ambitious global educational initiatives ever conceived by an American college or university.
We believe this effort enables students to gain 21st-century skill sets to launch or advance their professional careers as well as a path towards other learning options via Thunderbird and ASU, or at learning institutions worldwide.
In doing so, this initiative would address a critical worldwide need for high tech and business skills that has only increased in a post COVID job market. This not only elevates individual students but also helps nations that lack higher education infrastructure to rebuild and modernize their economies. This is the embodiment of equitable prosperity.
I found the American dream in coming to Arizona so many years ago. Thunderbird and ASU truly represent the spirit of innovation that exemplifies our great state. This initiative will amplify that spirit as 100 million learners get access to essential skills from an institution known for its global outreach.
'Arizona-based Thunderbird has helped educate leaders in government and business in every corner of the globe. It has been a force for good for more than 75 years. That positive impact could spread exponentially as its resources are made available online to 100 million learners, making Thunderbird, ASU, and Arizona a conduit of positive change and equity.
This is what happens when you foster a New American University. This is what happens when innovation becomes your mantra. This is what occurs when an enterprising dean heads one of our state’s most underappreciated business schools and assets.
And this is the Arizona educational leadership we know, love and appreciate as our new export seeks to enrich, elevate and activate the entrepreneurial spirit in us all.
Editor's note: Mr. Najafi, Founder and CEO of The Pivotal Group, is a long-time Phoenix businessman and philanthropist. He is also a graduate of Thunderbird School of Global Management (’77) as is his wife Dionne (’06).
