Thunderbird School of Global Management at Arizona State University Announces Global Initiative to Educate 100 Million Learners by 2030
The Francis and Dionne Najafi Global Initiative is a one-of-a-kind inclusive, innovative, impactful global initiative that will advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 4, Quality Education for all. Goal is for 70% of participants to be women.
PHOENIX,
US - News Direct - 20 January 2022 - Thunderbird School of Global Management, home of the world's No. 1 ranked Master's in Management
at Arizona State University (ASU), ranked No.1 for innovation in the
U.S., announced today a transformative new global
initiative to educate and empower 100 million learners by 2030. The
announcement coincides with the World Economic Forum's State of the World sessions.
Thanks to a historic $25 million donation from the Francis
and Dionne Najafi Global Initiative, Thunderbird will offer an accredited online Global Management and Entrepreneurship
Certificate, consisting of five world-class courses in 40 different languages.
Of the 100 million learners the program will reach worldwide, it is estimated
that 70% will be women and young women. Never before has such an ambitious
global higher education program been launched. The certificate will be covered
by full scholarships and thus no cost to students because of the philanthropic
support undergirding the initiative.
The Francis and Dionne Najafi Global Initiative has been
made possible through a generous initial gift of $25 million from prominent
Phoenix businessman and Thunderbird alumni F. Francis Najafi '77 and his wife
Dionne Najafi '06. "Our lives were transformed by access to quality education
at Thunderbird and we wanted to extend that same transformative experience to
people around the world who lack access to quality education," said the
Najafis. "We are excited and deeply humbled to be part of such a bold
initiative."
The United Nations estimates that the COVID-19 pandemic
has erased 20 years' worth of educational gains and digital online education
has accelerated and expanded dramatically to fill the gap. In addition, the
uncertainty and disruption that has come to characterize this era of rapid
technological change has displaced many workers and professionals all over the
world, increasing the need for upskilling and reskilling in order to seize the
immense opportunities of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
"Thunderbird is the most global and digital leadership and
management academy in the world and has touched over two million learners in
its renowned 75-year history. Over the last four years, we have engineered the
greatest turnaround in higher education history. At Thunderbird, our vision is a world of
sustainable and equitable prosperity, and as part of Arizona State University –
the #1 school for innovation seven years running – we measure success not by whom
we exclude, but rather by whom we include," said Thunderbird Director
General and Dean, Dr. Sanjeev Khagram. "As a refugee of Idi Amin's Uganda, my
life was transformed by having access to world-class education, so this is
deeply personal for me. The Najafi Thunderbird Global Initiative is educational
inclusion, innovation, and impact at a worldwide scale!"
The learners in the Francis and Dionne Najafi Global
Initiative will receive a badge for each course they complete and a 15-unit
accredited certificate upon successful completion of all five courses. They
will gain 21st century skill sets to catapult their professional careers. They
will also have an almost limitless number of lifelong learning options and
alternative educational pathways through Thunderbird and ASU, or will be able
to transfer the credits to other universities worldwide. Providing these opportunities
over the long-term ensures that the Global Initiative will continue to pay
dividends well into the future, breaking down barriers and opening new
educational opportunities for individuals across generations worldwide.
"Access to higher education and the need for equity and
inclusion is one of a global scale. One of the reasons Arizona State University
is so pleased to have Thunderbird as part of our enterprise is because it is a
school that has been focused on sustained prosperity worldwide for decades,"
said ASU President Michael Crow. "The commitment made to the school by Francis
and Dionne Najafi will impact communities around the world and be a force that
brings all of us closer together. We are grateful for their commitment to a
borderless expansion of the opportunities that come with higher education."
Educating
100 million learners by 2030 will require a strategic, phased approach. In year
one, the Global Initiative aims to reach learners in Iran, Kenya, Mexico,
Indonesia, Egypt, India, Senegal, Brazil, and Vietnam in their native
languages. By year two, the program will be expanded across Africa, the Middle
East, Asia and Latin America to at least 25 languages. By year four or earlier,
the Global Initiative will have expanded to Europe and Central Asia and 40
total languages - thus available for learners worldwide. Eventually, the
initiative will be available for learners worldwide, reaching our goal of 100
million learners.
The
Francis and Dionne Najafi Global Initiative will provide millions of people
with the global management and entrepreneurship skill sets that are not only
imperative to accelerate personal success and economic prosperity but also to
address persistent poverty and increase inequality worldwide. Interested individuals
can request additional information and pre-register at: https://thunderbird.asu.edu
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
About F. Francis and Dionne Najafi
F. Francis Najafi is the American Dream come
to life. He came to America from Iran to get an education and earned four
degrees from three universities. In 1982 he founded Pivotal Group, a real
estate opportunity fund with uncanny market timing and wisdom. Later he
broadened Pivotal Group's mandate successfully investing in private equity and
growth venture opportunities. As his success grew, so did his philanthropy: Mr.
Najafi has given millions of his own money to an incredibly wide range of
causes, headlined by his recent $25 million donation to Arizona State
University.
About Thunderbird
School of Global Management
Thunderbird School of Global Management is a
unit of the Arizona State University Enterprise. For more 75 years, Thunderbird
has been the vanguard of global management and leadership education, creating
inclusive and sustainable prosperity worldwide by educating global leaders
capable of tackling the world's greatest challenges. Thunderbird's Master of
Global Management was ranked #1 in the world for 2019 by the Wall Street
Journal/Times Higher Education. ASU is ranked No. 1 "Most Innovative School" in
the nation by U.S. News & World Report for five years in succession. To
learn more visit thunderbird.asu.edu.
About Arizona State University
Arizona State University Arizona State
University has developed a new model for the American Research University,
creating an institution that is committed to access, excellence and impact. ASU
measures itself by those it includes, not by those it excludes. As the
prototype for a New American University, ASU pursues research that contributes
to the public good, and ASU assumes major responsibility for the economic,
social and cultural vitality of the communities that surround it. For more
information, please visit ASU.edu.