Thunderbird 4.0 @ ASU It has been five years since Thunderbird joined the Arizona State University Knowledge Enterprise. But the full benefits of the partnership – benefits for Thunderbird and for ASU – have come into better focus relatively recently. Our move last year to downtown Phoenix; the addition of two new executive degree programs; an accelerated program; a curriculum revamp to our MGM program which introduces 16 concentrations, 12 of which include courses from other ASU colleges and schools; and of course, the groundbreaking of our new global headquarters facility have all served to deepen our ties.
JOINING FORCES Thunderbird has, as President Crow has said, “an enormous amount to offer to ASU. For more than 70 years, Thunderbird has been a hidden gem in Arizona,” Crow said. “Now it will be a crown jewel in the center of our emerging global city, connecting ASU, our state and our country to the world and providing the best in leadership and management education.” As the nation’s largest public university and the most innovative school in the U.S. for five years running, ASU likewise has an enormous amount to offer Thunderbird. “There are powerful assets, resources, partners, and capacities between ASU and Thunderbird that would have been much harder to access had we been independent,” explained Dean Khagram. As one example: of the 16 con-
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Thunderbird Magazine Spring 2020
Thunderbird’s rich history of training global leaders meets ASU’s rich history of innovation – unlocking opportunities for students, faculty, alumni and the communities they serve
Congressman Stanton, City Council member Nowakowski, Mayor Gallego, Dean Khagram, President Crow, Arizona Regent Fred DuVal and Hiroshi Hamada ’91
centrations we now offer, 12 include courses from other ASU colleges and schools (read about them on page 31). Together with the four delivered by Thunderbird, these concentrations enable our MGM – the world’s #1 master’s in management – to be truly transdisciplinary, providing graduates with the ability to reach across disciplines and sectors, the only way to solve the unique challenges posed by the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Yet another example of the ‘stronger together’ nature of the Thunderbird-ASU partnership is the new 4+1 accelerated MGM program (read about it also on page 31). The program is available for undergraduates in any ASU major – whether it’s engineering or bioscience or journalism, or any of the 347 others. “Students get an incredible combination of deep domain expertise with a global leadership and management overlay,” Khagram explained.
PREPARING LEADERS FOR THE FOURTH INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION Fast forward five years and the Thunderbird-ASU relationship has already yielded significant dividends, with more on the horizon as we continue to execute on our Thunderbird 4.0 vision. Thunderbird Director General and Dean Sanjeev Khagram and ASU President Michael Crow share a commitment to preparing leaders for the Fourth Industrial Revolution – a time of unprecedented change. Both Khagram and Crow recognized early on that together, ASU and Thunderbird would be better able to deliver a dynamic, transdisciplinary education that prepares students for the opportunities and challenges they will face in their global careers as this new era of rapid technological change unfolds. “It is imperative that we have
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