Scott Walker '81 and Francis Najafi '77

Alumni Support Generates Scholarship Dollars

If alumni contributions to an institution denote school pride, then Thunderbird is a true role model.

Two alumni, Thunderbird trustees Scott Walker ’81 and Francis Najafi ’77 each recently gave $1 million gifts to the School. Additionally, alumni around the world have banded together in healthy competition to create a series of Thunderbird Alumni Association Chapter student scholarships.

“Many of our alumni say that Thunderbird changed their lives,” says Joan Neice, Thunderbird vice president and chief development officer. “They lead successful, vibrant, interesting careers in more than 145 countries. For them, giving back is a way of thanking their professors, their classmates and friends, and the Thunderbird experience that opened the door to global leadership for them.”

While the Walker gift furthers the activities and research of Thunderbird’s Center for Global Entrepreneurship, Najafi’s gift supports Corporate Learning, including Executive Education custom programs, certification programs, online certification programs and corporate consulting.

“I have very strong emotional ties to Thunderbird,” Najafi says. “Thunderbird had a very significant impact at a very critical stage of my life. I was coming from abroad, having just finished my undergraduate work, and Thunderbird helped me a lot in my understanding of the world.”

Najafi is CEO of Phoenix-based Pivotal Group, which has a $1 billion real estate portfolio. He also owns Network Solutions, the world’s largest Internet domain-name registry.

Walker, also a successful entrepreneur, is founder and CEO of fast-growing payment services company BillMatrix. No stranger to giving back, he was a catalyst for Thunderbird’s current scholarship fundraising efforts. As part of a global Alumni Association Chapter effort to provide student scholarships, Walker is matching donations of up to $50,000 for Texas Alumni Association chapter members, which will benefit an endowed scholarship fund.

“The goal is for alumni chapters to reach endowment levels for their scholarships within two years,” says Neice of participating chapters in Hong Kong, the Philippines, Taiwan, China and the United States. Endowed scholarships are designed to provide long-term scholarship support, as the scholarship fund’s principal remains intact and only the interest is given away each year.

Merle Hinrichs '65 and George Bradbury '99

Another scholarship initiative supported by Merle Hinrichs ’65, chairman and CEO of Global Sources, is already benefiting a current student who enrolled in 2006. The Thunderbird Assistance Fund for Asian Students Award (TAFAS), is offered in conjunction by the Hinrich's-supported Kearny Alliance and Asian Thunderbird alumni chapters. “The hope is that students enjoying today’s TAFAS fund will want to add to it in the future,” says Neice.

Thunderbird graduates of the EMBA program also have contributed to scholarship funds, recognizing the need to extend financial assistance to all students, from all reaches of the world. George Bradbury ’99 provided a $50,000 gift to begin a scholarship fund, which, combined with other class gifts, has provided emergency loan support. The co-owner of three corporations, including U.S. Stoneworks, Bradbury says that the size of the gift isn’t as important as the consistent support that alumni can provide.

“Those smaller donations that many can make on a regular and long-term basis can become the real sustaining lifeblood of an institution,” says Bradbury. “Annual gifting that becomes a habit can pave the way for those that come later to an even better learning institution.”

“Our alumni give in so many ways — through engagement, making connections for and with one another, and opening doors for recruitment, internships and corporate learning,” says Neice. “All of them are extremely beneficial to current and prospective students.”

In addition to the gifts noted, recent alumni donations have impacted Thunderbird students in various ways, supporting the following projects, among others:

• Re-design of Thunderbird’s website
• Bloomberg terminals in Thunderbird’s International Business Information Centre
• Private Equity Conference
• Funding for Thunderbird’s Centers of Excellence that focus on entrepreneurship, ethics, private equity, language and culture.

LEARN MORE:
> Thunderbird Corporate Learning
>Thunderbird Private Equity Conference

Thunderbird Centers of Excellence:
>The Garvin Center for Language and Culture
>Center for Global Entrepreneurship
>Lincoln Center for Ethics in International Management
Thunderbird Private Equity Center (TPEC)

>Scholarship and award programs