Archive for the ‘Alumni Relations’ Category

In the October edition of Thunderbird’s e-newsletter Thunder News, we asked our alumni to share the memories of their first day on Thunderbird campus.

We were thrilled to see the first submission come in from Barbara Yunker Bettison ‘55! Read her memory in her own words:

“Perhaps the most shocking thing to me was finding out that there were only eight single women on campus.  Not only that, but having graduated from Scripps College in Claremont, Calif. where the entire campus was surrounded by a white wall, I was amazed at the open campus, the air field, the pool surrounded by the resident buildings, the huge hangar where we parked our cars.  My most vivid and happy memory of the registration process was standing in line for Emily Brown and having my children’s late father, Bill Bettison, stand behind me. The rest is history!”

Thank you Barbara for sharing your memory and photo! Alumni, please send your first day memories to alumni@thunderbird.edu and we will post them in the order we receive them.

“The Good, The Bad and the Scary: How your Digital Profile Impacts Your Job Search” was recently published on Forbes.com and provides an overview on strengthening your digital presence for your career.

“Your digital profile is a lasting legacy,” says author Meryl Weinsaft Cooper. “Pay attention to your posts, your posse and your privacy settings to stay on the right track.”

Did you know that Thunderbird has six career coaches who offer discounted rates to T-bird alumni?

Our group of  recommended experts provide coaching on a variety of topics such as career transitions, career advancement, life transitions, management training, cross-cultural management and much more.

Click here to view the complete list of resources. (Note: You must be logged into MyThunderbird to view this list)

If you don’t remember your MyThunderbird login and/or password, please e-mail alumni@thunderbird.edu for assistance.

Thunderbird Mobile is coming soon! This free mobile app will allow alumni and other members of the Thunderbird community to connect with the school and each other from the convenience of their phones. Users of smartphones and other internet capable phones will have access to news and information, global business research, blogs, videos, and podcasts as well as mobile access to the global Thunderbird community.

Thunderbird Mobile will be available free to anyone, but only alumni, students, faculty and staff will be able to tap into the Thunderbird global network allowing them to update and search profiles, find one another by current address and/or GPS location (optional) and map their search results. This capability mirrors and draws from the current MTB profile and search function, so it is imperative that alumni fillout and/or update their MTB profiles at my.thunderbird.edu. Alumni also will be able to update their profiles from within Thunderbird Mobile. If you have forgotten your student ID and log in information, please contact alumni@thunderbird.edu.

 Mobile applications will be available for iPhone and Android users. All others will have access via mobile Web technology.

 Features available to everyone:

News and information, including push notifications on request

Global Business research, blogs, videos, and podcasts from the Thunderbird Knowledge Network

Calendar of Events, both on and off campus

Referrals: Recommend potential students

Donations: Support the school through donations

Additional features available only to Thunderbird alumni, students, faculty and staff:

Update personal profiles

Find a T-bird and T-bird businesses around the world both through directory search and real-time GPS when enabled (optional)

Locate chapter leaders and events

Filter and map search results

If you would like to be notified when Thunderbird Mobile is available, please send your contact information to alumni@thunderbird.edu

Thunderbird Alumni Relations staff enjoys seeing pictures from Chapter events, First Tuesdays and alumni gatherings of any kind! Two chapters recently shared some updates with us, so naturally, we wanted to pass them along.

The photo in this post is from a recent First Tuesday in San Jose. Chapter Leader Jose Cattani, ’89 wanted to share this photo because of the many generations pictured.

“What makes this photo interesting is that we have T-birds who graduated from the 70s, all the way to T-birds, who will graduate in 2011 and 2012,” Cattani said. “This portrays a powerful network across five decades… amazing!”

Pictured in the photo are the following:

The event was hosted by the Echeverria Family, who are the parents and sister of Maria Jose Echeverria. The hosts organized a magnificent dinner and cocktail party at their home in San Jose. Dinner was held also, for the visit of Dr. Miguel Moreno, who is the Global MBA Director at our partner school TEC Monterrey.

In other news, we received an update from the Mongolia Chapter as well.

Lee Cashell, ’93, appeared on Bloomberg TV during Susan Li’s program. He discussed the current investment climate in Mongolia.

Also, be sure to check out Jess Lampe, ’09, also in Mongolia, who created a fun parody of a Jay-Z song that gained some popularity, an appearance on a talk show and local recognition.

We’d love to hear from you! Have photos, news or stories to share with your T-bird network? Let us know at alumni@thunderbird.edu

As Thunderbird alumni, you are global explorers with a passion for understanding the world.

Are your children following your lead?

Now they can develop a global mindset long before college.

Verde Valley School, America’s International Baccalaureate Boarding School in Sedona, Arizona, is offering two partial merit scholarships to children and grandchildren of T-bird alumni who are enrolling in fall 2011 for grades 9, 10 or 11.  The scholarships are for one boy and one girl.

Verde Valley School and Thunderbird share similar pasts and complimentary missions.

Like Thunderbird, Verde Valley School opened its doors following WWII. The school was developed out of the idea that the United States and world needed a school where the values of cultural diversity would be understood and celebrated, rather than simply studied and tolerated.

Forty five percent of the students attending Verde Valley School are international and 20 percent of the faculty and staff are from countries outside the U.S. The school also offers students immersion field trips to countries such as Vietnam, Guatemala and Egypt.

“This is a tremendous opportunity for the children and grandchildren of our alumni to encourage the next generation of global leaders,” said Joan Neice, Vice President & Chief Development Officer. “Verde Valley School offers students the chance to experience a global community long before they step foot in a university.”

The scholarships will be automatically renewable, as long as the recipients maintain at least a 3.0 grade point average and good deportment. The scholarship covers $18,000 per year toward tuition and other expenses.

Students interested in applying, go here and check “yes” next to the question, “Thunderbird Scholar?” The deadline for applications is April 15, 2011. By April 28, 2011, the finalists will be notified and asked to submit a second essay via e-mail by May 15, 2011. The final awards will be made by May 30, 2011.

Looking for tips on interviewing across cultures? Here is one perspective from Goingglobal.com. The tips are also featured in the “Recommended Articles” section of MTB’s Alumni Career Management pages.

Looking for a career change or want to stay on top of new opportunities? Sign up with Global Connect.

The Thunderbird Career Management Center and Alumni Relations Office offer a variety of career resources for alumni. Whether you are looking to transition in your career or simply stay up-to-date on current opportunities, we’ve compiled a list to make your search easier.

Getting started: Sign up with Global Connect. This job database features dozens of mid to senior-level opportunities for working professionals, advanced qualifications and experience. Once we verify that you graduated from T-bird, you’ll want to invest the time filling in your profile. The profile you create will allow Career Management Center staff to locate you when companies are looking to hire alumni with a specific set of skills or interests. Next, you’ll want to upload your resume. Although Thunderbird doesn’t have a full-time staff member reviewing resumes, you can find Thunderbird-recommended resume templates on MTB (under Alumni Career Management) to guide you.

Next sign up with MBA Focus, which is a Thunderbird Alumni Resume database which is exclusively available to top global firms. It is free of charge. By posting your resume here, you can make yourself available for these firms to see.

Networking: The Thunderbird alumni network is a powerful tool that you can access and utilize in many ways. Since alumni are spread throughout the world, you’ll want to make sure you tap into as many resources as possible.

-          Join Thunderbird Alumni on the main LinkedIn group

-          Join your local alumni chapter by logging on MTB

-          Sign up for MTB and go to the “Networking” section of Alumni Career Management.

-          Use the Search function in MTB to search alumni by profession, geographic location and even keyword – Reach out to them!

Career Tips: Visit the Alumni Career Management pages on MTB and read articles developed by Barbara Limmer, a professional career coach with over 10 years experience in career consulting. This section offers guidance on a plethora of topics.

-          Redirecting your career

-          Job search strategies

-          Self-marketing

-          Interviewing

For further guidance, select the “Personalized Career Assistance” link for professional coaches who have partnered with the Thunderbird community and can offer personalized advice in your search.

Online Resources: Thunderbird partners with several career Web sites to provide free access to online resources. You can find these on the Alumni Career Management pages on MTB.

Career Resources Check List:

-Sign up with Global Connect

-Fill out your profile

-View resume templates

-Post your resume

-Search the posted jobs

-Join MBA Focus

-Sign up on MTB

-Visit “Alumni Career Management “on MTB

-Find people in your industry/location with MTB search feature

-Find your local chapter on MTB and start attending events

-Join Thunderbird Alumni on LinkedIn

-Network

Want to know more about Career Management and Networking with T-birds? Every second Tuesday each month, check back here for a new career tip. Have additional questions? Contact the Alumni Relations Office at alumni@thunderbird.edu

Entrepreneur Robert Phillips ’94 assumed he would stand out as a globetrotter when he arrived at Thunderbird as a Presidential Scholar with experience in South America, the Middle East and the United States. Instead, he met classmates who spoke more languages than him and had ties to more countries.

“Thunderbird gave me exposure to people who were truly international,” he said.

Robert, the 2010 Thunderbird Alumni Entrepreneur of the Year, said many of these classmates have remained his friends over the years.

The network has been a support to Robert during his launch of Intelligent Leisure Solutions, a group of five Brazilian companies focused on Internet solutions for luxury travel, tourism development and real estate.
Read more »

by Kelly Hicks, Stewardship Coordinator

During the Thunderbird Global Council’s annual dinner in March, a number of Thunderbird students from China entertained us by performing a Chinese Fan Dance and a version of the Pass the Flower game.  In this version, the holder of the special flower was given a hand drawn piece of Chinese art done by one of our current students.  No one knew which was the special flower until the end.  After tossing the flower table to table, appropriately, the flower ended up in the hands of Thunderbird Global Council member Ian McCluskey ‘82 who had earlier in the day visited his late wife’s grave on Thunderbird’s campus.

Gayle came to Thunderbird in the Fall of 1981 to embark on a new adventure following more than a year of regular visits to the hospital for chemotherapy.  By the Spring of 1982, Gayle’s problems reappeared and more chemotherapy treatments ensued.  In August of 1982, Ian and Gayle were married.

A personal account by Professor Richard Mahoney says she was “achingly gaunt, but glowing in that was of hers.”  Gayle slipped away peacefully one evening the following August.  Her legacy remains at Thunderbird.  There is a plaque on a large pine tree located on the southside of the A dorms with a quote that was very special to Gayle.  And there is a scholarship, for students who have made significant contributions to the Thunderbird community and have financial need so that others may finish what Gayle had fought so hard to accomplish.  Read Ian McCluskey’s article here.

We welcome you to add to this endowed scholarship or one of the many scholarships available to Thunderbird students, listed here.