44 summer 2008

Above: Charu Modi Bhartia ‘97 wanted people in her homeland to have access to the type of education she received at Thunderbird.CHARU MODI BHARTIA was an educational

anomaly when she arrived at Thunderbird more than 10 years ago. Newly separated from her hus-band, she made a intercontinental move from India to the United States with two young children.

“It was a real stretch for me to attend Thunder-bird,” Bhartia says. “It was unheard of for an Indian woman with two children to go overseas and get a master’s degree without a husband, but I needed to make a break.”

Not only did Bhartia face deeply rooted cultural views about proper educational aspirations for women, but she hadn’t been in an aca-demic environment in 13 years. “I wasn’t confi dent that I would pull if off,” she says. “I was scared. I couldn’t drive, and I was concerned about my family. I had been living the life of luxury.”

Prior to attending Thunderbird, the 1997 graduate had operated

Thunderbird graduate makes the U.S. modelof education accessible to people in India

By Sally J. Clasen

Open-door policy

CO

UR

TE

SY

OF M

OD

I AP

OLLO

INT

ER

NA

TIO

NA

L INS

TIT

UT

E O

F WE

ST

ER

N IN

TE

RN

AT

ION

AL U

NIV

ER

SIT

Y

thunderbird magazine 45

an export clothing company in New Delhi. Despite the initial fears, her decision to come to the United States has shaped most of her endeavors since leaving Arizona.

“The level of educational freedom among people from all nationalities was a real eye-opener,” she says. “It got me thinking: So many people in my country can’t go to Thunderbird and have access to a model of education like this. I wanted to bring the American model of education to people in my country.”

Affordable education

FOLLOWING GRADUATION, Bhartia worked briefl y in the United States on behalf of her fa-ther’s company, K.K. Modi Group, an entity of businesses ranging

from agriculture to consumer goods to edu-cation. She managed partnerships with Estée Lauder and Kaiser Permanente before return-ing home.

Bhartia discussed the idea with her father of bringing affordable, high-quality Western education to those in India. He told her if she could fi nd a partner with $1 billion in assets, he would back the deal.

Relying on a strong network of contacts she developed in the United States, Bhartia contacted four companies with signifi cant resources before she negotiated a joint ven-ture in 2002 between K.K. Modi Group and Apollo International.

The deal established India’s fi rst teaching site of Western International University, a subsidiary of Apollo. Today, the Modi Apol-lo International Institute of Western Inter-national University offers U.S.-accredited bachelor of science degrees in management and business with specializations in human resources, marketing, fi nance and interna-tional business. In addition, the institute of-fers a master’s degree in management, mar-keting and fi nance.

“The timing was right for this to happen,” says Bhartia, who is vice chairwoman and CEO of Modi Apollo International Group.

About 1,000 students are enrolled at the institute, which has three locations in New Delhi and the National Capital Region. Three new sites are planned to open soon in Hyderabad, Bangalore and Mumbai.

Bhartia says many superior academic in-stitutions exist in India, but access to such programs is diffi cult and most can’t afford tuition. “We have been dealing with archaic norms and have been operating with systems,

methodologies and rules that are 20 years old,” Bhartia says. “There are a billion people in India, with only 4,000-plus seats available at the top institutions.”

Training for nurses

AS A MEMBER of a long line of family entrepreneurs, includ-ing her grandfather and father, Bhartia saw another barrier in education and another econom-

ic opportunity. This one involved a shortage of training opportunities for nurses in India.

In 2001, she created Modi Healthcare Placement, one of the most successful nurse recruitment companies in India. Through an exclusive tie-in with Banner Health in Ari-zona as well as partnerships with other com-panies in the United States, Modi Health-care Placement trains and equips qualifi ed Indian nurses to work in U.S. markets.

While the Apollo transaction transpired fairly smoothly, developing a Western nurs-ing program that honored Indian sensibili-ties was a challenge. “It was a complicated model to bring to India,” she says. “Through many conferences and meetings, I was able to understand the American health care sys-tem and develop a workable and affordable program for nurses.”

Highly skilled nurses from different re-gions in India undergo Modi Healthcare’s rigorous training and licensing curriculum, which is taught by 15 faculty members. In addition, they receive extensive training in assertiveness, leadership and cross-cultural orientation. According to Bhartia, it’s the equivalent of a master’s degree in nursing, since the training can take up to two years to complete while most students in the pro-gram work full-time.

While some nurses continue to live in the United States, Bhartia says many return to India after a few years, taking their skills and capital home with them. “Due to the backlog of visas, the majority of nurses end up staying in India with a new set of knowl-edge and tools,” she says. “It’s a transfer of systems, and India becomes stronger be-cause of this.”

Despite her full-time endeavors, she says family comes fi rst, particularly visiting her daughter, 22, a student at the University of Pennsylvania, and her 18-year-old son, who attends school in Scotland.

“I’m a strategist,” she says. “I put together deals. I’ve set up my organizations so that they allow me to be fl exible.”

“The level of educational freedom among people from all nationalities was a real eye-opener.”

56 summer 2008

class notes

stay in Prague... Lynn Metcalf ’81 is the 2007-08 Hood professor of marketing in the Orfalea College of Business at California Polytechnic State University. She teaches about cross-cultural negotiation, international service learning and innovation. Her article in Thunderbird Interna-tional Business Review titled “Mexico and the US: Common Border, Common Negotiating Orientations” was published in the January 2008 issue... Jim Thomas ’81 has been appointed vice president of international sales for Mate Preci-sion Tooling in Anoka, Minn. The company is a world leading manufacturer of CNC punch press tooling. Jim will plan and direct all of Mate’s international sales activities… Ron Malak ’81 joined General Electric Money as CEO of GE Money Romania in June 2007. The opera-tions in Romania consist of three businesses that were acquired by GE at the end of 2006. They are Estima Finance, a consumer fi nance business, Domenia Credit, a non-bank mortgage company, and Motoractive Leasing, a non-bank automobile and equipment leasing company. As of the end of 2007, the combined business accounted for more than $700 million in fi nancial receivables. Ron lives with his wife and children in Surrey, England, and commutes to Bucharest, Romania, during the week... Michael Haerting ’82 lives in Miami and works for the Continental Group as a district manager in property management. Last year he began teaching a business course at Haiti’s fi rst rural university, the University of Fondwa, as a volunteer on a part-time basis. The school is located in the mountains on the road to Jacmel, about a two-hour drive from Port-au-Prince. The university aims to educate students in veterinary science, agronomy and small-business administration. The students pledge to return to the rural villages and teach sustain-able development. Michael teaches as a visiting instructor, fl ying to Haiti every month for four or fi ve days… Paul Jona ’82 has been appointed chairman and CEO by CoActive Technolo-gies. CoActive manufactures electromechanical switches, interface controls, keypads and dome arrays for a variety of industries, including industrial equipment, mobile communications, computer and automotive… Steven Puig ’83 has been appointed by the board of executive direc-tors of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) as vice president for the private sector and non-sovereign guaranteed operations. In his new position, Steven will be responsible for coor-dinating the private sector and non-sovereign guaranteed operational programs of the IDB Group, the development and implementation of a private-sector integrated business plan, as well as the business plans of each of the groups’ private-sector entities… Bernadette Martin ’84 is celebrating a successful year since founding her company, Visibility Branding LLC. As a personal brand strategist, she works with profes-sionals in career transition and entrepreneurs in developing a strategy to build and express their brand. Many of her clients are T-birds across the globe as she works virtually and on-site in Paris. This professional transition from working with

Nigerian alumna reaches out to abuse victims

GBEMI DISU ’06 is desk-bound at the

moment as assistant vice president of strategic cost initia-tives for HSBC in Chi-cago. But that doesn’t mean she’s stuck in a domestic mindset.

“I fi nd ways to reduce ineffi ciencies and costs while still maintaining qual-ity,” says Disu, who regularly interacts with key business units in the Global Resourcing Group NA for London-based HSBC, which has more than 10,000 of-fi ces in 83 countries.

“It doesn’t make sense for me to get on a plane and meet people in person, particularly since I’m in a cost-savings role. But I leverage my cross-cultural skills I learned at T-bird, like working with vir-tual teams and global technology, to get the job done.”

Tackling issues, regardless of her location, is a habit for Disu. As a student, she launched Thun-derbird Cares Day, a volunteer program in which students, faculty and staff work on a number of community issues in Phoenix. Now, she is extending a social arm to women in her country who are victims of domestic abuse by developing a shelter system that will be a safe haven and provide long-

term opportunities.“It’s a grass roots

project that will empower women to learn skills that will help them leave their circumstances,” Disu says of the project, which is in the re-search stage. “It’s not enough to give them a temporary place to stay. Without proper training, they won’t leave their situation.”

Nigeria is a compli-cated environment to change, but Disu says her T-bird training, especially in micro-fi nance, is guiding her toward building a shelter infrastructure that is sustainable. “We learned at T-bird that it’s not enough to do good, but to do something that makes sense.”

She’s also using her multinational ex-periences to pursue her culinary passion, hosting informal cooking classes that feature diverse menus and writing a global infusion cook-book. “If it’s food, I love it,” she says.

Her kitchen habits come in handy since her Midwestern digs have become a popu-lar layover for T-birds in transit. “Every-one passes through Chicago,” Disu says. “My friends call it the ‘Hotel Disu.’ I host T-birds at least twice a month.”

– Sally J. Clasen

GBEMI DISU ’06 launched Thunderbird Cares Day as a student. Today, she serves domestic abuse victims in Nigeria.

CO

UR

TE

SY

OF G

BE

MI D

ISU

58 summer 2008

class notes

Hoffswell ’89 has been promoted from market-ing director to vice president of marketing at the Holland, Mich., Chamber of Commerce. Liz was responsible for the new Holland Chamber logo and brand development, enhancement of chamber events and the upgrade of all collateral pieces. She is now leading the launch of its new Web site.

1990sMark Ross ’90 recently joined Aginsky

Consulting Group, bringing more than 15 years of multichannel business development experi-ence to the organization based in Portland, Ore. Mark joins Alexander Aginsky ’03 and many other T-birds working on a multitude of international projects there… John O’Connell ’90 has been named vice president of international strategic solutions at Bristol Global Mobility, a rapidly growing leader in U.S. domestic and international employee relocation management and consulting services... Arild Wold ’90 has moved from Oslo, Norway, to Cambridgeshire,

U.K.… Katrina Gonnerman-Manoleas ’90 and her husband, Costas, had their third child, Anna Margarita, on Nov. 6 in Copenhagen, Den-mark… Gina Davis Haines ’90 recently was promoted to vice president of marketing for the Americas for Sidel. A global leader in packaging serving the beverage industry, Sidel is based in Paris and operates in more than 150 countries. Gina lives in Roswell, Ga., with her 11-year-old son, Jack... John Brobst ’91 recently passed the CPA exam. He is now a staff accountant at James A. Lucas & Co. LLP, a CPA fi rm in Raleigh, N.C.… David Dinwoodie ’91 has been appointed general director of Escuela de Alta Direccion Administracion, one of the top four business schools in Spain and among the top 100 in the world as regards academic quality accreditations and recognition by leading business publications... Michael Kruppa ’91 has just become fi nance director of Central Europe for Real Estate Investment & Development in his hometown of Vienna, Austria. He will be responsible for 12 countries... Dae B. Kim ’91 is a

Alumna puts skills to work in Senegal

JENNIFER Beaston Hedrick ’01 speaks four

languages. But as the director of operations for Tostan, a human rights organization based in Dakar, Sen-egal, effi ciency talks the loudest.

“I manage all fi nan-cial and operational aspects, preparing the organization for a rapid expansion by standardizing systems and procedures for ac-counting, fi nancial re-porting, organizational structures, program implementation and working to enhance our IT and human resources infrastruc-ture,” says Hedrick,

who accepted the position in February.

Hedrick, a fi nance and technology expert, has traveled a diverse career path from grassroots initiatives to international devel-opment to nonprofi t work. She has worked as a small-enterprise

development agent for the Peace Corps in Africa, a credit risk manager for Citigroup in Poland and busi-ness development director for World-2Market covering 40 countries.

She’s also helped improve processes

for serving dispersed communities for Digi-tal Partners/Grameen Foundation and managed Microsoft’s global grant manage-ment system as a consultant.

Hedrick’s well-rounded resume provides her with a global perspective, but she also draws on her T-bird experi-ence to get immediate payoffs in the inter-national marketplace. “As a result of my Thunderbird train-ing, I was able to recognize Tostan’s exchange-rate risk quickly,” Hedrick explains. “A large portion of our funding is in U.S. dollars, but the vast majority of our expenses are in six different African currencies. The U.S. dollar depreciated up to 35 percent against

some of these cur-rencies in 2007. The knowledge I gained at Thunderbird allowed me to identify the problem and offer a solution to help us hedge against the volatile currency envi-ronment.”

While managing risk is Hedrick’s job, the greatest reward occurs in the growth of hu-man capital.

“It’s exciting to know that my job brings Tostan’s life-transforming program to thousands of people in need,” she says. “They have shared moving stories about how empowered they are after participat-ing in the 30-month village-based program that teaches human rights, democracy, literacy and entrepre-neurship.”

– Sally J. Clasen

Tostan staff members, from left, Marieme Diop, Papa Sadou Seck and JENNIFER BEASTON HEDRICK ’01 work in Senegal.

CO

UR

TE

SY

OF JE

NN

IFE

R B

EA

ST

ON

HE

DR

ICK