News
Professor Frances Frei Feels Hopeful About the Next Generation After Interaction with Aspire Leaders
Thought leader on leadership strategy, Frances Frei, delivered a seminar for Aspire leaders on building and rebuilding trust. She left left impressed by the nuanced questions and comments.
Inaugural In-Person Aspire Leaders Alumni Gathering in India Hosted by Mittal Institute
Professor Tarun Khanna hosted Aspire alumni at the Mittal Institute, Harvard University at their New Delhi office. They gathered to discuss how to close the opportunity and education gap among underserved young adults across India to uncover their full potential.
Lebanese and Nigerian Aspire Alumni Receive the Diana Award for Youth Driving Social Change
The Diana Award, given to 9-25 year olds, recognizes that youth have the ability to drive social change around the world. This year, the Aspire Institute proudly congratulates two alumni who have received this honor, Mariam Mohammad from Lebanon and Goodness Odey from Nigeria.
United In Diversity: Southeast Asia Based Educational Organization, Partners With Aspire to Offer Opportunities to Underprivileged Youth
United In Diversity (UID) gathers leaders from diverse sectors to form solutions to challenges across Southeast Asia. With a shared vision for bringing together talented minds to create a better common future, Aspire Institute and UID partner together to raise awareness about opportunities for underprivileged youth to create transformational change in their society
Manish Bansal on his Journey and Motivations as a First-Generation College Student
Professor of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Virginia Tech and one of the faculty who will deliver a seminar for the Aspire Leaders Program, Bansal discusses the importance of exploration and lifelong learning.
Zarek Martínez Learns to Love Learning and Provides Training to the Teachers of the Next Generation in Mexico
Zarek Martínez is a university student from Nuevo León, Mexico and alumnus of the Aspire Leaders Program 2021. After being awarded a Community Action Award grant from Aspire to train public school teachers in relevant digital tools, he feels like anything is possible if he believes in his talent and potential.
Cal Poly’s Don Choi Shares his Reflections on Teaching Low-Income and First-Generation Students
Don Choi, professor of architectural history at Cal Poly and one of the 14 faculty to deliver a faculty seminar for the Aspire Leaders Program Cycle One cohort, explains his drive for teaching and the joy of working with students from diverse backgrounds.
Encouraging Youth in Africa That They are Worth it This Africa Week
The Pan African Women's Business Association, an Aspire partner organization and think tank for economic transformation in Africa, focuses on democratizing access to education and financial participation. Yavi Madurai discusses the crucial role youth in Africa will play in the economy.
Faith Nchotu Ndinyanka ALP ’21 Shares Her Experience as a Female Leader in Cameroon
Faith grew up learning that "the backbone of the Cameroon economy is agriculture." With funding from the Aspire Community Action Award grant, Faith, as a young woman, is spearheading a project that brings experiential learning of agriculture to youth across Cameroon.
Abdallah Elsheikh Elmagzob ALP ’21 Reflects on Global Exposure Through the Aspire Leaders Program
Abdallah is passionate about opening his mind to new cultures and not feeling constrained by his geography. The Aspire Leaders Program allowed him to understand the quality of education he can pursue and the dreams he can achieve. He was recently awarded an Extended Leadership Opportunity grant to pay for an English proficiency exam.
Business Strategy Professor Jasjit Singh from INSEAD Discusses Making an Impact
On April 27th Professor Jasjit Singh met with the 2022 Aspire Leaders Program Cycle One cohort to deliver a seminar on Pursuing Impactful Careers, encouraging students to use their strengths and passions to address societal needs without ignoring the realities of their personal contexts.
Leadership Guru, Ron Heifetz, Delivers ALP Required Course
The compulsory EdX course in stage 2 that earns Aspire Leaders Program 2022 participants a fully-funded HarvardX certificate is Exercising Leadership: Foundational Principles taught by Harvard professor Ronald Heifetz.
Khanna’s ‘Entrepreneurship in Emerging Economies’ is recognized as one of the 250 most popular HarvardX courses of all time
One of the most popular offerings through the Aspire Leaders Program, this course is an element of the ‘Something-for-Everyone’ model. It takes an interdisciplinary approach to understanding and solving complex social problems.
Aspire Leaders Program 2022: Info Sessions
The deadline for the first cycle of applications is approaching soon. Information sessions about the Aspire Leaders Program for first-gen students around the globe continue to increase excitement. Through support from local partner organizations, the Aspire team is able to provide specialized sessions for prospective students
Alumni Spotlight: Maria Gorret Nabuwembo ’21
Through our Community Action Award, Maria Gorret Nabuwembo '21 is gathering Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to determine neighborhoods in her home city of Kampala where new water and sanitation facilities need to be constructed.
Highlights From 2021
Aspire Institute replaced the Crossroads Emerging Leaders Program in Fall 2021 and wrapped up with an impressive group of 2021 finalists.
2021 Community Action Awards
After careful deliberation, we granted Community Action Awards to six, enthusiastic students who will start their projects this spring, using funding delivered in four installments over the course of 2022.
2021: A Year In Review
As 2021 comes to a close and we prepare to graduate this last class of the Crossroads Emerging Leaders Program, we are excited to offer several Extended Learning Opportunities and the launch of the 2022 Aspire Leaders Program.
The Crossroads Emerging Leaders Program Reaches New Heights – What’s Next?
The Crossroads Emerging Leaders Program began in 2017, a joint effort between the Harvard Business School Club of the GCC, HBS Professors Tarun Khanna and Karim Lakhani, and the Mittal Institute.
