After over six years of service, Ashesi’s Co-Founder, Nina Marini, is shifting her responsibilities from being an employee of the Foundation to becoming a member of the Board of Trustees.
Nina began her term with Ashesi as a member of the team of students from UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business in 1998, which conducted the original feasibility study for the university. Inspired by the passion of the many Ghanaian students she interacted with, and by the clear need for Ashesi’s vision in Ghana, Nina decided to join Patrick Awuah to found Ashesi University after they graduated from business school in 1999.
Since then, Nina has worked tirelessly to help build Ashesi to its current strength. As Co-Founder, Nina was instrumental in creating the original business plan for the university, developing curriculum, purchasing land, upgrading facilities, hiring key staff and tracking organizational finances. Nina has left a solid legacy that she will be able to build upon in her new position as a Trustee.
Nina’s transition completes the process of moving much of our fundraising operations to Ghana. In addition to achieving a lower cost structure, this move enables us to strengthen our ability to send news from Ghana and build our fundraising capability in Ghana. We are happy to report that the transition has already yielded significant cost reductions to our fundraising operations.
Our office in Seattle will be run by part-time staff and volunteers, including members of the Board of Trustees. Nina will continue to work closely with Patrick and other board members in setting strategy, monitoring the university’s performance, and building relationships with our community of supporters. It is exciting for us to reflect on Ashesi’s progress toward achieving its vision of training a new generation of leaders in Africa. Nina has been a guiding force in all that we have achieved these past few years, and we are happy to welcome her to the Board of Trustees.