Thunderbird undergraduates receive inaugural Gary C. Anders Memorial Scholarships

Three Thunderbird undergraduate students — Bryan Gomez, Leilani Viscaina and Lina Gookooluk — have been awarded the very first Gary C. Anders Memorial Scholarships for their exemplary ambitions, visions and plans to contribute to the global community. 

The Gary C. Anders Memorial Scholarship was established by Kathleen Anders in honor of her late husband, providing assistance to high-performing undergraduate students in Thunderbird School of Global Management’s bachelor’s programs delivered at Arizona State University’s West campus.

During their 42 years of marriage, the Anders traveled and lived in many parts of the world, fueling their teaching at both ASU West and Thunderbird. Gary Anders organized international trips for students to help them learn the intricacies of global business. He had a passion for teaching and encouraged students to develop to their fullest potential. Kathleen created this scholarship through her personal funds to honor Gary’s legacy as an educator, and also to inspire and support Thunderbird students at ASU.

“Bryan, Leilani and Lina are very active Thunderbird students, and are assets to our undergraduate programs. All three of them are very deserving of the Gary C. Anders Scholarship,” remarked Collin Shepherd, Thunderbird Undergraduate Admissions Specialist and a fellow T-bird.

Born and raised in Arizona, Viscaina shares a deep heritage with Hispanic, Asian, Hawaiian and American cultures. She has always possessed tremendous curiosity toward different cultures around the world, and ultimately found her passion in international business. 

“I come from a diverse background and grew to have respect for all cultures. I want to travel the world and do things that a regular person wouldn’t think to do. When I found Thunderbird, I knew this is what I wanted to do with my life,” Viscaina said.

Gomez moved to the United States from Mexico less than five years ago. Throughout his life, several cross-cultural experiences have sparked his interest in global leadership. He is extremely passionate about traveling and using his skills and experiences to transcend cultural differences and ultimately make a positive impact on the global economy. 

It is this global mindset that attracted students like Gomez and Viscaina to the Thunderbird undergraduate programs — and the Anders’ scholarship is designed to reward this culturally curious and welcoming point of view.

"All three students are exceptionally bright and articulate. They are a joy to have in class — always prepared, highly enthusiastic and fully committed to making the most of their Thunderbird education. It's a great privilege to be working with students of this caliber," said Roy Nelson, Thunderbird associate professor of global studies and academic director of Thunderbird’s undergraduate programs.

Kathleen believes in the students’ holistic global vision and mission.

“This is our future — internationalizing business,” she said.

To learn more, call 602-543-1043, email [email protected] or visit https://thunderbird.asu.edu/undergrad.