Coca-Cola CEO to Speak at Thunderbird Commencement

Ceremony will include graduating students from 31 countries

(GLENDALE, Ariz.)  - Neville Isdell, chairman of the Board of Directors and chief executive officer of The Coca-Cola Company will be speaking at Thunderbird School of Global Management’s commencement Friday, May 1, beginning at 2 p.m. at the Renaissance Glendale Hotel & Spa.

Isdell, whose is retiring from Coca-Cola May 1 after 43 years, will also receive an honorary Doctor of International Law Honoris Causa from Thunderbird. In its 63 year history, Thunderbird has bestowed just 35 honorary degrees. This rare acknowledgement has been awarded to such international figures as: Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, Douglas Daft – the former chairman and CEO of Coke, Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater, U.S. Ambassador to Finland Barbara Barrett and Steve Forbes, Chairman and CEO of Forbes.

Those who Thunderbird has honored with a degree have been selected because they exemplify the ethos of Thunderbird – an abiding respect and understanding of other cultures, high ethical standards, and a belief that business can be a powerful force for creating sustainable prosperity.

“Neville Isdell is more than deserving to join the distinguished fraternity of those who have received an honorary degree from Thunderbird,” said Thunderbird President Ángel Cabrera. “He has a tremendous commitment to the ideals for which Thunderbird stands, and he is unwavering in his efforts to advance global business, global citizenship, and corporate social responsibility and ethics.”

Isdell will address 279 students from 31 countries will graduate from Thunderbird’s Full-Time MBA in Global Management program and its Global MBA On-Demand program.

“The On Demand program at Thunderbird has been a life changing experience for me,” says President of the Global MBA On-Demand V class Inbal Lapid, who participated in the distance learning program from Phoenix so she could keep her full-time job at Bard Peripheral Vascular. “From having the opportunity to immerse in the cultures and business environments of three different continents, to forging life-long friendships with classmates from all over the world, my experiences at Thunderbird will change the way I view the world forever. Strengthening my global mindset was by far my most valuable learning outcome from this program.”

This commencement ceremony also includes the first class of Jordanian students receiving a Certificate of Global Studies in the Maharat program, a program in partnership with the Business Development Center in Jordan funded by a grant from the United States Agency for International Development. Nineteen students attended Thunderbird this Spring for the program.

“The program was eye-opening and life changing in a way,” says Maharat student Ihab Fakhouri. “It was like visiting and meeting the globe in one place. “Classes such as Global Political Economy and Cross Cultural Communication helped me a lot with understanding background of countries.”

Students who studied at Thunderbird for a trimester as part of an exchange program from the ESSEC Business School in Paris will receive Certificates of Advanced Study.

Submitted on behalf of Thunderbird  School of Global Management
Founded in 1946, Thunderbird is the first and oldest graduate management school focused exclusively on global business. It is regarded as the world’s leading institution in the education of global managers and has operations in the United States, Latin America, Asia and Europe, including Russia. Ranked No. 1 in international business by the Financial Times, U.S. News & World Report, and The Wall Street Journal/Harris Interactive 2007 Business School Survey, Thunderbird is dedicated to educating global leaders who create sustainable prosperity worldwide. The school’s programs facilitate the development of the global mindset, which is critical to managing effectively in different social, economic and political environments. More than 38,000 students have graduated from Thunderbird, and its alumni live and work in more than 140 countries. For more about Thunderbird, please visit: www.thunderbird.edu.

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