This episode’s guest is someone that many have known for her longstanding leadership in international education, but some of us might not have known her as a businesswoman, a political leader, a caregiver, and as a newly minted author. Marlene M. Johnson was the Executive Director and CEO of NAFSA: Association of International Educators for almost two decades and prior to that was Minnesota’s first woman Lieutenant Governor. She is co-founder of the Minnesota Chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners and the Minnesota Women’s Campaign Fund. She is now on the advisory board of Kakenya’s Dream, a board member of the Washington Office on Latin America, and a trustee of the Alexandria Trust. In 1988, she was awarded the Royal Order of the Polar Star by the Kingdom of Sweden. In this episode we go behind the scenes with Marlene about her life and her new book, Rise to the Challenge: A memoir of politics, leadership, and love.
Episode highlights:
Marlene’s reflections about her life’s journey and how the book came about.
How Marlene’s career in politics and business and her early international exposure prepared her to be a non-traditional candidate yet a good fit for the role of NAFSA’s CEO and Executive Director.
The “ability to punt” and how this attribute served Marlene well while leading NAFSA, whether it was weathering the Asian financial crisis that impacted Asian international students or the impact of 9/11 on the international education sector.
Marlene’s legacy of calling for a national policy on international education and her thoughts on where we stand now.
Is the U.S. poised to have its first woman president and one whose life—coincidentally—reflects the legacy of international education? Marlene weighs in.
The poignant love story of Marlene’s life with her husband, Peter, and how their relationship influenced her and shaped her as a leader.
Marlene’s top 2-3 pieces of advice for women leaders.
Episode Resources:
Listen to: Episode 8 with LaNitra Berger and Episode 36 with Fanta Aw of NAFSA
MPOWER Financing’s Social Impact Report
My book: America Calling: A Foreign Student in a Country of Possibility
Sign up for America Calling: my take on the intersection of education, culture and migration
Connect with me: LinkedIn, X, Instagram
This episode was made possible by the generous support of MPOWER Financing.
