Obstacles didn't deter Master of Science in organizational leadership graduate
Editor's note: This story is part of a series of profiles of notable spring 2022 graduates.
Like many students who choose to complete Arizona State University degrees online, Asmaa Khalifa had life responsibilities to juggle while completing her master’s degree that many of her classmates could identify with: Parent, homeschooler of her three children, caregiver to an elder. 
Asmaa Khalifa, who earned a bachelor's degree in liberal studies in ASU's College of Integrative Sciences and Arts in 2017, has now completed the Master of Science in organizational leadership. Khalifa hopes to eventually complete a doctorate: "I would like to teach undergraduates as well as continue to develop my theory on everyday leadership," said Khalifa. Download Full Image
But some of the other challenges this College of Integrative Sciences and Arts student faced down were almost unfathomable to peers.
“Because of my unique geographic location, there was always the time difference (I am GMT+2, so nine hours ahead of Arizona now),” noted Khalifa, whose hometown is Lancaster, California, but who has lived in Tripoli, Libya, where her husband’s family is from, for two decades. “But having been through a revolution, being an expatriate in Libya, calling on my experiences as a displaced person, and honoring my culture and traditions — which never coincided with coursework — was quite beyond what I was hearing from my peers in and out of the classroom.
“I quickly came to realize that the Libyan adage ‘The fingers on your hand are not the same length’ is more descriptive of my experience than I wanted to admit at the time,” she said, looking back on the last two years.
Recognizing the extraordinary context within which Khalifa was working, the faculty in the Master of Science in Organizational Leadership program rallied around her.
Khalifa, who graduated in 2017 with a bachelor’s degree in liberal studies in the College of Integrative Sciences and Arts, was one of the first students to enroll in the organizational leadership master’s program.
Leadership and integrative studies Senior Lecturer L. Marie Walllace met her early in the program and worked closely with Khalifa on a project for the elective course OGL 554: Learning and Development in Organizations.
“This was one of the first courses she took in the graduate program, and when it became apparent that the research she was interested in pursuing might be roadblocked because Libya was one of the three countries ASU’s Institutional Review Board did not have approved IRB protocols for, rather than being dissuaded, Asmaa developed a training protocol for the Ministry of Education in Libya to create the protocols,” said Wallace, “and has them ready to implement on a large scale when the time is appropriate.”
Wallace recommended that Khalifa ask Robert Kirsch, director of the master’s program, to serve as her thesis adviser because, she said, “he has a level of expertise in political science and critical leadership studies, a relatively new and burgeoning field that intersects well with Asmaa’s academic interests.
“I also knew he had the empathy to be sensitive to the cultural milieu in which she functions, related to the expectations of motherhood and being a daughter-in-law in Libya. Asmaa faces obstacles that many students do not encounter. She has to worry about her family's safety and well-being in a way that is quite unfamiliar to most of our students (I heard the bomb sirens when meeting with her once). She often has to deal with unstable internet and inconsistent infrastructure. Robert worked with her every Wednesday for three consecutive terms via Zoom. It became a part of his routine.
“Her thesis is incredible. She focused on informal and everyday leadership related to improving secondary education in Libya. Her ideas were so well developed and her data told an amazing story of people coming together to exhibit everyday leadership to enhance their children's experience and enhance their community in general.”
Khalifa plans to pursue a doctoral degree eventually, “though it is further down the line in my career,” she said. “I would like to teach undergraduates as well as continue to develop my theory on everyday leadership. The possibilities are a bit daunting right now, but I am looking at ways to expand the discipline here in North Africa,” Khalifa said.
She wants people to recognize that leadership is not exclusive to formal organizations: “I think too often heroism can be conflated with everyday leadership, because people typically do not associate leadership with everyday people contributing to their communities on a regular basis.”
Friends in the states often ask her why she doesn’t just return home to the U.S., given the political instability and infrastructure challenges that continue in Libya.
“… I believe that working hard and doing everything that is in my power to survive and thrive is the only way to go through life,” she tells them, in addition to emphasizing not wanting to live as a family divided. “I do not believe in quitting. I believe in making the impossible commonplace.”
Khalifa shared these additional reflections about her ASU journey.
Question: What was your “aha” moment when you realized you wanted to study organizational leadership?
Answer: The process was more trial and error than anything. As an undergrad, I meandered around the social sciences and tried out different disciplines while completing my degree requirements. I had taken an organizational leadership course; I liked it. I enrolled in another and liked that as well. The term after that, I pursued a minor in organizational leadership. The discipline manifested itself over time through getting to know more about what it entailed and how it is applied, more than a sudden realization.
Q: Why did you choose ASU?
A: ASU was a good fit for me because the program I chose was completely online. I had received my undergrad degree from ASU and was happily surprised at the invitation from CISA when the master’s program in organizational leadership began. It was an easy choice.
Q: Which professor taught you the most important lesson while at ASU?
A: I’ve learned so much more than just the coursework that I couldn’t narrow that experience down to one person or lesson. The top three for me would be:
- Robert Kirsch for teaching me to take a deeper look and have enough courage to apply my own lens rather than just relying on those scholars that came before me. He taught me that my perspective is just as valid and critical to the discipline as any other. This really translates to so much more.
- L. Marie Wallace for teaching me that there is always another option and that there is no shame in asking. This went against so much of how I saw myself as a student and as a person in general. It was an eye-opening revelation.
- Mai P. Trinh for teaching me that it is OK to admit weakness and offer my strengths in collaboration. She taught me that teamwork and lifting one another through open communication helps us all take a step towards our shared goals.
Q: What’s the best piece of advice you’d give to those still in school?
A: Document as much as you can. You are learning for a reason. You will need these lessons in your future endeavors and will need to call on your past knowledge, skills, abilities and experiences. It is much easier to tap into that wealth of information when you leave breadcrumbs. If it seems important in the moment, write it down; you can always edit later. Just get it out of your mind and in a form other than your memory. Never be afraid to ask a reasonable question. Professors were students, and they care a lot more than students think; just don’t wait until the eleventh hour.
Q: Did you have a favorite spot for studying?
A: I have studied just about everywhere you can imagine, but I don’t have a favorite spot. I have a favorite device, stationary, cup of coffee. It’s more about ambience for me than location. In general, I have a designated spot that I study in my home. This is to demarcate my time and focus so my children and spouse can pretend I am not in the same place as them for some time.
Q: If someone gave you $40 million to solve one problem on our planet, what would you tackle?
A: I believe that solutions are proximal and that as humans we lead and are led because we are passionate about the person or the cause or both. Whatever be the case, we need to provide people with tools to muster the courage to act and share with them the knowledge of how to do so safely and sustainably. Tools without the knowledge to use them and knowledge without tools may mutually exclude themselves for lack of action. For me, the $40 million would translate to investing in Libya and North Africa in general. I would begin with increasing the economic opportunities for women in business in the MENAMENA, an acronym in the English language, refers to a grouping of countries situated in and around the Middle East and North Africa. region. This would be accomplished through grass roots advocacy campaigns that inform and invest in small businesses owned by women, while at the same time tapping into the power of professional successful women in business to provide mentorships and help change local and regional policies and perceptions of women’s roles in business. The program, with the help of nonprofit NGOs, could grow from there, but the program must provide for the next level of women in business and not be a single event or period of time.
Editor's note: This story is part of a series of profiles of notable spring 2022 graduates.
It’s been quite a hectic semester for Arizona State University graduating senior Addison Olsen, who’s completed a bachelor’s degree in applied physics in the College of Integrative Sciences and Arts. 
ASU applied physics major Addison Olsen, at work in the tutoring center at ASU Polytechnic campus. Olsen has just accepted a job offer she’s excited about: working with a photonics company in Colorado. Download Full Image
“I've just been incredibly busy with job applications, homework, graduation details, etc.,” said Olsen, who also works for CISA’s faculty of sience and mathematics as an instructional aide at ASU's Polytechnic campus.
Olsen has found the job market to be quite robust for someone with her knowledge and experience. During finals week, she received some great news that was cause for pause and reflection.
“After searching for an entry-level job in a physics-adjacent field, I just accepted an offer to work for ThorLabs. They're a photonics company, the field of manipulating and using light in various applications. Like electronics, but with photons!” Olsen explained. “They produce cool stuff like lasers and other optical equipment.
“I’m super excited about it,” she emphasized in an email. “I get to move to Boulder, Colorado, which will hopefully give me the opportunity to spend more time outdoors. I've made a lot of sacrifices to ensure that I was doing the best I possibly could in school (which I don't regret). But now that I'm graduating, I want to get back into my hobbies.”
Olsen, whose hometown is Gilbert, Arizona, said that having a relationship with nature has always been a significant piece of who she is: “It's a part of why I decided to study physics in the first place,” she said. “I also have a lot of creative aspirations related to music and writing."
Olsen described her decision to major in physics as “a religious kind of experience,” in a way.
“I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to travel to Oregon to watch the total solar eclipse that passed over North America in 2017. It left me completely awestruck,” she said. “I had never seen something so beautiful in my life. I knew then and there that I wanted to get back in school, to study what makes our universe tick and what makes an event like that possible.”
Now, with the next step in her career secured, she is already beginning to imagine her future a few years down the road.
“ThorLabs offers full tuition reimbursement, and CU Boulder has a renowned optical/quantum physics department,” she said. “I could see myself working toward a graduate degree there someday.”
Addison Olsen took time to share these additional reflections about her ASU journey.
Question: What’s something you learned while at ASU — in the classroom or otherwise — that surprised you or changed your perspective?
Answer: The biggest impact that learning all of this math and science has had on me is a constant reminder to enjoy the life I have. Understanding the reality of how hostile the universe can be to life, be it asteroids, radiation, etc., has helped me understand just how special every day is in a new way.
Q: Did your career-connected learning as an undergraduate help you on the job market?
A: Despite what I read online, earning my degree in applied physics has prepared me for the job market in a surprising number of ways. Learning to code and to interface with cluster computers is highly marketable. I'm finding that experience in a laser optics lab and a working understanding of the physics behind semi-conductor devices are also sought-after in the job market. Not to mention the ways that I have been able to develop my interpersonal skills and public speaking ability while teaching and working in the tutoring center.
Q: Why did you choose ASU?
A: ASU is accessible. I was able to bring over a lot of credit hours from Mesa Community College. I'm not sure that I would have been able to afford school at all if it hadn't been for that. The STEM programs here have good reputations as well. I knew that I would be able to connect with a wide variety of professors to figure out what my niche is and what my deeper interests are.
Q: Which professor taught you the most important lesson while at ASU?
A: So, I'm transgender, and have started transitioning during my last year at ASU. Professor (Maxim) Sukharev was explicit about the fact that it would never affect my status here at school and that I would always be welcome here. I think it's really important that students feel welcomed in places of learning like ASU, regardless of their background. After worrying about what people in the STEM community might think about me for so long, Professor Sukharev showed me that the status quo can change.
Q: What’s the best piece of advice you’d give to those still in school?
A: Use the tutoring center! There are a ton of resources there. I wish that I had used their services more when I was first taking all of my math courses.
Q: Did you have a favorite spot at ASU Polytechnic campus for studying?
A: I really love the library — though it was (understandably) a bit more difficult to use during the pandemic. Having access to big whiteboards for exploring problems was always super beneficial. It's a great place to set up meetings with classmates to discuss difficult topics. Eventually, after the pandemic started, my favorite place to study became my room, out of necessity. I spent a lot of time making sure that it was a comfortable, relatively distraction-free space for me to work in. Now that things are mostly back to normal, I've been doing a lot of reading outside. The Polytechnic campus is gorgeous.
Q: If someone gave you $40 million to solve one problem on our planet, what would you tackle?
A: There are a couple that I think about from time to time, and they have to do with energy. Developing new, efficient methods of energy storage and retrieval would go a long way. I love the idea of being involved in some kind of new battery technology. Safe, modular nuclear reactors appeal to me as well, and would make for a clean way to generate energy! There are countless humanitarian efforts that would benefit greatly from that kind of money, too.
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