When Neil Horikoshi was first approached about taking the helm of the Asian & Pacific Islander American Scholarship Fund (APIASF), he considered the notion a mismatch and declined to apply. A longtime corporate executive and lawyer, he’d never been a full-time educator nor fundraiser.
Then he changed his mind. And having spent two and a half years as president and executive director of this country’s largest nonprofit organization devoted to giving scholarships to college-goers of Asian descent, Horikoshi has swiftly emerged as a national advocate for postsecondary access and equity for that population.
“He’s an excellent spokesman for us and has learned so much so fast,” says Dr. Shirley Hune, a University of Washington professor of educational leadership and policy studies who also has been active in API circles for 30 years, much of that time in California.
She and others say Horikoshi successfully draws from his 30 years’ experience at IBM. They point to his skills honed from senior management positions such as director of global business development, in which he developed external relationships with government agencies on behalf of IBM, led industry discussions on regulatory and procurement issues and participated in congressional advocacy meetings. As he and other organizers convene the APIASF’s second annual higher education summit today in Washington, D.C., observers praise Horikoshi’s charismatic leadership in building a broad, multicultural coalition in his short time there, going so far as to influence federal policymakers, too.
“Neil has such an infectious enthusiasm that it’s very hard not to want to join him,” says Dr. Michelle Asha Cooper, president of the Institute for Higher Education Policy.
Or, as Hune puts it: “He has shown energy and willingness in reaching across various aisles to a larger constituency including people who wouldn’t ordinarily care about our concerns.”
