Patrick Awuah Jr. (born 1965) is a

Ghanaian Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in Ghana–Ivory Coast border, the west, Burkina ...

engineer, educator, and entrepreneur. Awuah established

Ashesi University Ashesi University ( ) is a private, non-profit university located in Accra, Ghana. The mission of Ashesi University is to educate ethical, entrepreneurial leaders in Africa; to cultivate within students the critical thinking skills, the concer ...

in 2002. Awuah has won many awards as an individual and as the founder of

Life

Awuah grew up in

Accra Accra (; tw, Nkran; dag, Ankara; gaa, Ga or ''Gaga'') is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , ...

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

. He attended the

Achimota School Achimota School ( /ɑːtʃimoʊtɑː/ ), formerly Prince of Wales College and School at Achimota, later Achimota College, now nicknamed Motown, is a co-educational boarding school located at Achimota in Accra, Greater Accra, Ghana. The school wa ...

where he was a house prefect. He moved to the

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

in 1985 to attend

Swarthmore College Swarthmore College ( , ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1864, with its first classes held in 1869, Swarthmore is one of the earliest coeduca ...

with a full scholarship. He earned bachelor's degrees in Engineering and Economics, graduating in 1989. Following graduation, Awuah worked as a software engineer and program manager for Microsoft from 1989 to 1997. At Microsoft, he met his future wife, software testing engineer Rebecca Awuah. In 1997, Awuah left

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washing ...

with the goal of returning to

to educate the next generation of African leaders. He enrolled at the

Haas School of Business The Walter A. Haas School of Business, also known as Berkeley Haas, is the business school of the University of California, Berkeley, a public research university in Berkeley, California. It was the first business school at a public university i ...

UC Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of Californi ...

, focusing his work on preparing a business plan for Ashesi. Awuah, Nina Marini, and other graduate students from Berkeley went to Ghana to do a feasibility study for opening a private university there. Awuah graduated with his MBA in 1999. That same year, he moved back to Ghana with his family to found Ashesi University. Awuah continues to serve as the president of Ashesi University.

Achievements and awards

John Kufuor John Kofi Agyekum Kufuor (born 8 December 1938) is a Ghanaian politician who served as the President of Ghana from 7 January 2001 to 7 January 2009. He was also Chairperson of the African Union from 2007 to 2008. Kufuor's career has been sp ...

presented Awuah the Order of the Volta Award to recognise his contribution to tertiary education in Ghana in 2007. In 2009, Awuah won the John P. McNulty Prize. In 2010, Awuah was awarded 87th most creative business person by

Fast Company ''Fast Company'' is a monthly American business magazine published in print and online that focuses on technology, business, and design. It publishes six print issues per year. History ''Fast Company'' was launched in November 1995 by Alan Web ...

. In 2014, he received The Elise and Walter A. Haas International Award, which honours

alumni with distinguished records of service to their native country. In the same year he was named best social entrepreneur by the

Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship is a Swiss Non-profit, not-for-profit organization founded in 1998 that provides platforms at the country, regional and global levels to promote social entrepreneurship.Schwab Foundation for Social ...

. In 2015, Awuah was listed by

Fortune Fortune may refer to: General * Fortuna or Fortune, the Roman goddess of luck * Luck * Wealth * Fortune, a prediction made in fortune-telling * Fortune, in a fortune cookie Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''The Fortune'' (1931 film) ...

as number 40 in world's 50 greatest leaders and was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship. In 2017, Awuah was awarded the

World Innovation Summit for Education The World Innovation Summit for Education (WISE) is an international initiative aimed at transforming education through innovation. WISE was established by Qatar Foundation in 2009 under the patronage of its chairperson, Sheikha Mozah bint Nass ...

(WISE) prize, a major global education award.

References

External links

Fellow Profile: Patrick Awuah
Aspen Global Leadership Network {{DEFAULTSORT:Awuah, Patrick Living people People from Accra Microsoft employees Ghanaian educators MacArthur Fellows University and college founders 1965 births Swarthmore College alumni Haas School of Business alumni Fante people Alumni of Achimota School Ashesi University

Life

Achievements and awards

See also

References

External links