BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Jim has had a lifetime of social and political activism beginning in the 1960s with the anti-war, anti-nuclear, citizen diplomacy and environmental movements. He founded Ubiquity University having served as President of Wisdom University from 2005 – 2012 which was acquired by Ubiquity in 2013. He has spent his entire professional life in executive leadership, including as co-founder and president of the Gorbachev Foundation/USA (1992 – 1995) and State of the World Forum (1995 – 2004) with Mikhail Gorbachev serving as convening chairman. Jim received his BA in History from the University of Santa Clara, an MA in History of Religion from Harvard University, and a PhD in Philosophical Theology from the University of Cambridge. He has written numerous books, including The Plutonium Culture, The Darkness of God: Theology after Hiroshima, The Russian Threat, Citizen Diplomats, Civilization and The Transformation of Power, and America as Empire. Jim teaches a range of courses at Ubiquity in philosophy, history and global affairs, including the core courses The Great Books and Wisdom and Civilization.
Jim served on the Wisdom University Board from 2005 – 2012 and is the founding Chairperson of the Board for Ubiquity as well as CFO. He spent 30 years (1972-2002) developing economic, professional and cultural relations between the United States and the countries within the former Soviet bloc. He was a telecommunications executive during the 1990’s, co-founding the Russian long-distance company Rustel in 1992, serving as its President from 1992-1997. From 1989-1992, Hickman was CEO of AJ Ventures, Inc., a US company that established commercial enterprises in the Soviet Union and post-Soviet Russia. In 1993, as Vice President of the State of the World Forum, he worked with President Gorbachev and Jim Garrison on the Foundation’s international programs. He co-founded, with Jim Garrison, Mosaic Networks in 2003 as a business-consulting firm focused on international telecommunications projects. Jim received his M.A. in Psychology from Sonoma State College and teaches a course on Neuroscience and Personal Practice at the Wisdom School of Graduate Studies.
Stephanie was a Board member of Wisdom University and is a founding Board member of Ubiquity University. She is the Founding President and President Emerita of the internationally recognized Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy. She was the founding President of the National Consortium for Specialized Secondary Schools of Mathematics, Science, and Technology, and an international president of the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, one of the world's largest professional educational associations. Dr. Pace-Marshall is recognized globally as an educational pioneer and innovator. Author of over 40 journal articles, editor of Scientific Literacy for the 21st Century, and contributor to the National Research Council's book: Learning and Understanding, Dr. Pace-Marshall's book The Power to Transform: Leadership that brings Learning and Schooling to Life is path breaking and offers a generative new paradigm for all levels of education. Stephanie earned a BA from Queens College (N.Y.), an MA from the University of Chicago and a PhD from Loyola University of Chicago. She holds Four Honorary Doctorates.
Aftab Omer, PhD, teaches in the Transformative Leadership graduate program at Meridian University. He is a sociologist, psychologist, and the president of Meridian. Raised in Pakistan, India, Hawaii, and Turkey, he was educated at the universities of M.I.T, Harvard, and Brandeis. His publications have addressed the topics of transformative learning, cultural leadership, generative entrepreneurship and complexity capability. His work includes assisting organizations in tapping the creative potentials of conflict, diversity, and complexity. Formerly the president of the Council for Humanistic and Transpersonal Psychologies, he is a Fellow of the International Futures Forum and the World Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Steve is a founding Board member of Ubiquity. He co-founded pH Science Holdings, Inc., a research and product development company focused on acid pollution and its impact on human, animal, and planetary health, of which he serves as CEO. Steve co-founded Wax, Loyd & Company (WLC), a successful investment banking firm originating and managing mergers, acquisitions, and assisting high growth companies. He has taught advanced entrepreneurial finance courses in the Foster School of Business at the University of Washington. Steve directed Harbor Development Company for ten years which renovated eleven city blocks in downtown Seattle. The project won the Urban Land Institute Grand Award for Mixed Use Projects. Steve holds a Juris Doctor degree from Willamette University College of Law and an MBA in Finance from the University of Washington.
EXECUTIVE TEAM
Shelly comes to Ubiquity with 30 years of experience in association management including eight years as Principal of Alcorn Associates Management Consulting. She was formerly the Executive Director of the California Association for the Education of Young Children (CAEYC) and the Automotive Service Councils of California (ASCCA). She also served as Vice-President of Education and Development for the California Society of Association Executives (CalSAE). She has published numerous articles in trade journals and co-authored a number of works including: 42 Rules for Engaging Members Through Gamification: Unlock the Secrets of Motivation, Community, and Fun, Associations, Generation Y and Millennials: What You Need to Know About Your Next Generation Members, and The Association Role in the New Education Paradigm. She holds the CAE (Certified Association Executive) designation from the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE).
Rick has over 25 years of experience in producing award winning educational videos and films. He has produced over 250 online courses and has worked with dozens of Fortune 100 corporate clients as well as with State and Federal government agencies.
John’s mandate is to guide the over-all technology development for the company, shaping Ubiquity’s strategic formulation as the company links innovative learning with a Big Data and Artificial Intellegence informed architecture linking global competency standards with jobs and education. He is a business and technology leader with 20 years of corporate, management consulting and international experience specializing in the development, transformation and consolidation of Fortune 100 and merged & acquired and start-up companies. His work experience include Sprint Nextel Corporation, Vice President for Information Technology; Neustar, Vice President for Local Number Portability Transition; Amdocs, Vice President for North America; and Newport Cove Technologies, LLC, Founder, CEO. Additional experience includes Deloitte Consulting, Ernst & Young, Lumerit Scholar, Iridium LLC, AT&T, Verizon, and James Martin & Company.
Based in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Dilini was CEO of the London Business School 2014 - 2016, and between 2010-2013, CEO of Knowledge City (Pvt) Ltd, an Educational Institute developing vocational education in conjunction with the Ministry of Education and Asian Development Bank. She is Center Director and Teacher Training Coordinator of Singapore Informatics, a higher education organization based in Kandy, Sri Lanka; and Representative in Asia for the Eastern Connecticut State University, USA, in higher education. In her role as Executive Member of the Cancer Society of Sri Lanka, she developed a Hospice Center in Kandy. She has been an active member of the Lions Club since 1995. Dilini holds a BSc in Computer Science from Eastern Connecticut University.
Rajinda has over 10 years of experience in the international development, education and startup space. After graduating from Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School in 2003, and receiving his Masters Degree from Johns Hopkins’ School for International Studies (SAIS) in 2006, Raji went on to direct country programs for Relief International. He immersed himself in this work during Sri Lanka’s post-Tsunami era and continued to contribute during the climax and aftermath of Sri Lanka’s civil war. Raji then went on to pursue an MBA at the National University of Singapore, following which he took on a role as CEO at Knowledge City (a Sri Lankan organization specializing in IT and English education) before moving on to start his own company in the fintech space in Singapore.
Monica is a lawyer and has just completed her masters in financial management. She works to design and improve Ubiquity’s finance and legal processes. Before joining our team, she worked over nine years in multinational law firms and AIESEC, the world largest youth run organization, where she served as the global CFO. She co-leads the AIESCEC/Ubiquity partnership development.
Peter is founder of the Center for Human Emergence (Netherlands), and a founding partner of Engage! in the Netherlands. He has worked in and across different sectors. He facilitates integral change processes in multinational corporations, and government ministries, and in multistakeholder initiatives with global players. He has been involved in environmental activism and spent many years in the not-for-profit sector including leading international youth training programs for the Council of Europe. He is a recognised expert in the field of evolutionary systems dynamics and Spiral Dynamics Integral in particular. He has had his first book published in English and Dutch (Evolutionary Leadership). He has a Ph.D. from Ubiquity’s Wisdom School with his Volution Theory, M.Sc. from the University of Edinburgh in Human Ecology and a B.A. in French and German from Exeter University.
Prior to coming to Ubiquity, Bob founded and ran Global Seminars, designing and leading educational travel groups for global high school and university students; co-founded the Information Bank, which consulted with global TV news companies based in US, Russia and Japan; and worked in International Affairs Budgeting at the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, Executive Office of the President (Jimmy Carter). He received his BA from Grinnell College, an MPA from Princeton University, then went on to a one year program in Advanced Study in Political Philosophy at Oxford University.
David is the Managing Director of Skillsbook, an acquisition of Ubiquity University. Skillsbook is the backbone of Ubiquity’s Global Credential system. The Skillsbook company is based in Australia and its software has been used to assess the skills of over 250,000 Australians. The system is deployed in education, corporate, public and cross border settings. David is a seasoned entrepreneur. He is a consultant and service provider to the Australian Commonwealth and State Governments on industry workforce development and vocational competency and qualification systems. David is a leading expert on vocational competency assessment and digital portfolios. He holds a Masters Degree in Social Research, graduate specialisations in industrial relations, adult learning and business.
Stacy has worked for over 10 years as Registrar, keeping course files and degree transcripts, interacting with students, managing student accommodations and logistics, as well as supporting the Dean and Dean of Students in all admissions-related issues, and the preparation of student communications. She has 20+ years experience in an office environment managing multiple tasks, prioritizing and problem solving. Her administrative experience includes the use of customized software programs, inventory control, excellent customer service, payables, receivables, and processing titles.
Tanisha is an undergraduate in Physics from the University of Delhi. She has extensive experience with Global Youth Learning and Marketing having worked for the largest Youth-run Organization, AIESEC. She was with AIESEC for four years before coming over to the other side of Youth Learning at Ubiquity. At Ubiquity she is piloting our Talent Management System along with AIESEC, a Competence Assessment Framework with which skills developed while carrying out practical tasks across a learning system can be aligned to pre-existing education systems across the Globe.
Jack Policar comes from a sales and marketing background. He brings his wildly creative, strategic team organization and partnership development skills to Ubiquity. Having worked for numerous startups of varying sizes and different industries, Jack brings a wide variety of perspectives into the Engagement strategy. As the resident millennial, Jack connects different teams to the millennial users that have helped shape the way Ubiquity engages with its market.
Paul is a seasoned entrepreneur who has built four companies over several decades. He was an Associate Professor of Urban Planning at University of Michigan where he led social systems design at the Environmental Simulation Lab. He served as VP of Set-Theoretic Information Systems developing information retrieval software for major corporations such as General Motors. He was the co-founder and EVP for American Lives, Inc., a values and lifestyles market research company, which led to the forming of LOHAS (Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability), an industry association representing what is now a $300 billion sector in the US economy. He has been a cutting edge researcher of the Cultural Creatives, a term he coined, and has led studies worldwide on this emerging values based sociological phenomenon.
Calen is a Unitarian Universalist Community Minister. His current focus is Institutional Energetics within Ubiquity. He has an MFA in Writing and Poetics from Naropa University, and DMin from Wisdom University. Calen has studied with great masters of Zen and Tibetan Buddhism, Bon and pre-literate Bon masters, geomancers from both Celtic and Druid traditions, and with alchemists of various indigenous religions, including the first (nameless) religion of the Himalayas, known as "sacred conventions" or "patterns of heaven and earth.” He is trained in Feng Shui/Space Clearing, Egyptian Bio-geometry, and Sacred Geometry. Calen is a Master of Himalayan Singing bowls, a Veriditas Advanced-Certified Labyrinth Facilitator and a Reiki Master in four lineages.
Federico is a co-founder of Energia Vectorial an electric mobility startup focused on infrastructure and leasing of EVs; and Impact Hub Medellin a social innovation lab focused on supporting entrepreneurs and social innovator in creating solutions to impact the world, both startups located in Medellin, Colombia. He has a BA in Marketing Management, MA in Marketing and Sales Management and Currently finishing his MSc in Sustainable Development.
Matt Robertson is on a life-long quest to help bring innovation into higher education. He believes it is time for a change in perspective and a shift in awareness. As the unofficial “De-light” Officer, he brings a background in student recruiting and the management of admissions systems to the Ubiquity community, in addition to his enthusiasm for awakening the best of human nature. He is a San Francisco Bay Area native, certified Mindfulness Instructor, hoop shooter, rhyme activist, and trail hiker of the human journey. Never hesitate to reach out to Matt with any questions you have about Ubiquity, or if you want to collab on a hip-hop track!
Claire co-founded the Whole Child Initiative with Jane Goodall, and was Coordinator of the State of the World Forum Intl. Roundtables on the Irreducible Needs of Children in New York. She has worked as Director of the Esalen Institute Soviet-American Exchange; the Oxford Research Group, UK; and the Medical Campaign Against Nuclear Weapons. She also trained and worked as a primary school teacher in the UK. She holds a BA in Philosophy & Comparative Religion from the University of Leeds; Art & Design Certificate from the Cambridge College of Art & Technology, Cambridge; Postgraduate Certificate in Education, Goldsmith’s College, London; and Research Fellowship, University of Bradford School of Peace Studies.
Banafsheh oversees the brand, website, communication and interactive design for Ubiquity. The Founder of Dance of Oneness®, Banafsheh is a Persian sacred dancer, choreographer and transformational teacher. Awarded for her pioneering work, she is one of the few bearers of authentic Persian dance in the world, an innovator of Sufi dance previously only performed by men, and one of the few dance artists who has mastered a fusion of the art of dance with spiritual embodiment. She served as Artistic Director for her dance company, NAMAH for several years, staging performances across North America and Europe. Banafsheh performs and teaches internationally. With an MFA in Dance and an MA in Chinese Medicine, she is dedicated to individual and collective healing through conscious movement.
Gyorgyi was a Co-Founder and Academic Dean of the ‘Ervin Laszlo Center for Advanced Study’ (ELCAS). She served as the Director of Research and Development of the Center’s Exploratoria Program. She was co-creator of the WorldShift International Foundation, and the WorldShift 2012 organizations, and currently serves as Member of the Advisory Board of the Memnosyne Foundation. She lectures worldwide and has published two books; papers in The Scientific and Medical Network’s Review, The Shift Network, and World Futures: The Journal of New Paradigm Research. Gyorgyi Szabo holds a PhD in Sociology - Summa Cum Laude awarded by the Sorbonne, University of Paris. She is also a trained Reiki and Reconnective Healing practitioner. Her holistic approach to metaphysics and interest in conscious evolution serves as foundation for her work in facilitating cooperative evolution toward a peaceful and sustainable world.
Loren is the Managing Director of Ubiquity Financial Services, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company. He also serves as Managing Director for LogixSolutions, Inc. which is focused on business systems solutions, financial modeling, analysis for litigation support services, and monitoring the performance of residential and commercial real estate. In the previous decade, Mr. Volk was a National Director for the Consulting Group of Deloitte & Touche LLP in Atlanta, GA. Loren has also served as CFO and directed accounting, treasury, and data processing, functions for a financial institution and for a high tech company in San Jose California. Loren occasionally serves as an adjunct instructor in accounting and business systems at Kennesaw State University. He holds an MBA and a CPA certificate and has significant public accounting experience in addition to his real estate consulting specialty.