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Nancy Aossey (Marketing '82, MBA '84) is making a difference in the world, one community at a time. As the president and CEO of International Medical Corps (IMC), now a $100 million relief organization based in Santa Monica, Calif., Nancy guides the organization to secluded locations in dire need of assistance.

On November 20, 2007, Nancy received the 2007 Distinguished Alumnus Award from the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU) for dedication and commitment toward her cause. The award is presented to a graduate of one of its member institutions who has made a significant contribution to the public, intellectual, or cultural life of the nation.

UNI President Benjamin Allen said, “This is as prestigious an award as any ever received by a UNI alum. Only one award is granted each year from all of the 430 member institutions of the AASCU, and its importance is suggested by the quality of the other award winners over the past years, who have included President Lyndon Johnson, Representative Barbara Jordan, Senator Robert Dole, and Nobel Prize winners James Buchanan (Economics) and Val Fitch (Physics).

IMC is a global, humanitarian, private, nonprofit organization established in 1984 when UCLA Medical Professor and Doctor Robert Simon discovered there were only a few hundred medical doctors to serve millions of Afghan refugees during their war with the Soviet Union. Simon hired Aossey in 1986 for her ability to apply an "entrepreneurial vision" to the organization's mission of helping others, and she set out to provide disaster relief, health care training, and development programs worldwide.

Aossey has directed the organization from its three-employee beginnings to a $100 million-plus relief organization with more than 4,000 volunteers and staff working in 21 countries. IMC was the first responder to many remote areas after the Indian Ocean tsunami and the Pakistan earthquake. IMC's first domestic mobilization came after hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

Nancy served as chairman of the board of InterAction, the United States' largest coalition of more than 165 private and voluntary organizations working in international development, refugee assistance, and disaster relief. She now serves on its board of directors and executive committee. Aossey is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the Pacific Council on International Policy; she is a commissioner for the Women's Commission for Refugee Women and Children and a member of the Young Presidents' Organization.

Recognized as an expert on humanitarian relief issues, Nancy has also briefed the White House and testified before Congress. Aossey has appeared on various television news programs and has been featured in The New York Times, USA Today, the Los Angeles Times, and the Los Angeles Business Journal. In 2006 she received the Distinguished Alumni Award from the Center for Creative Leadership. That same year she was also named Non-Profit CEO of the Year by the Los Angeles Business Journal.

The granddaughter of Lebanese immigrants, Aossey grew up in Cedar Rapids where service to the community was an ingrained value. After completing her MBA, she joined AT&T Information Systems, selling phone networks to small businesses. With a transfer to Fresno, one of Aossey's first priorities was to seek opportunities for service, which led her to her career with IMC.


Updated 16-Feb-09