Harvard Club of Southern California

Nworah Blaise Ayogu AB ’10 Runs for Board Overseer

Voting began April 1. Eligible voters will have the option of voting either online or by paper ballot. Completed ballots must be received by 5PM (EDT) on May 14.  Degree holders other than officers of instruction and government may vote for Overseer candidates.
 

Nworah Ayogu ’10, MD ’15, MBA ’15 has been nominated to serve a six-year term as a Harvard Overseer. Dr. Ayogu is the General Manager and Chief Medical Officer of Amazon Clinic. If elected, he would join one of the two governing bodies of Harvard University. Harvard Overseers provide counsel to the University’s leaders on a wide range of concerns including strategic direction and review of the University’s schools, departments, activities, and programs.
 

Click here to cast your ballot.

Interview with Harvard Overseer Candidate, Nworah Ayogu ’10, MD ’15, MBA ’15

by Cynthia Torres ’80, MBA ’84, Past President, Harvard Club of Southern California

Q. Please tell us about yourself.
A. I live in the Los Angeles area with my wife and almost 2-year-old son. I am a physician, and I have spent my career working at the intersection of medicine, technology, and business. I’ve spent the last several years at Amazon leading their efforts in healthcare, first as Chief Medical Officer of Amazon Pharmacy, and now as the General Manager of Amazon Clinic.

Q. Please tell us a bit about your Harvard experience.
A. While at Harvard, I spent time working with and advocating for the Boston community as part of PBHA and the Black Men’s Forum. As the Student Chair of the Harvard Foundation for Intercultural and Race Relations, I spent a lot of time working with the University and with the multitude of cultural organizations on campus to ensure that Harvard was a safe place for learning, dialogue, and expression.

Q. What do you hope to accomplish as a Harvard Overseer?
A. I firmly believe that the key challenges facing Harvard mirror those facing the world:
1. Driving technological innovation,
2. Embracing diversity and fostering community, and
3. Promoting justice – specifically inequity and climate change.
The role of the Board of Overseers is to support the President and senior officers by “contributing to reasoned deliberations, exercising careful and independent judgment, offering thoughtful, broad-based, and candid comments, asking probing questions, respecting the views of others, and maintaining the collegial character of the Board’s discussions.” This means listening and providing a broad perspective, informed not only by my experience but those of my peers, colleagues and friends. It means inspecting the strategic priorities of each school to make sure they are aligned with values of the broader community and focused on the issues of greatest import; and asking critical questions to make sure that our pedagogy is evolving to meet the ever-changing environment students find themselves in.

Q. Final thoughts?
A. Harvard is an institution that has given me so much, and I’m honored to have the opportunity to give back to it.