Laura Polk

Laura Polk is the Executive Director of Digital Initiatives & Learner Experience for the Thunderbird School of Global Management at Arizona State University (ASU). She currently oversees the 100 Million Learner Initiative to support global learners at scale and removal barriers to access. This includes product development & design for learners on their path toward pursuing a degree program. She also teaches Organizational Leadership, Organizational Diversity and Managing People at ASU. Professor Polk has 15+ years of experience working in leadership and specializes in organizational leadership, succession planning, small businesses management, manufacturing, aerospace & defense. In the research for her dissertation, she oversaw the engineering and building of many metal parts at a manufacturing plant which now reside in NASA’s Exploration Rover on Mars (MERS), defense weapons mechanisms for the US government, and medical equipment.  Professor Polk holds a Doctorate of Management in Organizational Leadership and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Phoenix School of Advanced Studies, and a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism from Walter Cronkite School at Arizona State University. She can be reached at laura.polk@asu.edu