Fowler Alumnus Strives to Improve the Lives of Others in the Somali Community

Before 1991, Somalia was a newly independent nation with a functioning transitional government. This was the Somalia where Ali Artan grew up.

Today, Artan is a double Aztec with two degrees from the Fowler College of Business at San Diego State University. But in 1991, he was a young man living in the nation’s capital, Mogadishu, and busy planning his future. On January 26 of that year, armed rebels overthrew the existing federal government, plunging the nation into war and civil unrest that exists to this day.

Arriving in the U.S. as a refugee in 2002, Artan eventually enrolled at SDSU where he earned a bachelor’s degree in management information systems and, later, an MBA.

An Early Life of Uncertainty

Even during Artan’s early years, there had always been a measure of uncertainty in his life. He was born in the historic city of Taleh, which lies in the northern part of the nation, near the Horn of Africa. When he was 3-years-old, his mother died and he was temporarily moved to the southern part of the country. Shortly thereafter, he attended school in Mogadishu and he stayed in school until civil war started in 1991.

During his years in Mogadishu, he experienced some relative stability in his life by attending a private school where he learned to read and write in English. His proficiency in the language allowed him to successfully pass the TOEFL® test, opening the door for him to study at any English-language based university on a global basis.

Leaving Somalia

In 1992, Artan was able to escape the violence and social instability of Somalia. He eventually landed in Finland and attended Vaasan Ammatti Korkeakoulu (aka the University of Vaasa) where he earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering. Afterward, he worked for the Finnish-based communications giant, Nokia, for over two years until he was granted asylum in the United States in 2002. The U.S. is exactly where Artan wanted to be. “As I was growing up, I learned about the U.S. and the American way of life,” said Artan. “I was attracted to her diversity and the immense opportunities the U.S. had to offer.”

After he arrived in San Diego in 2002, Artan continued working as an engineer in the field of communications, but he craved more human interaction and the opportunity to work within San Diego’s sizable Somali/East African population. This led to his first social/entrepreneurial venture as the co-founder and editor of Taxan, a bilingual newsletter which featured information for, and about, the San Diego-based Somali community. Artan also volunteered at several middle schools and high schools as a math and science tutor to help under-performing students increase their graduation rates.

When he’s not mentoring local school kids, Artan works as a financial analyst for the Minneapolis Public School district.

Getting an SDSU Degree to “Solve Human Problems”

But Artan had educational goals of his own. In the fall of 2005, he enrolled at SDSU as a management information systems (MIS) major with an international security and conflict resolution minor. “Besides being the largest campus in San Diego, I was drawn to the different programs at SDSU’s business school,” he said. “I chose MIS as my major since we already live in a global village — thanks to connectivity — and this degree could help me build or work on responsive/resilient systems that solve human problems.”

Artan graduated with his bachelor’s degree in the spring of 2008 and he continued his community work along with his full-time job as an IT manager and data specialist. But he was still wanting to further his education in order to “have a better understanding of the grand scheme of how information systems components come together to resolve human needs and challenges,” he said. He returned to SDSU and earned his MBA in 2012.

While he was pursuing his MBA in 2011, Artan was recognized by San Diego’s Somali Family Service with an OceanLeaf Award in the Emerging Leader category for his service to the area’s Somali and East African community. In 2016, he moved to Minneapolis, home to the largest Somali population in the U.S., where he could continue his service and activism among a larger group of refugees, immigrants and others in the cultural community.

Positively Affecting People’s Lives

Artan has settled into the Minneapolis community where, in addition to volunteering as a mentor in several schools, he works as a financial systems analyst for the Minneapolis Public School district. He is also the founder and owner of Rays Financial LLC and he does small business consulting to community members hoping to establish their own businesses.  

A decade after earning his MBA from Fowler, Artan says he still uses many of the lessons he learned at SDSU, especially in his role as a business consultant. “When I consult with clients, I always refer to the fundamentals I learned at SDSU’s business school,” he said. “This is especially true when I discuss streamlining processes and minimizing redundancy with them.”

Whether he’s running his small businesses, mentoring school kids or working at his full-time job, Artan strives ceaselessly to improve the lives of others. “We are all part of the global community and I want to be a part of change for the betterment of the human condition,” he said. “In my own small way, I try to affect people’s lives in a positive way every day.”