Tsetsgee Enkhbold, a senior from Mongolia majoring in business management and president of the Amiable Mongolian Club, said the Mongolian students are overjoyed to welcome a new professor from home. Tserennyam Sukhbaatar filled a new position in the Faculty of Business & Government as the first BYU–Hawaii faculty member from Mongolia.
“It’s a wild experience having a faculty member from our country. I never thought it would be possible,” said Solongo Norov, a senior from Mongolia majoring in business management. “I think it gives us Mongolians lots of hope that we can one day come back and teach. He’s given us a really good example of getting educated and coming back to help the same people. I think it’s really cool.”
Enkhbold added, “The Mongolians are really excited.” She explained over one half of Mongolian students at BYUH are business management majors and many study marketing. “I’m excited for the marketing department. They’re getting somebody who is 100 percent passionate about what he’s going to be teaching,” she said.
Norov said the Church members in Mongolia are a tight-knit group, like the BYUH community, where everyone is close and united. “When I heard [Sukhbaatar] was coming, I was like, ‘My heart is melting.’ I was so excited. I love all the professors I have had but, you know, he’s part of our family. He’s very close to our hearts,” she said.
Paving the path to success
Suukhbaatar said working at BYUH is a big shift from the business world. “It’s a different industry working for a non-profit organization.” He also moved his young family of six 6,000 miles to a new country and culture. Despite the shift, Suukhbaatar said he is excited to share his knowledge and experiences with the students.
“When I go to BYUH,” said Sukhbaatar, “I would like to help students as much as possible. I really want them to succeed. I really want them to make a difference in the world.”
He said he developed a love for the youth when he served as a stake president in one of Mongolia’s two stakes.
As a stake president, Sukhbaatar said he focused his efforts on helping the youth achieve their goals and motivated them to get an education. “Sometimes they lose the vision, the goal and the mindset.”
He explained he hopes his support helps young Mongolian members of the Church succeed both temporally and spiritually.
Enkhbold said Sukhbaatar has had a profound impact on many of the students he counseled in Mongolia. She said she is a prime example because Sukhbaatar was her bishop growing up in Ulaanbaatar.
In an interview with him when she was 12 years old, Enkhbold said Sukhbaatar laid out a plan for her life to follow. She said he created a “Success Path for Youth,” a system he shared with the children and young adults he counseled. In it, he suggested youth closely follow the path he took to success, starting in Primary. The plan includes going to Seminary, serving a mission and learning English.
As she tried to follow the path he laid out, Enkhbold said her opportunities increased. “When I was young, BYUH was almost like a dream,” she said, explaining she came from a poor family in Mongolia. She said her family barely had the basic necessities to live.
Although her parents are hardworking people, she said they never had the opportunity for an education. As the oldest daughter in her family, Enkhbold said in her interview, Sukhbaatar said, “You are your family’s chance to get out of this.”
Sukhbaatar’s comment impacted her vision for herself, Enkhbold said. “[I realized] coming here and getting an education was not only my thing.” Since coming to BYUH, she said she has enjoyed many opportunities and has paved the way for her younger sister and brother to come too. As they study, Enkhbold said they can change their parent’s lives.
“Leaders like [Sukhbaatar] help you keep the vision,” Enkhbold said.
Seeing with new eyes
As a BYUH alumnus, Sukhbaatar shared his experience at BYUH made him want to help Mongolian youth to come study in Hawaii. “When I went to BYUH as a student many years ago, America opened my eyes in many different ways,” he said.
When comparing his life in Mongolia to life at BYUH, he said he was surprised at the difference he found.
“It’s a very different lifestyle. There are very different opportunities and very different perspectives and circumstances. Students at BYUH have tons of privileges and resources compared to students and children in Mongolia. After seeing that, I really wanted to help kids in Mongolia.”
Sukhbaatar said he uses his experience to help motivate the youth he works with. He said he tells them, “You also can do this. You can learn English, go to America, get an education and change your life. It will open your eyes. It will help you become a world citizen. After seeing the blessing of America, I wanted to share that blessing with others.”
Fulfilling prophecy
As a former IWORK student, Sukhbaatar is what Ann Springer, assistant professor in the Faculty of Business & Government, called “genuine gold,” the type of person David O. McKay envisioned coming forth from the University.
Springer said Sukhbaatar is an example to international students who don’t feel they can be successful in their home country. “Whatever your circumstances are, you can be self-sufficient because of this kind of skill set.” With the skill set he built at BYUH, Springer said Sukhbaatar was able to create a successful career.
There are a lot of leaders who can tell you what to do, but he leads by righteous example.
The key to a fulfilling life, Springer continued, is being able to provide for one’s family in a field one is passionate about. She shared she is sure Sukhbaatar has done just that with his career in marketing.
“He’s the living, breathing example of what we hope all of our students do. To be an IWORK student and to return to your home country to serve in the Church, to serve in your community, to provide for your family, be successful and to share the gospel with many other people. That’s fulfilling the McKay vision,” Springer exclaimed.
Enkhbold said she is inspired by Sukhbaatar’s appointment. “It’s pretty inspiring that he would teach at a school like BYUH. … It’s literally a fulfillment of the prophecy of David O. McKay.”Life lessons
Enkhbold said she respects him because he leads by example. “There are a lot of leaders who can tell you what to do, but he leads by righteous example,” she said.
“I’m not saying if he falls off the covenant path I will fall with him, but I am saying he is one of the main people I can count on who will follow through,” explained Enkhbold.
Sukhbaatar said he is taking notes on how to best serve the students he teaches this Fall Semester. He said he wants to focus his lessons on practical skills by sharing the real-life experiences and knowledge he has gained as a professional marketer.
Professionally, Sukbaatar said, he has worked on many different campaigns with worldwide brands like Apple, Sony, Dell, Acer and Caterpillar.
Norov said, as a marketing student, she is excited for his class and looks forward to hearing about how he developed his skills through his experiences.
Springer said of Sukhbaatar, “He’s had these really great opportunities, and he’s been able to utilize those. That’s what we hope for all of our students. When you’re living your life on the principles of the gospel,” said Springer, “you’re going to be led to opportunities that will not just bless you, but allow you to bless others. I’m positive he’s been prepared for this opportunity for a long time.”
Sukhbaatar was not expecting to be offered the position to teach at BYUH, he said, but he was thrilled to accept the job. “I truly believe and feel Heavenly Father has a plan. I don’t know what it is, but he has some kind of plan for us. We’re just following that.”
He counseled, “As long as you follow the promptings of the Spirit and Heavenly Father, everything should be fine and everything should be good. You will be happy.” •