Podcast Ep. 8 Stanford MBA '95 Van Ton-Quinlivan meets MBA '25 Sarah Tang

Today, I’m joined by Van Ton-Quinlivan from the Stanford MBA Class of 1995 and Sarah Tang from the Class of 2025. Van is a national thought leader in workforce development and currently serves as CEO of Futuro Health, a nonprofit growing the largest network of allied healthcare workers in the U.S. Her career spans roles in high tech, government, and nonprofit leadership, including serving as Executive Vice Chancellor for the California Community Colleges and being appointed by the Governor of California to shape statewide health workforce education strategy. Sarah is a dual-degree MBA-MA student at Stanford, combining business and education to reimagine workforce readiness. She’s taught in Malaysia through the Fulbright Program, worked in strategy at BCG and Teach For All, and now co-leads the GSB Education Club. Her focus is on scalable, inclusive learning pathways that empower people with real-world skills in the age of AI. Van and Sarah explore how education systems can evolve to meet the accelerating demands of work and society. They reflect on AI’s impact in the classroom and workplace, the changing value of credentials, and the practical challenge of making lifelong learning accessible. Across generations, their conversation points to a shared hope: that innovation in education—when grounded in equity and systems thinking—can unlock opportunity at scale.00:00 Introduction and Backgrounds03:00 Exploring Education and Personal Journeys06:06 The Role of AI in Education12:13 Community Colleges and Workforce Development16:00 The Impact of AI on Curriculum Development20:56 Healthcare Education and Future Workforce26:00 International Perspectives on Education28:54 Navigating Technology in Education29:57 Diversity in the Classroom31:22 The Future of Community Colleges34:46 Workforce Development and Education37:03 Challenges in Healthcare Education41:43 Personal Growth and Career NavigationJoin the Podcast Series Stanford MBA: From Baby Boomer to Gen Z |  Class of ‘95 Meets Class of ‘25  Each of these episodes will feature a different pair of Stanford MBA people -- one from the class of 1995, and one from the class of 2025.  Remember to rate, review, and subscribe to stay connected with future episodes!📺 Also available on YouTube: Entire series playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSaVisoF0D_GKxVmHmakNxdpAJCb5_VTPMore info: https://www.katharinemclennan.com/ Contact: [email protected] Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katharinemclennan/