Shuree Ochirbat: From Mongolia to the Sullivan Fellowship

The Sullivan Foundation has a knack for discovering remarkable people—individuals whose stories are unique tapestries, woven from many strands of culture, ambition, and resilience. Shuree Ochirbat, one of the Foundation’s Sullivan Fellows, is one such person. Born and raised in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, Ochirbat found herself drawn across continents by her passion for education and the chance to make a difference. Today, she is a senior at Warren Wilson College, double majoring in Data Science and Business—and she has become a driving force for community change, both on and off campus.

The Journey to Warren Wilson

Ochirbat’s journey to Warren Wilson College began, as so many great adventures do, with a spark of curiosity. When she was just a fourth grader in Mongolia, she earned a scholarship to attend an English summer class. It was an opportunity that set her on a path she never expected. That summer, she fell in love with the language, and, as she recalls, “I was really good at it, and I enjoyed learning a new language and all the different pronunciations.” Her newfound passion for English opened the door to opportunities beyond the borders of Mongolia, including a U.S. Embassy program called the English Access Program. From there, Ochirbat’s ambitions grew—first to study abroad, and ultimately, to attend college in the United States.

But getting to Warren Wilson College was not easy. “It was a long journey,” she says. After graduating high school in Mongolia in 2018, Ochirbat spent three years finding the right school, applying, and securing funding—all while working to support herself. She eventually earned the Milepost One Full Tuition Scholarship. This made it possible for her to pursue her education thousands of miles away from home.

Discovering Social Entrepreneurship

Once at Warren Wilson, Ochirbat’s focus expanded beyond academics. She quickly became involved in the Sullivan Foundation’s programming, starting with an introduction to social entrepreneurship through one of her first-year courses. The course, entitled Be a Changemaker, was led by professor Wendy Seligmann, the Sullivan Foundation’s faculty liaison at Warren Wilson. The concept resonated deeply with Ochirbat. In Mongolia, she had already been involved with several non-governmental organizations, and she had a sense of what it meant to work for the greater good. But social entrepreneurship was something new—a way to marry her passion for helping others with the skills she was developing in business and data science. It was, as she says, “an eye-opening experience.”

“Coming to America, I felt like opportunities like these seemed much more accessible,” Ochirbat explains. “It made me realize how these ideas and approaches could be applied back home in Mongolia, and that excited me.” Her enthusiasm led her to the Sullivan Foundation’s Ignite Retreat, where she spent a weekend exploring her passions, identifying problems she cared about, and considering how she could create change. “The structure of the retreat—starting with personal reflection and ending with action—was really inspiring,” she says. It was at that retreat, in the fall of her freshman year, that she first truly grasped the power of social impact.

The Sullivan Fellowship and Growing Leadership

Ochirbat joined the Sullivan Fellows Program in her sophomore year, becoming part of a group dedicated to creating and sustaining positive change. The fellowship provided her with mentors, workshops, and the resources she needed to develop her ideas and make them real. “The fellowship helped us stick to our projects and goals,” Ochirbat says. “It wasn’t just a one-off experience—it was a sustained effort that made it possible for us to continue our work.”

As a fellow, Ochirbat and the cohort of Sullivan Fellows at Warren Wilson had the opportunity to invite a guest speaker to the school. Devine Carama, a community activist, spoke to students at Warren Wilson about leadership and social change. “It was amazing to be able to bring someone like him to our campus, to share his experiences and inspire others,” she recalls. Devine was the Keynote speaker at the Sullivan Foundation’s Ignite Retreat the previous year, where Ochirbat first was able to hear about his impact.

The Fellowship also allowed Ochirbat to grow as a leader. She is currently the president of the Asian Culture Club, which she founded to foster cultural exchange and promote understanding on campus. Through her efforts, she’s helped raise funds for events like the Lunar New Year celebration, and increased membership in the club by 30%. However, more importantly, according to Ochirbat, the club brought people together, fostering connections and learning across different backgrounds. “It’s important to me to help create spaces where people can learn from each other and connect in meaningful ways,” she says.

Finding a Purpose in Data and Business

For Ochirbat, her majors in Data Science and Business are not just about crunching numbers or learning the fundamentals of commerce. They are tools she hopes to use for a greater purpose. “I’ve been thinking about how data-driven insights can help businesses make decisions that are not only financially sound but also socially impactful,” she explains. She’s particularly interested in exploring how data science can be leveraged to understand and solve social problems—whether that means analyzing patterns of inequality or helping businesses operate in more sustainable ways.

In the future, Ochirbat hopes to pursue a career that merges these interests—one that allows her to continue making a positive impact. “I want to work in a business environment that has a positive influence on society,” she says. “It’s important to me that my work aligns with my values, that I’m contributing to something good.”

Reflections on the Sullivan Fellowship

The Sullivan Foundation has had a profound influence on Ochirbat’s time at Warren Wilson. As Steve McDavid, president of the Sullivan Foundation, often says, “Our goal is to inspire young people to make their life’s work one of service, not something to save for later.” For Ochirbat, the Fellowship has done exactly that. It’s helped her to see that her desire to help others, her skills in data science, and her passion for business can all be channeled into a career that makes a difference.

Ochirbat exemplifies the spirit of service—dedicated, driven, and always looking for ways to make the world a little better. It is a journey that began in a summer class in Ulaanbaatar, carried her across continents, and led her to become a Sullivan Fellow—a journey that continues to unfold, full of promise and possibility.