On this International Women’s Day, BW Education’s ’15 Most Influential Women ‘is an initiative to recognize women leaders in the field of education who are leading the way in breaking down prejudice.
Education is the main building block of society and educators are at its center. Today’s children are the leaders of tomorrow and the teacher’s responsibility to prepare them for the future.
On this International Women’s Day, BW Education unveiled the ’15 Most Influential Women ‘who are breaking bias by empowering future leaders.
The most influential women in education:
Dr. Ananya Mukherjee, Vice Chancellor, Shiv Nadar University
Dr. Ananya Mukherjee is the third Vice Chancellor to lead Shiv Nadar University. Prior to taking on this role, Dr. Mukherjee was Provost and Vice-President Academic at the University of British Columbia (UBC) Okanagan in Canada.
A widely recognized academic leader, he holds senior positions at the two largest universities in Ontario, Canada and British Columbia. Dr. Mukherjee has spent more than two decades at York University in Toronto. He was dean of the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies, where he led Canada’s largest liberal arts faculty with 23,000 students from 123 countries.
Dr. Mukherjee earned his Doctorate (Political Economy and Public Policy) from the University of Southern California, USA and his BA and MA (Economics) from Jadavpur University, India. His work focuses on inclusive and people-centered development.
Annapurna Devi, Minister of State for Education
Annapurna Devi started her political career in 1996 as a member of the Bihar Legislative Assembly. He is currently the second Modi Minister of State for Education in India. He is also a Member of Parliament for Lok Sabha.
Archana Shukla, Director, IIM Lucknow
Professor Archana Shukla became the Director of Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow in 2019. Prior to that, he taught organization behavior at the Human Resource Management Group at the Institute.
Professor Shukla holds a PhD in Organizational Behavior from IIT Kanpur and has over 30 years of teaching, training and research experience. He has also written a book on knowledge management architecture.
Dilforoz Kazi, Founder and Vice Chairperson Srinagar School of Management
Dilfroz Kazi started Srinagar School of Management-College of Engineering, the first private engineering institute in Kashmir. He also opened two free primary schools and a secondary school in Kashmir. She was one of 90 Indian women nominated for the 1000 Nobel Peace Prize.
Divya Gokulnath, co-founder, Baijus
Divya Gokulnath is an entrepreneur and educator. He co-founded the largest Adtech enterprise, Baijus. Divya holds a Bachelor of Technology degree in Biotechnology from RV College of Engineering, Bangalore. As an educator, he taught mathematics, English, and logical reasoning.
Lata Vaidyanathan, Director, TERI Nature School, Delhi
Lata Vaidyanathan is a veteran educator and currently the director, TERI Nature School. He was the principal of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan School in Chandigarh, the founding principal of Aisha School in Parwanoo and the principal of Modern School Barakhamba Road in New Delhi for the last fourteen years.
He was awarded the ‘National Award for Teachers’ by the President of India in 2003. He is also the recipient of numerous awards including Dr. Radhakrishnan Award, ‘Bharat Shiromani Award’, ‘Madhav Gaurab Ratna Achievement Award’, ‘International Lifetime Achievement Award 2009’ and ‘Global Warming Reduction Award 2009’, ‘Education Award’. 2013 ‘and’ Lifetime Achievement Award by Patanjali Trust 2014 ‘.
Mamata Saikia, CEO, Bharati Foundation
Mamata Saikia is the CEO of Bharati Foundation. He has led the development of the organization’s educational activities in primary, primary and senior secondary schools. Under his leadership, the Satya Bharati School Program, a major initiative of the Foundation, provides free education to about 40,000 marginalized children in rural areas through 183 schools in six states of India.
He has served as chair of SAFRG and has been honored as the 2019 Influential Leader by AACSB International. She was also among the 100 women achievers in India (2015-16) at the initiative of the Ministry of Women and Child Development. He has been awarded the Karmabir Award: the National Citizen Award for Social Justice and Action.
Dr. Monica Khanna, Director, KJ Somaiya Institute of Management Studies and Research, Mumbai
Dr. Monica Khanna KJ is the Director and Professor of Marketing at Somaiya Institute of Management, Mumbai and Dean-Faculty of Management Studies, Somaiya Vidyabihar University, Mumbai. He is an experienced educator and professional with 29 years of experience in academia and industry. Specializations include brand management, services marketing, and marketing management. He has worked with Siemens Ltd., Mumbai in the field of Engineering and Industrial Automation. Dr. Monica Somaiya is a member of the Academic Board, Board of Management, Finance Committee and Board for Research and Consultancy of Vidyabihar University.
He has won several awards, including the Best Research Paper Award at MICA Ahmedabad, the Bombay Management Association, the Higher Education Forum, Somaiya Vidyabihar, and the YK Bhushan Award for Excellence in Education for 100 dedicated teachers in India. He was also an elected member of the Executive Council of the All India Management Association (AIMA), New Delhi, four times in a row.
Dr. Niharika Vohra, Founder Vice-Chancellor, Delhi Skills and Entrepreneurship University
Professor (Dr.) Bhohra is an expert in behavioral sciences and is on leave from IIM Ahmedabad, where he has worked as a Professor of Organizational Behavior for 21 years. He is involved in the Center for Innovation and Incubation in Entrepreneurship at IIM Ahmedabad and is currently the director of the center. He has extensive experience with the corporate sector as a consultant, trainer, advisor and independent director. He has won the Best Instructor Award and is the Chairperson (Fellow Program in Management) of IIM Ahmedabad Doctoral Program, Editor of Development, on the Editorial Board of various International Journals. He has published more than 70 peer-reviewed research papers in top-level international and national journals and has authored 3 books and created teaching materials used in various countries. He has guided 12 PhD students at IIMA and has been an academic advisor at five national-level educational institutions.
An initiative of Nirja Birla, Founder and Chairperson, Empower, Aditya Birla Education Trust
Nirja Birla is an Indian social worker, educator and mental health worker. He holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Derby. He founded Empower to focus on improving mental health, removing stigma, and creating awareness.
She is the Chairperson of Aditya Birla World Academy, First and Board Member of Make-A-Wish Foundation and is actively involved in the non-profit organization Muktangan, Save the Children and Seva Sadan.
Dr. Poonam Sahgal is a former director of IIM Lucknow
Dr. Poonam Sehgal is Professor of Organization Behavior at the Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow. He is also the Director of the Institute, Noida Campus. Dr. Sehgal holds a Masters in Psychology from Delhi University and a PhD in Management from the Faculty of Recognized Sensitivity Instructors, University of Delhi. He was previously a Visiting Scholar at the Kellogg Graduate School of Management, USA, and has more than 3 decades of experience in teaching, consulting, research and training.
Dr. Sehgal has consulted extensively with corporate and international organizations on organizational change, design and implementation of HR systems, and evaluations. He has authored and co-authored four books and several research articles.
Shantishree Dhulipuri Pandit, VC, JNU
Santishree Dhulipuri Pandit is the first female Vice Chancellor of Jawaharlal Nehru University. Prior to this appointment, he was the Vice Chancellor of Savitribai Phule University, Maharashtra.
Pandit holds an MPhil and PhD degree from Jawaharlal Nehru University and is a member of the American Studies Research Institute, Hyderabad, Indian Association of American Studies, All India Political Science Association, Bhandarkar Oriental Research. Indian Secular Society, etc.
He authored two books: Parliament of India and Foreign Policy (1990) and Restructuring Environmental Governance in Asia-Ethics and Policy (2003).
Sudha Murthy, Chairperson, Infosys Foundation
Sudha Murthy is the chairperson of Infosys Foundation. He is an Indian businessman, teacher, writer and social worker. Murthy became the first female engineer to be hired by Tata Engineering and Locomotive Company. He taught engineering and started the Infosys Foundation.
Murthy has written novels, technical books, travelogues, collections of short stories and non-fiction pieces and books for children in English and Kannada. His books have been translated into all major Indian languages.
Dr. Swarup Rawal, Educationist
Dr. Swarup Rawal is an Indian actress and educator. He has a PhD. Education degree from Worcester University. He has traveled across India to empower teachers and impart life skills to students in government primary schools.
At the 4th International Early Childhood Conference in 2016, Rawal was awarded the ‘Most Promising Person of the Year in Inclusive Education’. She was one of the top 10 finalists for the Global Teacher Award, conducted by the Varkey Foundation, out of 10,000 nominations from 179 countries. He also wrote a book: ‘Brief Learning Disabilities: Dyslexia, Dysgraphia, Dyscalculia, Dyspraxia’.
Dr. Binita S. Sahay, Director, Indian Institute of Management, Bodh Gaya
Dr. Binita S. Sahay is the Director, Indian Institute of Management, Bodh Gaya. He has done PhD in Customer Value from CSJM University, Kanpur. He has published six books on management, five cases, numerous research papers and attended regular workshops and conferences.
Dr. Sahay received the Best Teacher Award in Marketing Management for Business School Affair and Dewang Mehta B-School 2011 and won the ‘Gold Medal’ for excelling in MA (Economics). Her interests in research include marketing of services, retail management, retail supply chain management, customer value and customer satisfaction, customer relationship management and trust and relationships in the supply chain.
BW Education ‘Most Influential Women’ is an annual initiative to celebrate the leadership consciousness of women educators.