Our governing Board
Experts in their diverse fields, our board of directors comprises leaders and philanthropists who are committed to our cause of transforming lives and maximising the social impact we can bring about with education, across our various programmes all over the country.
Rashmi Misra, Founder Chairperson
Rashmi Misra, the Founder President of VIDYA, began her career as a German language teacher and pursued her passion as an Odissi dancer. Her professional journey spanned various sectors, enriching her with diverse experiences that would later shape her mission. In 1985, she founded VIDYA, initially teaching a small group of children in her home. Under her leadership, VIDYA has grown into a nationally recognized organization, transforming the lives of over 6.5 lakh children, youth, and women across India. Her vision led to the creation of holistic programs that emphasize education, skill development, and social empowerment. Through her tireless dedication, VIDYA now operates in major cities like Delhi, Gurugram, Mumbai, Bangalore, and Pune, offering comprehensive support to underserved communities.
Rashmi’s leadership has been pivotal in building VIDYA’s reputation as a transformative force in the education sector. Her approach goes beyond traditional academics, focusing on the overall development of individuals, empowering them to rise above their circumstances and become change-makers in their communities. Her journey from a teacher and artist to a social change leader is a testament to her passion for education and her unwavering commitment to social upliftment.
Malavika Goyal
Has been associated with VIDYA for more than 20 years. She has played a significant role in establishing and strengthening the volunteer program of VIDYA and in providing education to children, youth and women of the Pappankalan community in Dwarka. As the Vice chairperson, she has been helping the team in developing effective administration and management systems at VIDYA.
Pratima Goel
Joined VIDYA in 1993 and immediately connected to the VIDYA ideology. As a psychologist and counsellor she worked towards ensuring emotional and mental health well-being across the community centres and schools and today has a team for counselling sessions on life skills. She is involved in imparting vocational skills to the women in the community.
Indu Mahajan
An academician with a Master’s in Public Administration and History, Induji started out as a Geography teacher at Modern School, Vasant Vihar. She was also Head of Department and Academic Head there. For the past 24 years, she has enhanced VIDYA’s pedagogy. A gardening enthusiast, she is also passionate about sports and dramatics. Her goal is to elevate community education standards throughout VIDYA.
Dilruba Kalsi
An alumnus of Convent of Jesus and Mary School, and a Masters in History from Lady Shri Ram College, Dilruba Kalsi taught at Sardar Patel Vidyalaya. She was also Vice-Principal, and then Principal of Cambridge School. She then became Director of the Educational Resources Centre of the Society for the Advancement of Education that governs the Cambridge Schools. She is currently Executive Director PAN India at VIDYA and is also the Manager of the VIDYA School in Gurugram.
Shoma Bakre
A co-founder of Empower Research and then a part of Genpact, Shoma voluntarily retired from corporate life to pursue her passion for social development. She has been actively involved in helping, various organisations, both at the grassroots and strategic level. Shoma has more than 20 years of experience in diverse areas including CSR, entrepreneurship, media, human resources management, business development, corporate training and teaching. She recently established Let’s Do Some Good Foundation, a social responsibility platform for all stakeholders who would like to come together to bring about positive social change.
Meenakshi Roy
Ms. Meenakshi is a Gold Medalist in MA English. She has experience of over 24 years as an educationist involved in teaching as well as positions of leadership. In the course of her career, she served as Senior school coordinator, CIE coordinator, IB Head and School Principal. She served as an Ex-principal of VIDYA School, Gurugram from June 2009 to September 2014. And is now on the VIDYA board as a member since 2015.
Bandana Agarwal
A multi-disciplinary artist who loves working with lines, forms, colours and textures, Bandana designs and conducts experiential workshops for all age groups, giving a contemporary bent to heritage Art n Craft. Along with the creativity, she is also a professional in the CSR/Non-Profit sector where she has worked in senior positions since 2005. Prior to this, for 18 years, she was a business/program manager and developer in the field of e-learning/CBT.
Sarita Shahi
MA in English, B.ed Gold Medalist, experience of more than 35 years as an educationist, involved in teaching English. She was also Headmistress in Modern School, Vasant Vihar. Her association with VIDYA began 10 years ago as an esteemed board member and in her words - “it has been a truly inspiring journey that has given me an insight into the other, invisible India which is all around us but which we often forget…The team and faculty here are a dedicated bunch full of positivity and the never say die spirit.”
Vaishali Nigam Sinha
The Co-founder of ReNew, a leading decarbonization solutions company listed on NASDAQ. As Chairperson of Sustainability, Vaishali has been responsible for ReNew's emergence as a global ESG trailblazer, advancing the Net-Zero agenda, and delivering outcome-driven ESG strategies with top global rankings. Vaishali is also the Founding Chair of the ReNew Foundation-the company's philanthropic arm-driving the ReNew India Initiative for pathbreaking work in corporate social responsibility.
Nityakalyani Ramasubramaniam
Current Head of Academics at VIDYA Integrated Development for Youth and Adults. Formerly Head of Learning at Change.org India, she crafted impactful educational programs focusing on women's issues. She has led projects across diverse school settings, ensuring quality education regardless of resources. As Head of Technology at Vasant Valley School, she pioneered student-led ICT-based learning. Nitya is a firm advocate for contextualized educational interventions, evident in her work across India and Bhutan.
Uma Ramchandran
Ms. Uma Ramchandran, former Academic Director of Indus World School under Career Launcher, is an experienced educator with a postgraduate degree from IIT Delhi. With three decades of expertise in research, business, and academics, she now consults non-profit schools and curriculum designers, focusing on integrating spirituality into education. Uma advocates for a balanced spiritual, emotional, and cognitive development in students, believing it fosters purpose and societal impact. As an advisory board member of VIDYA, she also specializes in designing 21st-century K-12 curricula and training educators.