iNDICA NEWS BUREAU–
Three Indian American women will receive the 2024 Power of Women award, instituted by Global Silicon Valley (GSV), a multi-stage venture capital firm, with offices in San Francisco, Chicago and New York. In a statement, the company said that the award recognizes influential female leaders that facilitate equal access to the future through the promise of education.
Bijal Shah (above left), Anupama Vaid (above center) and Shalinee Sharma (above right) are the three Indian American women named in a list of 14 achievers for 2024 that include “CEOs, presidents, and founders who are redefining “Pre-K to Gray” learning so that ALL people have equal access to the future.”
The honorees are scheduled to receive their award at the ASU+GSV Summit 2024 in April in San Diego, California.
An official statement said, “This year’s Power of Women (#POW!) Award honors remarkable female leaders who don’t just react to change and challenge: they revolutionize. These women aren’t afraid to innovate and iterate, and their staggering impact ripples throughout the education and workforce skills ecosystem,” an official statement said.
Bijal Shah is currently the interim CEO of Guild, which offers curated education, learning programs, and career assistance to help working adults with upskilling and career mobility. Guild works with such firms as Walmart, Discover, Hilton, Target, The Walt Disney Company, and healthcare systems like Providence Health and UCHealth.
Prior to Guild, Shah held executive and leadership roles at Ibotta and in corporate strategy at Visa. She works with the board of directors of Girls, Inc. and was named one of Denver Business Journals’ 40 under 40 honorees.
Anupama Vaid is the president and founder at ParentSquare, an interactive, online system designed to help schools and parents to become informed, active participants in children’s learning.
She said the idea of crafting the platform occurred to her in 2010, when her children were young, and she realized the need for better, more equitable communication between schools and families. “I am deeply humbled to be selected for the Power of Women award by the GSV,” she wrote on her LinkedIn account. “Despite the challenges that women often face, I’ve been fortunate not to see the limits that others perceive. I credit this to the incredible support, mentorship, and belief from those around me. This recognition is a heartfelt thank you to all my colleagues, friends, and family.”
Shalinee Sharma is CEO and co-founder of Zearn, a non-profit educational software organization. In 2012, her company launched Zearn Math to help elementary students understand mathematical concepts through pictures, models, and real-life examples.
Sharma is an alumna Harvard Business School and Brown University, and serves on the board of Braven, whose “mission is to empower first-generation college students, students of color, and those from low-income backgrounds by equipping them with skills, networks, experiences, and confidence to secure strong first jobs.”
She is a co-chair of the Brown University Advisory Council. In a LinkedIn post, Sharma said, “Honored to be selected for a Power of Women Award, looking forward to attending the ASU+GSV Summit.”
Sharma was recently recognized on International Women’s Day by Rivet Education for “her bold ideas and unflinching commitment to instilling the belief that ‘all kids are math kids.”
Three Indian Americans named in Global Silicon Valley’s ‘2024 Power of Women’ awards
