HOUSTON, TX(TIP): Rajeev Aluru is all set to lead Ekal Vidyalaya’s educational initiatives as its Houston Chapter President. Ekal’s youngest president is clearly energized about his new role which he describes as “a divine opportunity that knocked on my door.” A relatively new Houstonian (he moved from North Carolina in 2020), Rajeev, 41, outlined his vision for Ekal with the leadership in Houston. Rajeev’s journey with Ekal began in 2014 in North Carolina when he accepted an invitation to a fundraiser dinner from a colleague. Rajeev became an active volunteer and developed a keen understanding of the foundational impact Ekal was making in rural India’s education. Today the Ekal movement, started in 1989 with one village and one school, has the distinction of overseeing over one lakh schools offering free schooling, vocational training, digital competence, agricultural education and much more. After his engineering degree in India, Rajeev enrolled in Auburn University, Alabama. As we face a post Covid world, Rajeev realizes the need to rewrite Ekal’s outreach strategies. His team is drafting a model to facilitate entrepreneurship, jobs, avenues to profits and an approach that will empower villages to a point where “they don’t need us anymore.” He intends to create a program to encourage donors to visit Ekal schools in India to witness first-hand how their contributions are benefiting millions of underprivileged children. The organization will also leverage digital marketing to augment Ekal’s presence beyond the traditional fundraising events. The new president has an ambitious one million dollar benchmark for this year’s fundraising.