The challenges arising out of our education system are multifaceted. These range from high dropout rates, poor learning-levels, to inequity in access to quality education. These also include high prevalence of rote-learning, marks orientation, lack of accountability, and inadequate teacher preparation. These issues are systemic. They need to be addressed through deliberate, long-term and sustained planning to build capacities. Creating public awareness and engagement is also critical.
At Wipro Foundation, we partner with Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) for capacity building of important actors in the school education system to bring about desired reforms. We firmly believe that education is an enabler of social change. We envision a democracy where every citizen is empowered.
We envisage this empowerment in terms of individual capacity building. However, for us, this process also entails the development of a culture that values the ethics of equity and the essentiality of diversity. Such a culture, is thus, marked by an ethos of justice. It is also driven by social sensitivity. Schools must be spaces nurturing these principles, capabilities and values.
Our notion of good education focuses on the holistic development of the child. This process encompasses multiple dimensions, including cognitive, social, emotional, physical and ethical abilities. This journey of development must help fulfil and expand their potential, as they become active, contributing and concerned citizens of the world. Learning-to-learn, critical thinking, problem-solving, conceptual understanding, etc., are some of the other important attainments that an effective education system must foster in its learners.
Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) and public institutions have played a critical role in improving school education through sustained work and a wide range of creative interventions. Their work has had a direct impact on the ground. It has also led to shifts in educational discourse and in practice. There is a burgeoning need for CSOs to address the evolving challenges of school education in the country.
The Wipro Education Fellowship Program has been designed to contribute to the systemic improvement of Indian school education. It does this by supporting early-stage CSOs focused on school education. Given the size, diversity and complexity of our country, we believe that there is a need for a large and vibrant ecosystem of educational organizations, to make an impact on our school education system.
The Fellowship Program was launched in 2015-16. Its objective is to support the creation and development of a significant number of new educational organizations. We hope that these can then contribute meaningfully, and in a sustained manner, to the Indian school education system.
The program selects and partners with committed and capable individuals and teams, who share our vision of quality education being made available to every Indian child. We provide a three-year Fellowship to founding team members. This aims to help them set up effective educational organizations in domains and geographies of their choice.
Since inception, the fellowship program has assisted ~90 early-stage organizations and 155 individuals to establish NGOs in specific domains and locations in 60+ districts across the country. These organizations also focus on vulnerable communities. Along with a stipend, fellows are able to access a plethora of capacity building offerings facilitated by Wipro Foundation. These include workshops, mentoring support, and networking opportunities with other educational CSOs within our partner network.
Applications are now closed for this grant
Demonstrated Capacities and CommitmentThe program supports individuals or teams who have already demonstrated certain capacities. They must also show serious commitment to the social/ education sector. This is assessed through their past involvements and associations. These must usually include at least two to three years of full-time engagement with education and/or allied developmental issues.
Clear Organizational Objectives
The program aims to facilitate the development of stable educational CSOs. These are envisaged to create long-term engagements in school education. Thus, we have clear organization building expectations from the individuals and teams we support.
Engagement with Class/School Issues
We recognize that issues outside schools and classrooms (such as those related to community, nutrition and health, etc.) are important for effective education. However, we want to foster the development of effective educational NGOs, which can have systemic impact. For this, the founding team must be willing and able to engage directly with children and teachers, and within-class/school issues. These include a wide range of curricular and pedagogic aspects.
Focused Approach
Education requires some degree of specialized knowledge. Effective educational NGOs are often willing to go deeper into a few educational domains and disciplines. This may be seen in contrast to generalists who attempt to address all educational issues or play the role of mediators. An example of the latter may include providing readymade content available to a set of schools.
Supportive Teams
For organizations to develop and sustain over the long run, it is important to build a team of individuals with allied sensibilities and interests. These may be along the axes of geographies, educational domains, and social groups and demographics. The founders should also be able to provide constructive feedback to each other and complement each other’s strengths and weaknesses.
Nature of Support
The selection process involves the following steps:
Shortlisted applicants can expect to hear from us within eight weeks of applying. Due to the high volume of applications we receive, we will be unable to write back to all the applicants. It will also not be possible for us to respond to individual queries regarding the status of an application.
We expect applicants to be actively building or running an organization that is working towards strengthening the public education system. Volunteer teaching would not, in itself, meet the criteria for the Fellowship Program.
The Fellowship is offered for applicants currently working on a full-time basis or intending to work full-time, on their initiative. Furthermore, your NGO must be actively engaging with the public education system, or have a clear plan to do so. Providing evening classes, will not in itself, meet the criteria for the Fellowship Program.
The Fellowship requires applicants to be working with, or have a clear intention and plan to work with the public education system. Running your own school, does not in itself, meet the criteria for the Fellowship Program.
Fellows must be based in the location where the initiative is being implemented. We are open to applications from anywhere in India.
The Fellowship is offered to a maximum of three founders/leaders of an organization. We expect Fellows to be working full-time on the initiative and be holding a leadership/decision-making role within the organization. If there is more than one applicant from the same organization/initiative, each individual is requested to register on the platform and fill the form separately.
Yes, you may apply. However, to be considered for the Fellowship we would expect there to be a clear plan to register the organization within the next few months.
The Fellowship stipend can be used as needed by the Fellow, towards salaries, programmatic expenses or other components that will help the organization conduct their work on their educational initiative.
We welcome applicants who have undertaken an academic qualification in the education domain. However, applicants must be working on their initiative or intending to work on their initiative on a full-time basis. Applicants currently pursuing a full-time academic course would not be eligible for the Fellowship.
The Fellowship program does not stipulate a particular pedagogical approach to be adopted by the team. We are open to applicants who have chosen to focus on a specific subject/thematic area.
We prioritize teams that are in the early stages of building their organization. However, we are open to considering applicants who are already being funded by other organizations, as long as the funding is for programs aligned to the initiative being proposed to Wipro.
The Fellowship stipend is paid quarterly, into the bank account of individual Fellows. TDS will be deducted from the stipend. We can provide a TDS certificate if required.
Yes, we support organizations from multiple thematic areas under education.
Due to the high volume of applications we receive, we will be unable to reply to all applicants. In case you don’t hear form us within eight weeks, you may consider that we are not going forward with your application.
We regret that we will not be able to respond to individual queries by phone or email after you have applied. If you have queries regarding the program, please refer to our website. For specific queries, that are not addressed on the website, you may contact us here.
Wipro Foundation is the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) entity of Wipro Limited. Going back over two decades, we focus on social initiatives in the domains of Education, Primary Healthcare, Ecology, Disaster Response, and Cities & Public Spaces.
Sachin Bansal heads finance function for Wipro Consumer Care & Lighting in India and South Asia.
He moved to Wipro Consumer Care in 2022 and prior to that was the head of finance of Wipro Infrastructure Engineering (WIN). He joined WIN in 2007 and over the last 15 years has essayed several roles including Plant Finance, India Hydraulic Business Finance, Global Operations Finance and Mergers & Acquisitions.
A qualified Chartered Accountant and a Black Belt in Six Sigma, Sachin has led several successful initiatives to streamline and strengthen the Finance function. As part of the leadership team of WIN, he played a pivotal role in driving profitable growth with improved focus on ROCE, Productivity and Cost Optimization.
Isaac George has held several positions at Wipro across Sales & Marketing, Consulting, and IT Operations for over two decades. Since 2014, he has been leading People Function and Employee Relations at Wipro Infrastructure Engineering. Isaac also heads the group’s social initiatives efforts and works towards creating an inclusive environment for Persons with Disabilities.
Samir Gadgil is the Head HR for the Chief Growth Office and all Corporate Functions at Wipro. He is also Wipro Cares’ Pune Location Head.
Previously, Samir has worked as Head – HR for Digital Operations & Platforms and managed multiple initiatives under HR and People Supply Chain Functions, including Talent Acquisition, Talent Transformation, Workforce Management, Facilities & Transport.
A seasoned professional, Samir has also served as the Global Head- Compensation, and Benefits at Wipro and worked with best-in-class Manufacturing, Consulting, Financial, and IT Service Companies in a career spanning over two decades.
Narayan P S is the Global Head of Sustainability and Social Initiatives at Wipro Ltd. He is also the Managing Trustee at Wipro Foundation, the social initiatives arm of Wipro Ltd. He has been instrumental in the creation of Wipro’s sustainability initiative and has stewarded it since its inception in early 2008. Wipro’s sustainability charter is built on the core principle that business and social purpose must reinforce each other in addressing several key challenges around ecology and the environment, education, and communities.
In addition, Narayan is Visiting Faculty at the Azim Premji University where he teaches ‘Ecology and Development’ in the MA ( Development) program. He is also a Visiting Faculty at Xavier School of Sustainability, Xavier University, Bhubaneswar. Narayan also conducts learning sessions regularly on Sustainability at IIM Bangalore and IIM Indore.
Narayan’s interests center around (i) the broad interplay between Ecology, Economics, and Humanities (ii) the role of the business sector as a change agent in sustainable development (iii) Sustainability in Education, and (iv) Sustainable and Inclusive Cities.
Prior to the current role, Narayan was the Global Head of Information Systems for Wipro’s IT business, when he was chosen as one of CIO’s global 25 Ones to Watch.
A graduate in Electrical Engineering with a post-graduation in Management, Narayan has more than twenty-seven years of cross-disciplinary experience in Business Development, Enterprise Systems, and Corporate Sustainability. He is also involved in sustainability advocacy as a member of several industry forums on sustainability. He is currently the Chairman of the CII-GBC Greenco forum for Bangalore.
Vikrant has recently joined to lead the human resources function for Wipro Enterprises which includes Wipro Infrastructure Engineering (WIN) and Wipro Consumer Care & Lighting businesses.
Vikrant comes with 25 years of diverse global leadership experience in Strategic Talent Management, Mergers & Acquisitions, Organization Design, Cultural Transformation & Change Management, D&I, and Leadership Coaching & Development across Services, Manufacturing, Retail and Technology industries. Besides Human Resources, Vikrant has also led roles across Finance & Audit.
With a career spanning L&T, GE Healthcare, Nike, Accenture, HCL, and Harman International, Vikrant has a distinguished track record and is an alumnus of the Symbiosis Institute of Business Management, Pune.
Aparna C. Iyer is Wipro’s Chief Financial Officer.
Aparna joined Wipro in 2003 and over the years has held several finance roles, including Internal Audit, Business Finance, Finance Planning and Analysis, Corporate Treasury, and Investor Relations (IR).
Most recently, Aparna was Senior Vice President and CFO of Wipro FullStride Cloud, leading finance operations for one Wipro’s fastest growing global business lines.
Prior to taking over as CFO of Wipro FullStride Cloud, Aparna was the Corporate Treasurer and Head of Investor Relations for Wipro Limited. As a part of that role, she was responsible for building and executing forex risk management framework, investment of surplus cash, working capital management, customer credit risk evaluation, driving capital allocation decisions, managing balance sheet exposure as well as investor and analyst relationships.
As the Head of Treasury & IR, Aparna devised Wipro’s forex strategy, aiding the operating margin performance of the company, and driving improved predictability.
Aparna is a Chartered Accountant (CA) and was a gold medalist of the CA 2002 batch.
Saurabh Govil is the Chief Human Resources Officer at Wipro, and a member of the Management Team. He leads all Wipro’s HR functions, including talent acquisition, talent engagement, and learning and development programs.
Saurabh has been a HR practitioner for over two decades, and has worked with organizations like ITC and GE. Since joining Wipro in May, 2009, he has been instrumental in transforming the organization. His work with people, processes, and organizational structure over the last three years has contributed significantly to Wipro’s growth, improving operations and introducing many new initiatives.
Saurabh is an alumnus of XLRI, Jamshedpur where he completed his master’s in human resources. He is on the advisory board of SHRM India. Saurabh has been a regular speaker at NASSCOM’s HR summit. He also contributes to NHRDN’s journal as an author.
Anurag Behar is the Chief Sustainability Officer of Wipro Limited & Vice-Chancellor, Azim Premji University.
Anurag is a member of the Committee that has developed India’s National Education Policy (2019), the first comprehensive education policy for the country, since 1986. He has been deeply engaged with efforts to improve education in India, for the past seventeen years.
He has been a vocal advocate for the critical importance of public systems, in particular the public education system. His many years in business have given him an insider’s view of both the possibilities and limits of markets. For the past few years, he has also been engaged with environmental and ecological issues. He writes widely, including a fortnightly column for the national newspapers Mint & Hindustan, and other publications.
Anurag has earlier played leadership roles in business. As the CEO of Wipro Infrastructure Engineering, he led the business from being No. 20 in the world to being the No. 1 in 5 years. He has also been responsible for many corporate functions for Wipro including Brand, Quality, and Innovation. He continues to provide oversight to the social and ecological initiatives of the Wipro Group, as its Chief Sustainability Officer. He is a member of Wipro’s Group Executive Council.
Anurag has served on various boards including that of Wipro GE Healthcare Ltd, The University of Trans-Disciplinary Health Sciences, and of the TERI University. He serves on many government & sector councils, such as MHRD’s EQUIP, the National Mission on Teachers and Teacher Education, the Government of India implementation committee for the Justice Verma Commission, Karnataka Knowledge Commission, and with the CII’s National Climate Change Council.
He has an MBA from XLRI, Jamshedpur, and a BE in Electrical & Electronics Engineering from the National Institute of Technology, Trichy. Both institutions have honored him with their Distinguished Alumnus award. He was elected as a ‘Young Global Leader’, by the World Economic Forum in 2008. He enjoys long-distance running.
Narayan P S is the Global Head of Sustainability and Social Initiatives at Wipro Ltd. He is also the Managing Trustee at Wipro Foundation, the social initiatives arm of Wipro Ltd. He has been instrumental in the creation of Wipro’s sustainability initiative and has stewarded it since its inception in early 2008. Wipro’s sustainability charter is built on the core principle that business and social purpose must reinforce each other in addressing several key challenges around ecology and the environment, education, and communities.
In addition, Narayan is Visiting Faculty at the Azim Premji University where he teaches ‘Ecology and Development’ in the MA ( Development) program. He is also a Visiting Faculty at Xavier School of Sustainability, Xavier University, Bhubaneswar. Narayan also conducts learning sessions regularly on Sustainability at IIM Bangalore and IIM Indore.
Narayan’s interests center around (i) the broad interplay between Ecology, Economics, and Humanities (ii) the role of the business sector as a change agent in sustainable development (iii) Sustainability in Education, and (iv) Sustainable and Inclusive Cities.
Prior to the current role, Narayan was the Global Head of Information Systems for Wipro’s IT business, when he was chosen as one of CIO’s global 25 Ones to Watch.
A graduate in Electrical Engineering with a post-graduation in Management, Narayan has more than twenty-seven years of cross-disciplinary experience in Business Development, Enterprise Systems, and Corporate Sustainability. He is also involved in sustainability advocacy as a member of several industry forums on sustainability. He is currently the Chairman of the CII-GBC Greenco forum for Bangalore.
