Nilam Thakkar
| Grant Category: | Fulbright Distinguished Awards in Teaching Program for International Teachers |
| Project Title: | Explore the psychological, social, and emotional effects that growing up in marginalized conditions has on children's learning abilities and research sustainable interventions and teaching strategies to enhance their learning capacity and resilience |
| Field of Study: | Special Education (Math and Foreign Languages) |
| Home Institution: | Manav Gulzar Open School, Ahmedabad, Gujarat |
| Host Institution: | University of Rochester , Rochester, NY |
| Grant Start Month: | August 2025 |
| Duration of Grant: | Four months |
Brief Bio:
Ms. Nilam Thakkar is an educator with over 15 years of experience at NGO Manav Sadhna. Through its Prathma remedial education program, she has been teaching 4th and 5th graders while serving as Principal, and training 12 teachers on holistic values-based education. She also developed the Prathma curriculum, which includes workbooks, assessments, and teacher training modules.
She holds a Primary Teacher’s Training diploma (PTC), a B.Ed., and an MA from Gujarat University. She has pursued professional development through programs such as Social Emotional Learning (SEL) facilitation, done pedagogy training with Teach for India, and Waldorf Education training. Her dedication to education has been recognized with the Women of Excellence Award (2023) and the Wonder Woman Award (2019).
Since 2016, she has been a member of the selection committee of the Gujarat State Child Care and Protection Department, selecting members for the Child Welfare Committee and Juvenile Justice Board across 33 districts.
As a Fulbright DAI fellow, Nilam aims to explore innovative educational approaches to address the psychological, social, and emotional challenges faced by children from disadvantaged backgrounds.
Her project focuses on creating sustainable interventions to enhance students’ cognitive skills, motivation, and self-confidence. She plans to design a teacher’s guide and training modules to empower teachers and foster supportive learning environments. Her vision is to integrate these strategies into her school system and share her learnings with NGOs and schools, ensuring holistic child development and academic progress for underserved communities.