India Fellows Years: Indian Fellows 2022-2023

Anushree Malik

Dr. Anushree Malik is Institute Chair Professor at Centre for Rural Development and Technology, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi, New Delhi. She works in the broad area of biological waste treatment, algal biorefineries, and resource recovery. She has been leading several carbon negative-integrated algal biorefinery projects targeting at least six sustainable development goals via product formulation as well as technology development for on-site municipal and industrial effluent’s treatment.

Dr. Malik received her Ph.D. from IIT Delhi, New Delhi in 2000. Subsequently, she worked as JSPS post-doctoral fellow at Utsumoniya University, Japan and as an Assistant Professor at School of Environmental Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi before joining IIT Delhi in 2004. She had successful international collaborations with Netherlands, Sri Lanka, Brazil, besides many national projects and industrial collaborations. Dr. Malik received the DST-Lockheed Martin India Innovation Growth Program Award (2015), BRSI Fellow Award (2019), and also featured in a list of 75 women in STEAM disciplines, an honor jointly bestowed by the Government of India and the British High Commission.

Dr. Malik’s Fulbright-Kalam project aims to design an experimental framework for 3D printing specific algal-bacterial communities with well-defined architectures and compositions. The studies will enhance our understanding of how such defined algal-bacterial communities contribute to carbon sequestration in response to environmental stresses, and whether carbon sorption and release turn close loop with algal communities trapping biogenic CO2. For her teaching component, Dr. Malik plans to teach courses related to Biofuels and Green Chemistry.

Subhasish Basu Majumder

Dr. Subhasish Basu Majumder is a Professor in the Materials Science Center at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur, West Bengal. In recent years, he has been actively involved in the development of lithium/sodium ion rechargeable batteries, battery/supercapacitor hybrid and semiconducting metal oxide chemiresistive gas sensors.

Dr. Basu Majumder received his Ph.D. from Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur. As a researcher he has worked in the USA and Germany before joining IIT Kharagpur as a faculty member in 2006. He is now working on several national missions funded by the Government of India. Dr. Basu Majumder is a recipient of the Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship for experienced researchers (2004-2005). He is currently serving as an editorial board member of Scientific Reports (Nature) and Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics (IOP Sciences). He is a Fellow of the West Bengal Academy of Science and Technology and a recipient of the Materials Research Society of India medal.

The Lithium–Sulphur battery is far more environmentally friendly as it uses only scarce lithium, has significantly higher specific energy density than lithium-ion cells, and is easier to recycle.

Dr. Basu Majumder’s Fulbright–Kalam project aims to develop a facile one-step scalable process to increase the loading and conductivity of sulphur; retard long chain polysulphides shuttling, tackle volumetric fluctuation of active particles and inhibit the lithium anode corrosion together with its dendritic growth during discharge – charge cycles. The developed Li – S system would yield increased discharge capacity with excellent cycleability and rate performance.

Bhavna Sawnani

Ms. Bhavna Sawnani is Officer on Special Duty (OSD) at the head office of the Directorate of Education, Delhi and Lecturer of Biology. With master’s degrees in zoology, education, and English, Ms. Sawnani has worked in the field of education for the past 21 years and as a mentor teacher for six years.

During her tenure as a teacher, she worked on several science projects and her models were recognized at the state level for their innovative approach. She was awarded the State Teachers’ Award – Delhi and Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan Award for her significant contributions in the field of education. Ms. Sawnani is Editor of Dilli Shiksha magazine and quarterly school science magazine; in-charge of the social media team of the Delhi Directorate of Education and alumni projects; and coordinator of all delegates from India and abroad. She has also represented Delhi at several international conferences and has served as a panelist in several educational programs. As a mentor teacher, Ms. Sawnani observed her colleagues’ classes, offered feedback for improvement, conducted staff meetings and workshops for teachers, developed curriculum for the Delhi Board of Education, and designed several books.

During her Fulbright TEA program, Ms. Sawnani is learning pedagogical tools used by teachers to make classrooms accessible and inclusive. She further intends to work with parents of children with disabilities and bring them together as a community. She aims to disseminate insights gained from her stay in the U.S. to parents and teachers in her communities back home.

Shreya Sarkar

Dr. Shreya Sarkar is working as a guest researcher at the GNSS Laboratory, Department of Physics, University of Burdwan, West Bengal. She has worked in collaboration with different space agencies across the globe and published several peer-reviewed papers in reputed national and international journals. She obtained scholarships from the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA), Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), and ISU, France. In 2019, Dr. Sarkar was the only Indian who received a grant from UNOOSA for presenting her research work at the UN/Fiji Workshop on the Applications of Global Navigation Satellite Systems. At this workshop, she also acted as the rapporteur for one of the sessions. She received the prestigious Quarterly Franklin Membership from the London Journals Press. She is also a member of the Women in Aerospace network, Europe; the Space Generation Advisory Council, Austria; and an editorial board member of two Scientific International Open Access Journals.

After pursuing her Ph.D. in physics, Dr. Sarkar obtained her second master’s in space science from the International Space University (ISU), France. She has been teaching physics for the past 16 years at a government sponsored school in West Bengal. Earlier, she worked as a guest lecturer in different graduate, postgraduate, and engineering colleges in West Bengal. She actively organizes science fairs, science seminars, and visits to university research laboratories. As a science teacher, Dr. Sarkar strives to inspire students in science education. To this end, she is conducting virtual space tours for Indian students visiting the central campus of ISU, France and is mentoring her students’ research work on UN’s sustainable goals.

Through her participation in the Fulbright TEA program, Dr. Sarkar hopes to achieve her vision of building a global teacher network. She aims to utilize her insights from the program to create an all-inclusive joyful learning experience for the all-round development of students. She also wants to further her work of including space education in the school curriculum.

Nijoy P Jose

Dr. Nijoy P Jose is a higher secondary school teacher and trainer of the English language at St. Thomas Higher Secondary School in Pala, Kerala, and a life skill trainer certified by Junior Chamber International. He has a master’s, an M.Phil., and a Ph.D. in English. Through his 21 years of teaching experience, he has worked as a student trainer, a teacher trainer, and a trainers’ trainer. Dr. Jose is also a columnist and the author of three books. He has received many awards and recognitions from various firms, including the Manorama Online Thought Leader Fellowship 2022.

Through his participation in the Fulbright TEA program, Dr. Jose aims to be academically sharp and socially productive. The program is helping him learn about the global scenario of the teaching-learning process and interactions with native speakers of the English language are helping him reimagine his language-learning classrooms back home. He further believes that the FTEA program will help him in developing strategies to address the challenges faced by marginalized groups while learning English.

A. Madhu Babu

Mr. Madhu Babu is a teacher and trainer of the English language at the Z.P. High School, Brahmanatarla, Andhra Pradesh and an e-content developer for the State Council for Education Research and Training, Andhra Pradesh (APSCERT). In his extensive teaching experience of 27 years, he has developed several classroom videos and conducted workshops on career guidance, life skills, and communication skills for students and teachers. His classroom practices are fun-filled, student-friendly, and designed to help students tackle real-world challenges. In recognition of his role in improving communication skills among children from rural areas in India, Mr. Babu received the National Best Teacher Award in 2020. He has a master’s in English and a bachelor’s in education. He also has a diploma in ELT from the Regional Institute of English, Bengaluru.

Through his participation in the prestigious Fulbright TEA program, Mr. Babu is exploring the role of teaching strategies in promoting employability skills among students. Upon his return to India at the end of the program, he hopes to share the insights gained during his stay in the U.S. with his students and colleagues.

Rameez Ahmad

Mr. Rameez Ahmad is a progressive educator based out of Kashmir. He has 12 years of teaching experience in classroom teaching and teacher training. His areas of work include social-emotional learning (SEL), school safety, and Indian polity. He has a bachelor’s in science and a master’s in disaster management. He completed diplomas in remote sensing, mass communication and journalism.

Mr. Ahmad is passionate about community work and is associated with national and international organizations, such as the Indian Society of Red Cross (IRCS) and UNICEF. He has presented his work on education at various international and national conferences, including IIM Ahmedabad and IIT Bombay. He is also a recipient of a scholarship from Emory University, Atlanta to study cognitively based compassion training (CBCT).

The Fulbright TEA program has widened Mr. Ahmad’s imagination and helped him think of diverse methods and pedagogical interventions in education. He received rigorous training at UMass on best teaching practices. The major highlights of this training were collaboration within school systems, divergent thinking, and creative use of instructional technology. Since his return to India, Mr. Ahmad has been sharing his learnings with his community through workshops and training sessions. He has initiated an SEL project at his school. He has also initiated joint projects with the U.S. academia and students to facilitate cross-cultural understanding for the promotion of safety, peace, and well-being of children.

Satya Sundar Sethy

Dr. Satya Sundar Sethy is Associate Professor of Philosophy at the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Chennai, India. He has served at Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) as Assistant Professor in the Staff Training and Research Institute of Distance Education (STRIDE), New Delhi. He is the recipient of the prestigious Young Philosopher Award 2017, conferred by the Indian Council of Philosophical Research, Ministry of Education, Government of India. He has published several papers in prestigious journals and contributed chapters to the edited books. His publications include the books Introduction to Logic and Logical Discourse (2021), Higher Education and Professional Ethics: Roles and Responsibilities of Teachers (edited, 2018), Assessment of Learner Performance (With Mishra, S., 2018), Meaning and Language (2016), Contemporary Ethical Issues in Engineering (edited, 2015), and Indian Philosophy: Orthodox Systems (2010). His current research interests are consciousness studies; Aristotelian logic; analytic philosophy; Indian philosophy; professional ethics, especially academic ethics and engineering ethics; engineering education; and assessment and evaluation in higher education.

During his Fulbright grant, Dr. Sethy is engaged with teaching, research, and public lecture activities at the host institution and several universities in Utah, USA. He is involved in Philosophy course curriculum design and teaching a few courses to Humanities students. He is delivering guest lectures on ‘Engineering Ethics’ and ‘Engineering Education’ issues to engineering and science students, special lectures on ‘Academic Ethics’, and ‘Assessment and Evaluation Practices in Higher Education’ in the teacher training program, and a few public lectures on ‘Role and Responsibilities of Higher Education Teachers in Contemporary Times’, and ‘Oriental Philosophy and Engineering in India’.

Monica Singhania

Monica Singhania is Professor of Accounting & Sustainability at Faculty of Management Studies (FMS), University of Delhi in India. She is a graduate from Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC), post-graduate from Delhi School of Economics (DSE), University of Delhi, India and a Fellow Member (FCA) of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India. She has the distinction of securing All India Merit Rank 22nd in chartered accountancy examinations. She has been awarded Ph.D. in accounting & corporate finance from the University of Delhi. She is the author of many books and several research papers published in leading international journals.

With over 24 years of teaching and research experience, Monica has written more than 20 international business cases and has spoken at over 150 national and international conferences, workshop, symposiums, faculty development programs and corporate training events. She teaches accounting and sustainability to MBA students at FMS. Her current research interests include accounting, finance, and sustainability. She can be reached at monica@fms.edu

During her Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence grant, Dr. Singhania is teaching Managerial Accounting to MBA students at Carolina University, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA in fall term of 2022-23 academic year. Additionally, she will also be associated with host institution’s business school faculty to enable sustained exchange of academic and research ideas. Monica will deliver invited sessions at several institutions and engage in community driven initiatives as well.

Vandana Saxena

Dr. vandana saxena is an evolving academician in the field of Diversity and Inclusion for the last three decades. She is a Professor of Education at CIE, Delhi University. She taught for four years in a school as a science teacher before joining CIE in November 1997. In her academic persuasion to cultivate a democratic educational environment, she is engaged with teaching, training, research & consultations focusing upon developing research-based thought-provoking pedagogical designs addressing issues of Diversity and Inclusion across all ages. She has worked on multiple projects & assignments with MHRD (India), World Bank, UGC, NCERT, NCTE, NIOS, RCI, and several civil society initiatives. She has addressed and written in, many national and international forums. Her prime contemplation is on Conceptualizing Research in Education, Driving Research Questions, Academic Writing, and Ethics in Research, for which she is conducting workshops with researchers in various universities at the Pan-India level.

She has been diligently promoting the case of equal opportunities for all, symbolized by the conscious use of lowercasing for the writing of her name.

As an essential part of the Fulbright grant, Dr. saxena will be designing the course curriculum and teaching in the Departments of Education at Mississippi Valley State University (MS). She will be engaged in field visits and community outreach programs. Along with academic persuasions, she plans to create opportunities for cultural exchange with students and faculty members of MVSU. Placed at the center of the civil rights movement, she is hopeful of developing deeper theoretical insights furthering the process of conceptualizing perspectives in diversity and inclusion.