New Delhi. : The top 50 shortlisted candidates for Chegg.org Global Student Prize 2023 have been announced and it includes five students from India. These students were selected from 3,851 applications across 122 countries.
The annual award goes to one exceptional student who makes an impact on learning, the lives of their peers and on society beyond. The award prize is $100,000.
The five students from India are Namya Joshi, a Class 11 student from Sat Paul Mittal School, Ludhiana, Punjab; Vinisha Umashankar, a Class 12 student from SKP Vanitha International School, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu; Gladson Vaghela, a medical student at Gujarat Medical Education and Research Society Medical College, Gandhinagar, Gujarat; Ravindra Bishnoi, an information technology student at Chandigarh Engineering College and Padmaksh Khandelwal, a computer science student at Sir Padampat Singhania School, Kota, Rajasthan.
“Chegg not only celebrates your achievements but also the endless possibilities that exist when young minds are driven by a passion for change,” said Heather Hatlo Porter, Head of Chegg.org and Chief Communications Officer of Chegg.
Joshi has several awards to her name including the Rashtriya Bal Puraskar, Diana Award, Global Child Prodigy Award, Global EInnovation Award and more. She is a Minecraft mentor and TEDx speaker as well. She believes Minecraft can be used as an education tool as well, she has created a virtual library of lessons in Minecraft and it is available on her YouTube channel and website.
Umashankar is an artist, innovator, TEDx speaker, Diana awardee and environmentalist. Her favourite subjects in school are math and science. She primarily focuses on innovations that protect the earth and empower the less privileged. Her innovation journey began when she was 12 years old. Her innovations include the award-winning ‘Solar Ironing Car’ and a power-saving smart ceiling fan. She has won national, international and state awards for the same.
Vaghela is a medical student advocate for healthcare equity and accessibility for all, participating in healthcare outreach programs in underserved communities. He has helped produce a global mental healthcare service providers’ database for more than 150 countries worldwide and has served as a Youth Advisor to YuWaah (Generation Unlimited) at UNICEF India.
Bishnoi used his cyber cafe visits to learn about robotics, electronics, design, and other engineering areas and over the past decade has created many devices, developed robots, exoskeletons, portable water and air filters to help needy people. He founded his own company— KieKie Private Limited in 2022.
Khandelwal works on student suicide prevention and also as an anti-poaching activist who launched the current homeschooling model of the Mogya Education Program for children through the support of NGO Tiger Watch.
The Varkey Foundation partnered with Chegg.org to launch the annual Global Student Prize in 2021 as a sister award to its annual USD 1 million Global Teacher Prize.
The intention was to create a new platform that shines a light on the efforts of extraordinary students everywhere. The prize is open to all students who are at least 16 years old and enrolled in an academic institution or training and skills program. Part-time students as well as students enrolled in online courses are also eligible for the prize.
“As time runs out to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), it is more important than ever to prioritise education so we can face the future with confidence,” said Sunny Varkey, the Kerala-born founder of the Varkey Foundation.
The top 10 finalists of this year’s Global Student Prize are expected to be announced by next month.
The winner, who will be announced later in the year, will be chosen from the top 10 finalists by the Global Student Prize Academy, made up of prominent individuals.
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