Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) Alumni in USA Announce their New Chairman and President

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Shailesh Mehta

IIT may be the most important university you have never heard of. Put Harvard, MIT and Princeton together and you begin to get an idea of the status of this university in India.

SAN JOSE, Calif. (PRWEB) January 06, 2014

PanIIT USA, the alumni body of Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) in USA is proud to announce that Dr. Shailesh J. Mehta will take over as Chairman and Arjun Sen will take over as President for the period 2014-15.

Dr. Mehta is the Managing General Partner of Granite Hill Capital Partners . He is a former Chairman of the Board, CEO and Founding team member of Providian Financial Corporation. Dr. Mehta has been a general partner with Invesco funds and operating general partner of WestBridge Capital. Dr. Mehta has served as the president and COO of Capital Holding which was the 10th largest insurance company in America. Dr. Mehta was Executive Vice President of Key Corp (formerly AmeriTrust). Dr. Mehta is on the board of, or has previously served on the numerous boards as directors.

Dr. Mehta has received awards for excellence for Leadership for Excellence in Business and Technology, Excellence in Corporate Citizenship, Excellence in Philanthropy, Leadership and Friendship, Special Community Awards and the Millennium Award. He has formed the Shailesh J. Mehta and Kalpa S. Mehta Charitable Foundation, which has given millions of dollars in grants to various institutions and causes such as: Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay – Shailesh J. Mehta School of Management, Asian Art Museum, American Indian Foundation, Case Western Reserve University, California State University at East Bay, and UC Berkeley.

"The IITs are renowned for producing some of the best global corporate leaders, academicians, technologists and entrepreneurs," said Dr. Shailesh J. Mehta, the incoming chairman. Mehta went on to say that "I attended the Houston Conference and was impressed with the energy and enthusiasm of the volunteers who delivered a world class conference that all of us, alumni will be proud of. It gives me confidence that working with such a dedicated group we can make a significant difference."

This year's global conference speakers included Nobel Laureate Amarta Sen and ex-president of Mexico, Vicente Fox. Past global conference speakers include President Bill Clinton, Bill Gates and Jack Welsh.

Arjun Sen, the incoming PanIIT USA President, is the President and Founder of ZenMango, a premier brand consulting company whose clients include fortune 500 companies and major sports personalities. Before ZenMango, Sen was the VP of Marketing & Operations for Papa John's International Inc. He also served as the chair of the Governor's small business council in Colorado.

Sen has been involved with PanIIT USA for the last four years. Sen said, "Our energetic and passionate alumni takes pride in giving back. 2013 - 14 are the years to showcasing the contribution of IIT Alumni brand and support our Alumni, we also realize that. Going forward, I see many opportunities to enhance our brand and provide value to our members."

There are more than 60,000 IIT alumni in USA of which more than half are actively involved with PanIIT. One of the key missions for PanIIT USA is to promote the spirit of giving back in the USA and to the IIT’s and to India.

ABOUT IIT (Indian Institute of Technology)
Today, IIT offers undergraduate, integrated postgraduate and postgraduate degrees in over 25 different engineering, technology and business/management disciplines in sixteen campuses around the country. Alumni from the IITs have made a significant impact in their chosen professions not only in India but also in nearly every country in the world. IIT Alumni occupy positions of leadership at top universities, at leading research institutions, at small and large companies, in government, and at non-profits.

Contribution of IIT Alumni has been recognized in the United States by all major news and media publications. CBS- 60 Minutes in 2005 stated, "IIT may be the most important university you have never heard of. Put Harvard, MIT and Princeton together and you begin to get an idea of the status of this university in India." In the same commentary, CBS -60 minutes called IIT's curriculum "may be the most rigorous in the world." The entire interview can be viewed at http://www.iit.org/.

For further information, contact:

Arjun Sen
President, PanIIT USA
e: president(at)paniit(dot)org
c: 303-521-1988

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