UOFSA - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Department of Linguistics
Dr. Addanki Srinivas is an eminent scholar in Telugu, Sanskrit and in Linguistics. He is a well-known researcher, grammarian, critic, commentator, poet, story writer, orator, translator etc. He has done his PG in 3 disciplines, Telugu, Sanskrit and Linguistics and he has completed his Ph.D. in Historical Grammar of Telugu. He is a gold medalist in MA Telugu. He has published 76 books and more than 500 articles. Some among his works Varnanaratnakaram, Vignaneshwaram, Charucharya, Uttararamayanam are critical commentaries in classical poetry for Telugu are monumental.
He translated Ramayanam, Bharatam, Bhagavatam and Bhagavadgeeta into simple and modern language and these were published in a huge number of copies. He worked as a lecturer in University of Hyderabad and IIIT Hyderabad. He also worked as a Research Officer in NLP at UoH. He has experience in electronic teaching and video lessons for RGUKT. He worked as an editor for many books, anthologies, seminar proceedings and concordances. He submitted 35 national and 5 international research papers. He is a popular columnist, live commentator and is a member of various advisory committees. He received 25 various Literary awards like Ranjani - Kundurthi (Best poetry) for 1997, 1998, 2010, X - Ray (Best poetry), for 1996, 2000, Best poet & writer by Government of A.P, 2007.
Mr. Bhasin brings over 20 years of experience in industry sectors that include healthcare, telecom and finance. He currently serves as the Chief Information Officer for BayHealth Development as well as Canopy Health. His prior roles including serving as the CIO of Alameda Alliance for Health, a managed Medicaid plan. He has held leadership roles in technology including CIO at Alphacare of Magellan Health serving Medicare Advantage and Managed Long Term Care members, and CIO of Preferred Health Partners, a multi-specialty group practice. Aman lives in the East Bay with his wife and two children. When he is not working Aman enjoys golf, traveling and spending quality time with his family. Aman attended CUNY Baruch College and earned a B.A. in Computer Information Systems. He received a M.S. in Engineering Management from NJIT College of Engineering.
Anand Kuchibhotla, President & CEO, is a visionary, inspiring, renowned, and well accomplished individual in the American Indian community. After having several senior management positions in the corporate world of Fortune 500 companies, he turned to become a social entrepreneur. He founded Silicon Andhra in 2001, a non-profit organization with goals to create cultural identity for the next generation youth, mainly living in the USA. Anand intends to create opportunities for next generation youth to understand their roots and contribute for the betterment of the world. He led several initiatives that are having long lasting societal impact for generations to come. He made significant impact in the communities in the USA and India through different socio-cultural and academic activities. Today Silicon Andhra activities span across the continents and its academic footprint has more than 10,000 students. Anand is recognized and honored for his leadership and creativity by several organizations.
Anuradha Ramesh has a masters in Bharatanatyam from Sastra University. In addition to being a performing artist and conducting workshops in Bharatanatyam, she is also closely associated with creating learning opportunities for underprivileged children. She is on the board of management of Seva Samajam - a not for profit, orphanage and school in Chennai and is a visiting faculty for RASA's Theatre for Holistic Development, Chennai. She further conducts workshops for teachers on incorporating aspects of theatre and dance to improve the effectiveness of everyday instruction at city schools. She also coordinated several workshops on Indian culture for school going children at Parampara, an NGO based in Chennai. She has represented her country on a group study exchange program to Sweden and has given several performances in India and abroad.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Academic Advisory Council
Dr. B. Balasubrahmaniyan, (Balu) is a Carnatic music performer, educator and researcher. He began his music lessons from his father Sri. D. Balraj and subsequently studied under several teachers including Sangita Kala Acharya Sri. B. Krishanamurthy, Sangita Kalanidhi T. Brinda and Sangita Kalanidhi T. Viswanathan. Balu received all his educational degrees BA, MA, MPhil and PhD in Music from the University of Madras. His Ph.D. dissertation focuses on "Reprints of Nandanar Caritram," a nineteenth century Tamil opera by Gopalakrishna Bharati.
Job Titles:
- Vice President, Finance and Administration
Deena Babu Kondubhatla, Vice President, Finance and Administration, is a full time executive of the University with responsibilities including Technology Management, Financial Resource Planning and Operations. He is representing the University of Silicon Andhra as the Accreditation Liason Officer (ALO), working with WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC) on the Accreditation Process.
He is associated with SiliconAndhra for 12+ years. During this period, he focused on several critical initiatives and compliance with federal and state regulations & taxes. He has been serving ManaBadi in the role of Chief Operating Officer for the last 6 years and a key leader for its success.
He is a strong technologist with 20+ years of experience with successful Silicon Valley companies.
Job Titles:
- Department of Kuchipudi Dance
Devi Girish Chandra is a Kuchipudi performer who has an accentuating academic as well as professional record. She is pursuing Ph.D in Kuchipudi under the guidance of Prof. Jonnalagadda Anuradha from Dept. of Dance, University of Hyderabad. She completed her M.Phil in Comparative Literature where her focus was to bring in the interdisciplinary attitude of dance and literature; the topic was Dance as Discourse: Revisiting the performances of Gollakalapam and Theyyam from University of Hyderabad. She completed her Masters in Performing Arts (Kuchipudi) from Dept of Dance, University of Hyderabad. She worked as Curriculum Developer as well as Guest Faculty for National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), Kannur for Dance as a General Elective in the Graduation and Post-Graduation level. She is an Empanelled Artist of Ministry of Culture, Govt. of India, and has been graded as "Promising Category Artists" to work with the Ministry of Culture in the "Festivals of India Abroad". She was a Junior Research Fellowship holder in New Areas by the Ministry of Culture, Govt. of India.
Dilip Kondiparti is a strong Leader, strategist and evangelist, high performing project management executive with expertise in directly handling multiple projects across multiple organizational domains. He has proven track record of successfully delivering projects deployment, data security, and designing and implementation of IT solutions. Has excellent leadership skills with creative problem solving ability. His past experience includes working as Foreign Student Advisor for New York Institute of Technology and delivering projects at Stanford University long term initiatives.
Dr. Amy Catlin-Jairazbhoy received her Ph.D. from Brown University and her Master's from Yale University. Her research, writing, teaching, curatorial activities, and multi-media publications often have an applied focus, aimed at community development of minority traditions, especially in diasporic settings. She served as curator and presented the first concert and lecture tour outside India with a group of African-Indian Sidi performers from Gujarat, in September 2002, traveling with them in England and Wales. Her recent publications include Sidi Sufis: African Indian Mystics of Gujarat (Apsara Media 2002: 79-minute CD), the volume co-edited with Indian Ocean historian Edward Alpers, Sidis and Scholars: Essays on African Indians (New Delhi: Rainbow Publications, 2003), the DVD The Sidi Malunga Project (2004), the DVD From Africa to India: Sidi Music in the Indian Ocean Diaspora (with Nazir Ali Jairazbhoy, 2003), and the DVD Music for a Goddess (2008). Catlin-Jairazbhoy currently serves as an adjunct professor at UCLA.
Job Titles:
- Professor of Comparative Literature at Telugu University
- Retired in 2016 As Professor of Comparative Literature at Telugu University, Hyderabad. She Has Three M. As.
Dr. C. Mrunalini retired in 2016 as Professor of Comparative Literature at Telugu University, Hyderabad. She has three M. As ( in Telugu, English and Women studies) and a Ph.D in Telugu. She has produced 35 M.Phils and 14 Ph.Ds in her teaching career. She is a critic, translator and short story writer. Mrunalini has published 20 books which include literary criticism, short stories, social satire, novellas and translations. She has travelled all over India and abroad presenting seminar papers. (U.S.A, China, Mauritius, Malaysia and Norway).
Dr. Mrunalini is a well-known media personality in Telugu-speaking States appearing frequently on Television and Radio. She is recipient of more than 15 awards.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- President
- Vice President
Dr. Elizabeth Griego retired in July 2013 as vice president of student life/professor of higher education at the University of the Pacific after working in higher education for 41 years. Throughout her career, she partnered with faculty to build community, foster learning, develop student leadership, design high impact practices, and mentor students, faculty, and staff. For the last several years, she has consulted with over 20 universities on preparation for accreditation, program review, strategic planning, student affairs evaluation, and executive coaching.
As a member of the professional staff for the Western Association of Schools and Colleges for six years, she supported a portfolio of 42 diverse institutions in all stages in the accreditation process; provided guidance to evaluation teams; developed and facilitated training workshops for evaluators and institutions; chaired the annual WASC conference; and managed the research and evaluation functions of the WASC Commission.
Dr. Griego has served as president and on the leadership boards of NASPA - Student Affairs in Higher Education, as well as president and leadership positions in the California Association of Institutional Research. She is an accredited Baldrige Quality Improvement Examiner and site visitor. Under her leadership, Samuel Merritt University was awarded the California State Governor's Baldrige Award for Excellence in 1999. She is an active researcher, consultant, and presenter at higher education conferences with over 60 professional presentations and over a dozen journal articles and book chapters. Dr. Griego has served on several community boards of directors and committees, on the board of trustees for Claremont Lincoln University, and as president/moderator of her church. Her awards and honors include leadership awards from every institution she has served, NASPA, and CAIR.
Her bachelor's degree is from the University of Nebraska in speech and hearing pathology; master's from the Ohio State University in education; and PhD in higher education administration from the University of California, Berkeley, where she was given the Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation Award.
STG Vasanta Lakshmi, Ph.D is a Sanskrit scholar with a 38-year teaching experience. She started learning Sanskrit at the age of 11, completing her Sahitya Vidya Praveena, equivalent to MA Sanskrit, at 17. She then did her MA (1999) and Ph.D (2007) from Osmania university with a thesis on Saṁskr̥tālaṅkārikēṣu Rājānaka Ruyyakasya viśiṣṭaṁ sthānam. Vasanta Lakshmi has three published works of literature; Rasārṇavasudhākarasudhā - a monograph in Telugu on Rasārṇavasudhākara; Alaṅkārasarvasvam - Telugu translation and ‘varadārcanā' commentary on Alaṅkārasarvasva of Rājānaka Ruyyaka; and Ekavīrā - sanskrit translation of Ekavīrā by Viśvanātha Satyanārāyaṇa. Her soon-to-be published work is the translation of Art Experience, by Professor M. Hiriyanna, into Telugu.
Job Titles:
- Researcher
- Dept. of Bharatnatyam
Karuna Vijayendra is a Dance historian, who has been working in the field of dance research & dance history for the past 18 years and has presented and published over 80 research articles. She has 3 publications to her credit. She has worked as a technical editor for the book, ‘Neo Desi Karanas a sequential link', decoding 800-year-old Karnataka dance tradition.
She has worked as a research fellow & project associate for over 7 years at the prestigious institute Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts, SRC (HRD ministry of culture, Govt of India). For the Past 13 years she has been working as visiting faculty for several Universities. She has conducted aesthetics and art appreciation courses, for institutions & and universities-National institute of design & technology, P.E.S University, (Architecture department), Amrutha University (MBA department), Bengaluru, to name a few.
She holds several honorary posts, the most recent being an academic council member for NGMA Bengaluru, under the ministry of culture Govt of India. She has a promising student circle for PG, M.Phil & Doctoral programs, who are working in varied fields of dance, & art history. She is a recognized guide for Ph.D program for NIVS affiliated to university of Florida.
Dr. Karuna Vijayendra is a passionate researcher, working on several prestigious projects both individually & in unison with highly acclaimed scholars in diverse fields. Her areas of interest are Dance history, dance texts, Temple traditions, Temple Rituals, Aesthetics, Sculptural studies and decoding the ancient dance styles.
Job Titles:
- Department of Carnatic Music
Dr. Mala Swamy (Mohan) is an accomplished Carnatic Vocal Musician with an ‘A' Grade in the All India Radio. She holds a PhD from Mother Teresa Women's University wherein her doctoral thesis is entitled A Critical Study of the Creative Form - Niraval. She has been a guest faculty member at the University of Madras for almost a decade. She was the Coordinator of the Distance Education Department at the University of Madras. Dr. Swamy has worked as Product/ Concept Manager of Swathi Soft Solutions and has a large number of DVDs and Audio CD Productions of Carnatic Music (both concerts and instructional DVDs). Later she joined Shankar Mahadevan Online Academy of Music as Dean and Curriculum Coordinator. She served as Mentor faculty in Kalakshetra Chennai. She has been invited to many international forums to present papers on various topics. She also hold an M.A. degree in English and has a Diploma in Mass Communication and Journalism. Presently, she is completing her Senior Fellowship with the Ministry of Culture, Government of India.
Dr. Nalini Rao is an art historian and archaeologist, with expertise in South and Southeast Asian Art. She holds a Ph.D. in Art History from University of California, Los Angeles, and a doctorate in Ancient History and Archaeology from the University of Mysore, India. Dr. Rao is presently an Associate Professor of Art History at the Soka University of America in Los Angeles. She is the Chair of Dr. S.R. Rao Memorial Foundation for Indian Archaeology, Art, and Culture, a non-profit organization, Bengaluru, India. She has published a number of books, including The Art of Sravanabelagola, Belur, Boundaries and Transformations: Masterworks of Indian and South East Asian Sculptures, Royal Imagery and Networks of Power at Vijayanagara: A Study of Kingship in South India, Sindhu-Sarasvati Civilization: New Perspectives, Lothal: A Glorious Civilization, The Hindu Monastery: A Study in the Context of Art and Religion in South Asia, and Educational Facets of Indian Culture.
Job Titles:
- Department of Carnatic Music
Dr. Padma Sugavanam, is a Carnatic vocalist with an interdisciplinary PhD (Music and Sanskrit). Her PhD thesis from the University of Madras was entitled Kohala in the Samskrta Textual Tradition. She is a gold-medalist in her Master's degree in Indian Music. She has won several honors and awards, including Most Outstanding Vocalist of her category in the Madras Music Academy (Chennai) in 2014.
Dr. Shekar Viswanathan, MBA., P.E., is a professor of applied engineering at National University. He is a leader, educator, researcher and administrator with more than thirty years of industrial and academic experience encompassing environmental and engineering education, consulting, research and development, and technology development. Career experience includes working with academic institutions, and international corporations managing operations and sales and marketing. Dr. Viswanathan has provided leadership that exemplifies directness, openness to new ideas, and commitment to the success of others. He has published over 100 articles and secured numerous grants.
Job Titles:
- Department of Carnatic Music
Dr. Shyamala Vinod is a musicologist, an academician of music, and a certified voxologist and voice trainer. Her teaching experience spans over three decades, and many renowned reality show contestants, playback singers, and top ranking Carnatic music professionals have benefitted from her tutelage and training. She holds a doctorate in music, specializing in the comparative study of Arabic Classical Maqamat and South Indian Classical Ragas. She has been an advisor to many PhD candidates.
Job Titles:
- Department of Carnatic Music
Dr. Sriram Parasuram is one of India's leading musicians. He was awarded the prestigious Firestone Fellowship to study Western Classical violin in the U.S. and he completed his Master of Music Degree in Western Violin Performance from the University of Akron, Ohio, U.S.A. He completed his PhD in World Music /Ethonomusicology from Wesleyan University, CT, U.S.A. He also serves as a teaching faculty member of the Advanced College of Carnatic Music of The Music Academy, Madras, and visiting faculty member at KALAKSHETRA
Job Titles:
- Chief Technology Officer
- Member of the Board
- Chief Technology Officer at Uurmi Systems
Dr. Swarup Medasani is Chief Technology Officer at Uurmi Systems, Hyderabad, India. He was a Senior Research Staff Scientist at the Information Sciences Laboratory in HRL, California for 12 years. He was a post doctoral fellow at the University of Colorado and a visiting scholar/lecturer at the University of Missouri.
Dr. Medasani has received a number of awards and honours and has also published various papers/books and has registered multiple patents. Dr. Medasani mentored more than 25 interns (MS and PhDs) from universities across the USA including Stanford, CalTech, University of CA Berkeley, USC, UCLA, Univ. Of Maryland, UCSB, UIUC, Courant Institute, IIT Hyderabad, IIIT-Hyderabad, VIT, PSG, and others.
Dr. Medasani has over 20 years research and development experience in bio-inspired systems, computer vision, machine learning and pattern recognition. He has 50+ patents to his name.
Job Titles:
- Department of Carnatic Music
Dr. T. K. Saroja is an acclaimed Carnatic vocalist, composer, singer, and trainer. Her doctoral dissertation from Padmavati University (Tirupati) is entitled Contribution of Sangita Sahitya Kalanidhi N. Ch. Krishnamacharyulu to South Indian Music. Apart from concerts, Dr. Saroja has scored music for Dance-drama productions performed in India and in the USA and she has composed music and rendered her vocals for many devotional albums and Radio Jingles. She is currently serving as a Music Lecturer in IIIT, Hyderabad and as a visiting faculty member at the Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, Government of India, New Delhi, Hyderabad Branch.
Job Titles:
- Department of Kuchipudi Dance
Dr. Yashoda Thakore has a PhD in Kuchipudi dance from the University of Hyderabad. Her research focused on The Interrelationship between Yoga and Indian Classical Dance with Special Emphasis on Kuchipudi. She is a faculty member at the University of Hyderabad.
Dr. Sumitra Velury has a PhD in Dance from Potti Sriramulu Telugu University. Her research focused on Origin and Development of Kuchipudi dance with Special Reference to Bhamakalapam.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Academic Advisory Council
Neyveli Santhanagopalan is a unique musician, an accomplished Vidwan (performer), an erudite scholar, an inspiring Guru, an innovative educator, an...
Sri Santhanagopalan has given critically acclaimed concerts in Vidwath sabhas in the presence of other erudite musicians and has been recognized with several accolades and titles. He is also an excellent speaker known for his wit, timing and sense of humor which make him a very wholesome entertainer and performer. Sri Neyveli Santhanagopalan is well-known all over the world. He has represented, influenced and preserved our rich culture in several ways and has touched several hearts all over the world.
Job Titles:
- Manager, Student Services
Narsing Rao Deekonda is a senior most teacher of Sanskrit. He did his graduation from Nizams College majoring in English Literature, Sanskrit and Linguistics. He obtained his M. A, M.Phil, and Ph.D from Osmania University. He has 38 years of teaching experience to his credit. While he was in service, he worked in various capacities as Academic Coordinator, Students' Coordinator, Magazine editor, Chief examiner and Academic Council Member for both UG & PG at the Osmania University. He is the founder member to the Dept. of Sanskrit of the ‘Vivekananda Institute of Languages' of Ramakrishna Math, Hyderabad where he has been teaching Sanskrit for 30 years. He has been teaching online for Advaita Academy for 6 years and his 700 video classes are watched on You Tube (‘Sanskrit for Beginners by Dr. Narasing Rao') by students from India and Abroad with avowed interest.
Neeraj Bhatia, CPA is an accomplished accounting professional with 30+ years expertise in international and domestic tax planning and compliance for startups and multinational entities. He specializes in International tax, audit and review, accounting, compliance and reporting, immigration services, and corporate compliance with offices in California, New York and New Delhi, India. Current engagements in the U.S. and India include cross border tax planning and transactions, M&A, corporate structuring, and complex tax audits and representation, including recent overseas disclosure programs.. His clientele includes startups, multinational companies, government organizations, public sector banks, and auto dealerships. Neeraj Bhatia has presented extensively on U.S. and India tax issues. Neeraj is a Certified Public Accountant in California, Colorado, and New York, Chartered Accountant from India, holds an LL.M in International Taxation from the U.S, Costs and Works (Management) Accountant and graduated with a Bachelor Honors degree in Commerce from India. During his academic years, Neeraj won several awards and scholarships. His expertise extends to community activities as well as the non-profit sector. He is Vice President and Director of the Indo American Chamber of Commerce, which promotes the economic development of the Indo American Community in the U.S.
Job Titles:
- Department of Kuchipudi Dance
Job Titles:
- Chairman
- Chairman, Academic Advisory Council
Dr. Pappu Venugopala Rao is a renowned and respected personality in the field of Music and Dance. He has been...
Dr. Pappu Venugopala Rao is a renowned and respected personality in the fields of music and dance. He has been conferred the titles of "Sangita Samrat" and "Sangita Sastra Visarada" as well as "Natya Kala Sagara" and "Natya Kala Visharada". Dr Pappu Venugopala Rao holds three masters in Telugu, Sanskrit, English, a PhD in Sanskrit and Telugu and D.Litt in Indology. He worked with the American Institute of Indian Studies from 1978-2010 and retired as Associate Director General. Dr Pappu Venugopala Rao has delivered about 50 lecture demonstrations on various topics on Music & Kuchipudi Dance with Vempati Chinna Satyam in India and abroad. As Chair Content committee of Indian Music Experience, he guided the music content of IME Bangalore. As Secretary of the Music Academy Madras since 2008, he has translated five volumes of Sangita Sampradaya Pradarshini. He is the Editor of the Music Academy Journal and has crafted syllabi for the Advance School of Carnatic Music. He is a member of Sangit Natak Akademi. He has been the Academic Council Member of Kalakshetra and Visiting Professor, guiding the syllabus structure and formation of the new courses. He is the Advisory Board member of Nartanam quarterly journal on Indian Classical Dances and Sruti Monthly magazine of Dance and Music. He has authored and co-authored a number of books and has many titles to his credit for his contributions to music, dance, literature and spiritualism.
Job Titles:
- Manager, Technology Operations
Job Titles:
- Member of the Academic Advisory Council
Chandrasekhar, one of India's senior most Bharatanatyam dancers was trained at the internationally renowned Kalakshetra in Chenai under the tutelage and mentorship of Smt. Rukmani Devi Arundale. He has imbibed from his mentor the best of Indian art, culture and aesthetics. He served the universities of Banaras and Baroda and retired as the Head and Dean of the Faculty of Performing Arts of M S University of Baroda. He along with his dancer wife, Smt. Jaya Chandrasekhar have settled down in Chennai and together, they have established Nrithyashree, an institution which involves teaching, choreographing and performing. Chandrasekhar's two daughters Chitra Dasarathy and Manjari are also highly acclaimed dancers in India. Chandrasekhar is a multi faceted personality being a dancer, choreographer, researcher, musician, academician, composer and highly acclaimed teacher of Bharatanatyam. He has been performing for the past five decades in India and all over the globe and is invited by many dancers the world over to teach and choreograph. Chandrasekhar has a number of music and dance compositions to his credit and his dance dramas have been very highly acclaimed for their individuality and innovative approach. His choreographic works include Kalidasa's Ritu Samharam and Meghadootham, Aparajitha, Pancha Maha Bhootham, Arohanam, Bhoomija, Bhramarageeth and many others. He has many prestigious awards to his credit of which the the notable ones are Central Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, the academy awards of the States of Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat and Tamil Nadu, Nrithya Choodamani from Krishna Gana Sabha, Chennai and the University Grants Commission's National Lecturer ship, Tagore professor at the University of Madras, appointed member executive board, Central Sangeet Natak Akademi.Nadabrahmam award from the Narada Gana Sabha,Nritya Ratnakara from Bhairavi Fine Arts, Cleveland, Nritya Kala Ratna from Mysore.Bharatha Kala Saagara from Sri Bharatalaya, Nrithyodaya award, the prestigious Sangeeta Kala Acharya award from the Madras Music Academy. The prestigious Kalidas samman was bestowed on him by the Madhya Pradesh Government. He has been awarded the Padma Bhushan by the Govt. of India. Recently he was awarded ‘Ratna Sadasya' by the Sangeet Natak Akademi. His visits abroad include countries of Europe, the U.S.A. and Asian countries of China, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia, Cambodia, Laos, Kuwait, Mauritius, Reunion etc.
Job Titles:
- Head of the Department of Sahitya
- Member of the Academic Advisory Council
Prof. Rani Sadasiva Murty is presently the Head of the Department of Sahitya in Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeetha, Tirupati. He is a multidisciplinary and multilingual expert having his post graduate degrees in Sanskrit, English, Philosophy, Advaita Vedanta, Jyotish and Management along with a Ph. D in Sanskrit. He wrote more than 30 books and edited 12 books and proceedings. He produced poetry and dance ballets in Sanskrit, Telugu and English. He directed a Sanskrit film named Hidimba Bhimasenam on behalf of Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeetha, Tirupati. He delivered hundreds of discoures on different subjects pertaining to Ancient Indian Knowledge Systems in various Universities in and abroad and is a live commentator of SVBC channel of Tirumala Srivenkatesvara Festivals occasionally. He has produced 20 Ph. Ds and 22 M. Phils under his research guidance. He is a member of various academic bodies in different universities. He is a recipient of the prestigious Kendra Sahitya AKademi Award 2016 given in December 2017.
Job Titles:
- Department of Carnatic Music
R.S. Jayalakshmi has a PhD in Music from the University of Madras and also was a faculty member in Music at the same university for over 30 years. Currently, she is an Academy Council Member at the Tamil Nadu Music and Fine Arts University and also a faculty member at the Advanced School of Carnatic Music at The Music Academy.
Dr. P. Ramadevi, senior Kuchipudi Dance exponent, persuade her doctorate in Kuchipudi dance on "COMPARATIVE STUDY OF CHATHURVIDHA ABHINAYAS BETWEEN KATHAKALI AND KUCHIPUDI YAKSHAGANAS from Potti Sreeramulu TELUGU UNIVERSITY IN 2010. She established her institution Sri Sai Nataraja Academy of Kuchipudi Dance in 1989. For the last 30 years she has been teaching dance and training students to appear for certificate and diploma courses. She has authored 6 books on dance and designed a CD on Natyasastra which covers all the topics in a power point presentation. She has choreographed 28 ballets, and 8 are penned by herself. She has written many articles and presented papers on various topics in many seminars at National and International levels. She is the recipient of Kerala Sangeeta Natak Academy's Kalasree award, KEERTHI PURASKARAM from Telugu University, Jayadev Samman puraskar, Natyakalai chudar, Naatyasri , Panorama of dance and many others. She has performed in many festivals in India and in USA
Raju Chamarthi, Provost, is passionate about Indian Fine Arts and Languages. He has been working with the next generation students of Indian origin for 10+ years to promote Indian Culture and Language.
He is the President and Dean of SiliconAndhra ManaBadi which is a non-profit initiative to teach Telugu language to the students aged 4 years and above. This initiative started in April 2007 with 150 students and 20 volunteers in California. Under Raju's leadership these ManaBadi classes expanded to 35 states in US, 12 countries with 9000+ students and 1500+ volunteers. Today the SiliconAndhra ManaBadi is a globally well known and is considered "IVY League" school for Telugu learning.
Raju has worked in several Silicon Valley Technology companies for 20+ years, but now focused full time on University of Silicon Andhra Academic activities.
Sid is a Principal with Berkeley-based Anchor Valley Partners (AVP) which he co-founded in September 2012. AVP is a vertically integrated boutique real estate investment company focused on the acquisition, repositioning and development of multifamily, student housing, office and medical office space in the Bay Area and the Central Valley. Sid has completed over $200m in real estate development and acquisitions. His current projects include a 40-unit mixed-use development project in downtown Oakland, a 124-bed student housing development project next to UC Berkeley, a $10m value-add repositioning of 29-units adjacent to UC Berkeley, and the redevelopment of a 20,000 sf office building in downtown Oakland.
Concurrently, Sid has also returned to his roots in Merced by actively pursuing development on his numerous agricultural investments there. He recently completed the first phase of an approximately 120,000 sf medical office development adjacent to a UC teaching hospital in Merced. In addition, since attending the groundbreaking ceremonies for UC Merced in 2005, Sid has acquired 32 acres adjacent to the new campus and is working on the concept for a mixed-use development that interfaces with the UC Merced long-range development plan to create a progressive LEED certified master-planned development.
Sid self-manages all of his properties. He has extensive property management and operations experience from having 3rdparty managed the largest portfolio of property in Berkeley-3,500 student housing beds, along with 200k sf of commercial and retail space. AVP's property management arm, which Sid founded and runs, is Square One Management. Because of his extensive experience, Sid served on the Chancellors Task Force for Student Neighbor Relations at UC Berkeley, was head of the Berkeley Property Owner's Association for seven years and currently is in his 2nd year as President of the California Rental Housing Association representing 22,000 apartment owners across the state.
Sid received his B.S. from St. Mary's College in Moraga, a Post-Baccalaureate in Finance from Columbia University in New York, and a J.D. from Santa Clara University in Santa Clara. He is a licensed broker in the state of California and is a member of the State Bar in California.
Sri Santhanagopalan has given critically acclaimed concerts in Vidwath sabhas in the presence of other erudite musicians and has been recognized with several accolades and titles. He is also an excellent speaker known for his wit, timing and sense of humor which make him a very wholesome entertainer and performer. Sri Neyveli Santhanagopalan is well-known all over the world. He has represented, influenced and preserved our rich culture in several ways and has touched several hearts all over the world.
Job Titles:
- Department of Linguistics
Varija Rani has obtained her PhD degree in Comparative Literature in Telugu and Sanskrit languages from University of Hyderabad. She holds a Masters degree in Telugu, Sanskrit, Communication & and Journalism. She also holds a Post Graduate diploma in Computer Applications. Varija Rani, PhD is a gold medalist at degree level and was selected for national scholarship in Literature awarded for talented youngsters by Ministry of Culture, Government of India. She is proficient in grammar, prosody and classical literature. Dr. Varija Rani has presented several papers in national and international seminars. She carries 11 years of teaching experience at university level. To her credit four students have obtained PhD degrees and 15 more students are pursuing PhD course under her guidance. She is currently working as an Assistant Professor at Osmania University, Hyderabad. She is a serving member of several administrative and academic bodies of various universities and boards. Varija Rani is a trained singer and completed her diploma in Carnatic vocal.
Yamini Yasoda Kurati is an experienced and knowledgeable classical dancer of Kuchipudi.
She learned Kuchipudi dance in Kuchipudi from 1994 -2005 under Dr. Chinta Ramanadham garu, Vedantam Rattaiah Sarma garu, Padmasree Vedantam Satyanarayana Sarma garu, Pasumarthy Rattaiah Sarma garu.
She recieved two gold medals in M.A. Kuchipudi. Recently she earned Ph.D. from University of Hyderabad. The area of research is Kuchipudi Dance Dramas - Structure, Changes and Emerging Trends. She performs and teaches Kalapas, Yakshaganas, Nritya Rupakas and Solo dances of Kuchipudi style.