Col. Gopal Karunakaran is the CEO of Shiv Nadar School. His belief in education being a tool for social transformation has driven him to absorb a rich and diverse experience across all facets of school education, including policy, academic leadership, operations, and business; and has helped him gain important perspectives on the key drivers of the education sector in India. He has been a member of the National Committee of Education of the Confederation of Indian Industries since 2008 and was also a part of the team which formulated draft proposals to the Government on the Right to Education Act.

A graduate of the National Defence Academy, Col. Karunakaran spent thirty years in the Indian Army – ten of which were in the insurgency region of Kashmir, including the Siachen Glacier. While with the Army, he was chosen for the United Nations Mission in Kuwait in a multilateral and multicultural environment.

He is an M.Phil. and an M.A. from the University of Madras, and began his civilian journey in the Education space in 2008 as Vice-President, Indus World Schools of the Career Launcher Group, where he headed the group's K-12 school expansion drive. He joined Shiv Nadar School as Director in 2011 and played a pivotal role in laying down a firm foundation for the institution

Along with an obsessive compulsion to read and write, he is a prolific public speaker. Fanatical about sport, he still wistfully believes he can play competitively at 63.

Arti Dawar is the Chief Operating Officer and Director of People & Culture at Shiv Nadar School. A passionate professional with 20 years of experience, she believes in open and honest communication with her colleagues, and facing challenges head on.

With a degree in Commerce from Delhi University and a Post Graduate Diploma in Business Management and Computer Applications, Arti began her career in advertising before finding her AHA! in the world of Human Resources. After stints at Ogilvy and Mather, NIIT Ltd. and MothersonSumi Infotech & Designs Ltd., Arti joined HCL Technologies as an HR professional in 2007 and was handpicked to build the People & Culture team at Shiv Nadar School in 2011. The strong employee value proposition developed by Arti and her team led to Shiv Nadar School being recognised as a Great Place to Work in 2020.

Known for her infectious joie de vivre and energy, her mantra in life is that excellence is not an act, but rather, a habit. In her spare time, she enjoys travelling and exploring new places with her husband and daughter.

Ms. Shashi Banerjee is the Director of Education. Firm in the belief that education is an integral part of life, she has always maintained that she is a part of a Community of Learners, who don’t teach but rather nurture students who seek and construct learning. Always happy and known for her joyous demeanour, she is much loved and respected by students and teachers alike.

With multiple Masters in English, Sanskrit, Education, and Indian Classical Music and Dance (M.A., M.Ed), and Post Graduate Diplomas in the Teaching of Languages and Theatre for Education and Social Transformation, she was empanelled at Doordarshan and AIR, working on the integration of Culture, Environment, and Education. Ms. Banerjee has also undergone intermittent professional development stints in countries such as the UK, Singapore, and Norway. In her 33 years of experience, she has taught across many states, in various schools such as St Patrick’s Jodhpur, Loreto Convent, Vasant Valley School, The Heritage School, amongst others (and later, taking the reins as the Principal in some of them). She has been nominated as a Governing Body Member on prestigious committees such as the National Council for Teacher Education and Alliance Francaise de Delhi.

In her spare time, Ms. Banerjee loves reading, writing, playing table tennis, and badminton and catching the sunrise and sunset. Deeply impacted by Swami Vivekananda and Gandhiji, she strives to understand and practice their ideals and believes that the best way to find oneself is to lose oneself in the service of others.

Vandana Marda Director - Marketing, Branding & Admissions

An alumna of Fisher College of Business, The Ohio State University (USA) with a Post Graduate Degree in Business Management, Vandana also has a Doctorate in Management – Digital Learning. A gold medallist Master’s in science from the University of Bombay and an Executive Alumnus of IIM, Lucknow, she carries a rich global experience of over 20 years in the EdTech domain with expertise in Product Positioning and Strategy, Business Expansion, and Market Entry Strategies, Digital & Organic Marketing, Marketing Automation, Product Development, Reporting & Analytics Tools, Strategic Alliances, and Partnerships.

Vandana has worked in global setups and has been associated with the education space for the past ten years with K-12, EdTech and Training organisations. Soon after her MBA, she worked with global organizations such as International Techne Group Inc. (Cincinnati, USA) and Virtusa (Fremont, USA). She was also the Founder and Promoter of Going2USA.com (an Internet Start-up based in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA) for five years.

After moving to India, she joined Hindustan Times as Head - Product Management & Business Alliances, followed by a stint with GEMS Education as General Manager - Business Strategy and Operations. Vandana was later associated with The Princeton Review (Manya Group) as Vice President - Product Strategy, Global Partnerships, and Marketing. She was also the Director - Products with the Global University System (GUS), where she played a crucial role in enhancing the online portfolio across all product lines. She led the Product division for the company defining the long-term product roadmap based on market research, competition mapping, data analytics, market evaluation, and organization strategy.

Vandana enjoys travelling and spends her free time painting rocks and bottles, singing, creating music albums, and creating fusion-themed home décor items with a mix of ceramics, quilling, pebbles, and acrylic paint. She strongly believes in the power of will, congruency, and the right attitude.

Ms. Monica Sagar is the Director Principal of Shiv Nadar School Gurgaon. Driven by the belief that education is not just the development of academic potential, but also equally, the humane, social, emotional, aesthetic, physical, and the spiritual potential of each student, her approach to work centres around ensuring the holistic development of her staff and students. With her empathetic, fair, and approachable manner, she is a firm favourite amongst her students and ex-students.

A gold-medallist Master’s in Economics from Punjab University, she has also completed multiple levels of training from IBDP. She was previously the Vice Principal and HOD of IBDP Economics at The Shri Ram School (Moulsari Campus), where she worked for 16 years. Ms. Sagar was also conferred the Principal of the Year award by the Indian Education Awards.

An avid reader, she is inspired by Kahlil Gibran, Maya Angelou, and Richard Bach.

Ms. Anju Wal, the Director - Global Alliances & Professional Development and Director Principal, Shiv Nadar School Faridabad, has been an educator for nearly 30 years. Fostering a culture of care in the school, Ms. Wal is a compassionate leader. She oozes optimism, infused with humour and radical candour. She believes in rising above mediocrity and making a firm commitment to excellence in whatever one does.

A postgraduate in English Literature from Lady Shri Ram College, Delhi, she plunged into advertising and journalism after college and worked with Business India Magazine, before finding her calling in education. She began her career in Study Hall School, Lucknow, where she spent 10 years as a founding teacher and introduced innovative pedagogy for teaching English. After a tenure at City Montessori School, she worked at Riverside School, where she also became the Principal. In her next assignment, she was the Principal at the Jaipuria School, Lucknow, for five years.

She cites her sterling set of parents as her inspiration and enjoys reading and gardening in her spare time.

Padmini Sambasivam is the Founding Principal of Shiv Nadar School Chennai. A distinguished professional with over 28 years of academic and administrative experience, she has led some of the top academic institutions in India and overseas during her extensive career.

A Zoology major from Stella Maris College with a master’s degree in Environmental Toxicology, she has successfully added an M.Phil. in Genetics, a Bachelor’s in education, and a Master’s in Education to her string of academic accomplishments. She has enjoyed an illustrious career in organizations like The Krishnamurthi Foundation, Bala Vidya Mandir, Arsha Vidya Mandir across Chennai, The Peevees Group in KSA, and most recently, The Welham Girls’ School, Dehradun.

As an instructional leader, her key areas of interest include Education in the 21^st century, Military History, National Education Policy, Child Welfare, and Mental Health. She is a passionate advocate for the need to facilitate learning “by design than by default” and firmly believes that Arts and Sports hold equal weightage as theoretical subjects in a student’s academic pursuits. She has been a member of the Board for various schools like Welham Boys’ School, Vidya Devi Jindal School, Aasraa Trust, Devi Academy (Chennai), John Martyn School for the underprivileged, and the World Leading School’s Association.

She has been recognized with various awards and honors – the prestigious ‘School Leader of the Year Award’, the ‘Distinguished Service Award’, the ‘Exemplary Leadership Award’, and the ‘Best teacher Award’, to mention a few. With a philosophy focused on “thriving, rather than just surviving”,  she views challenges as an opportunity to unlock her highest potential. A keen debater, Padmini is trained as a solo pilot under the NCC Air Wing and is an avid trekker and adventure enthusiast. She has represented the Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry Contingent in the Republic Day celebrations in Delhi.  

Ms. Anju Soni, Principal of Shiv Nadar School, Noida, follows a ‘learner-centred’ approach. She also looks after the High School students as the Senior School Head. The expanse of her horizons ensures that her students fare favourably both within and beyond the confines of the school.

She comes with a deep understanding of the National Curriculum Framework and supports the school management and Leadership in building the School on goals of academic rigour, creativity, and community service by ensuring the implementation of the Academic Calendar. She is also an integral part of the assessment team that ensures the efficacy of the teaching-learning process.

Ms. Soni holds a Master Degree in English Literature and Bachelor’s degree in Education. She is a learning pedagogue with over 20 years of rich experience in imparting education and training in the English Language. She enables students to become independent, lifelong learners and promotes intercultural awareness to foster tolerance, respect, and empathy. Ms. Soni plays an active role in supporting the management in school review and improvement framework to develop future strategic planning and accountability while establishing trust among the team for the required changes. 

She drives pastoral initiatives to promote Student Leadership Structures by closely working with and mentoring the student leaders who are a part of the student council. Ms. Soni regularly engages with all the stakeholders (parents, students, staff, leadership team) and conducts initial interviews for prospective students and new staff members.

Payal Kapur is the Executive Head of Coaching & Mentoring at Shiv Nadar School. A passionate and innovative educator, with close to 30 years of experience, she has a deep understanding of children's educational needs. She joined the Shiv Nadar School team in 2013.

A student of English and an alumna of Kolkata University, Payal began her career as a member of the senior school English faculty at The Shri Ram School, Moulsari. She went on to be appointed Principal, senior school of The Shri Ram School, Aravali. She later joined Step by Step, Noida as founding Principal.

At Shiv Nadar School, in collaboration with the school teams, she has put into place specialized development programs which have afforded members of staff numerous opportunities to enhance their professional knowledge, skills and effectiveness.  

Payal strongly believes that in today’s VUCA world, ethics must form the very foundation of the education system. She is an avid reader and a film enthusiast; she also likes travelling and acting. She finds inspiration in nature and music, and enjoys nothing more than having a good laugh.

Paul Hetherington is the Executive Head – Middle & International Programmes at Shiv Nadar School. As a Specialist Leader of Education (SLE) Paul has worked with many schools to coach and mentor school leaders. He has over 25 years of teaching and leadership experience.

Paul has completed the National Professional Qualification for Senior Leadership (NPQSL) and National Professional Qualification for Headship (NPQH) qualifications. His leadership roles include six years as a Head of Department, eight years as an Assistant Head, and four years as a Head Teacher.

As a classroom teacher, he taught GCSE and A-Level Chemistry. He designed and delivered training courses for Middle Leaders as a Lead Practitioner for the local authority. As an accredited Cambridge Programme Leader, Paul designs and delivers Cambridge Professional Development Qualifications in Teaching and Learning, and Educational Leadership.

Working for AQA, Paul designed and delivered national training courses for teaching outstanding lessons. During his twelve years as a Senior Assessor for OCR and AQA, Paul developed considerable expertise in assessment and completed a post-graduate course on the Principles and Practice of Assessment at Cambridge University. Paul also assesses national professional development qualifications for Head Teachers in the UK.

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Raspreet Sidhu is the Head of Sports at Shiv Nadar School, and the former Captain of the Indian Women’s National Basketball team. She is also a Federation International Basketball Association (FIBA) Level 1 certified Coach.

Raspreet comes with over 15 years of experience as a national basketball player. Raspreet is the only player in the history of men and women Basketball to represent India in 3 consecutive Asian Games (2010, 2014 and 2018) and Commonwealth Games (2018). She has been instrumental in bagging several medals for the nation during her illustrious playing career. She was an Assistant Professor (Guest) of Physical Education at Miranda House, University of Delhi. She has also worked as an Assistant Professor of Physical Education (ADHOC) in Mata Sundri College for Women, University of Delhi.

She has authored several articles related to sports, wellbeing, obesity in children, and fitness during the Pandemic. Several research papers have also been co-authored by her, focusing on physical fitness in students, sports injuries, gender bias, and training practices. A gold medallist from Delhi University in Masters of Physical Education, and a graduate from St. Stephen’s College in English Literature, Raspreet has received several awards for her contribution to the upliftment of physical education and sports training in India.

When she’s not on a tour, playing a match, or training students, Raspreet likes to spend time with kids and listen to music. She cites Lebron James and Roger Federer as her inspiration.

Aamir Masood, Head, Career Guidance Centre, is an experienced career coach and a passionate counsellor. With over 10 years of experience in the study abroad domain, he has been instrumental in setting up the Career Guidance Centre at the Shiv Nadar School. 
He holds a degree in Journalism and Mass Communication, and a post-Graduation in Management. He has also completed the Global Management Program from the Rotterdam School of Business, Erasmus University. 
He has been counselling students who are part of diverse curriculums like the IGCSE, CBSE, and International Baccalaureate. Aamir guides them through their high school journey and supports them with their university applications for over 15 countries across the globe. 
Aamir has been part of various career counselling conferences and has been associated with the International Guidance Counsellors’ Conference by the University of Oxford, The Association of International Schools of India (TAISI), and International Career and College Counselling (IC3). He has also presented his views as a speaker and panellist at multiple forums.