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.

A Zoology major from Stella Maris College with a Master’s degree in Environmental Toxicology, she has added an M.Phil. in Genetics, a Bachelor’s in education, and a Master’s in Education to her credit.

She has had 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 21st 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”. She firmly believes that Arts and Sports hold as much weightage as theoretical subjects in a student’s academic pursuits.

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.

Soniya Mawani is the Head Junior School, Shiv Nadar School, Chennai. Her deep immersion in the Early and Primary Years and exposure to the national (ICSE, CBSE) and international (IB, IGCSE) curricula give her a comprehensive perspective of the best practices in curriculum, assessment, and instructional design.

She holds a degree in Education Management from SNDT and an Early Childhood Care & Education (ECCE) diploma. She is pursuing her M.Ed. in Advanced Teaching (affiliated with IBO) from the University of the People. In 2000, she was selected to attend a certificate course in Visiting Teachers’ Program, Dhaka, conducted by the Aga Khan University, Karachi.

She immersed herself in action research early in her career and presented her paper 'Community Involvement in the Primary Years' at an International Conference in Kampala in 1991. She attended the Andover Bread Loaf Writing Workshop in Boston as an Indian representative in 2003. Her passion for aligning quality standards for schools led her to become the lead school assessor for Adhyayan in 2012. She conducts external reviews for schools across the country and trains school leadership in self-review based on Adhyayan Quality Standards.

In her current role as the founding member of SNS, Chennai, she’s excited about designing a curriculum for sustainable living based on ‘Global Competence Standards.’ She’s passionate about deep learning and believes every child can flourish if offered the right learning environment.

She lives with her daughter and dog. She enjoys reading, traveling, dancing, and shopping in her spare time.

Manveen Chadha has been a Montessorian and Special Educator for over two decades and is Certified in Early Education Leadership from the Harvard Graduate School of Education's Saul Zaentz Early Education Initiative.

She believes that children are naturally intuitive scientists and philosophers who never stop astonishing us with their amazing discoveries and understanding of the world around them. A true educator is a compass that activates the magnets of curiosity, knowledge, and wisdom. Her purpose is to help children discover their voice, recognize their skills, and be their best.

In 1995, Manveen commenced her journey as a teacher at Sishya School, Chennai. Moulding the young minds and ensuring they were provided with the right support wherever needed. For the next decade, she worked as Centre Head at Indus Early Learning Centre, Chennai; Principal – Early Years at Velammal World Academy; and Head – Early Childhood Education at Edubba – Velammal Group; and as Design Lead – Early Years at Akshar Arbol International School.

Through her experience of 17 years, her young learners have taught her what it means to be resilient, open-minded and achieve perfection by never giving up.

Manveen encourages educators, parents, and caregivers to observe and enjoy a child’s transformation in their early years. This is the intrinsic joy that underlies her role as an educator.

Neelavani Dhas brings over 15 years of rich experience in various fields such as education, information technology, training, and R&D in the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion sector. In the last seven years, she has had the opportunity to engage with various curricula in both national and international schools. Her diverse skill set complements her current role of building a nurturing parent and school community at Shiv Nadar School, Chennai.

Her foray into education was with GEMS, Our Own Indian School (Dubai). With her newfound passion, she studied further at UCL and TNTEU.

She considers that all great educators believe in their students and that good education can bring hope to a child. In the same spirit, she actively volunteers with Project Puthri, an initiative to develop ‘Career Intentionality’ among underprivileged girl students in Tamil Nadu.

She owes her “Never Say Die” spirit to Mumbai, where she spent her childhood. As an amateur guitarist, she can be found strumming to YouTube tutorials of old Hindi songs during her leisure time.

An alumnus of the University of South Carolina and a Master’s in Educational Administration, Kyle also holds a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Science from Lynchburg College, Virginia, United States.

He is an educational leader with a rich experience of over 13 years as a professional sports coach, trainer, and educator, with assignments spanning the United States, New Zealand, India, Austria, Hong Kong, and Kenya.

In India, Kyle joined Khaitan Public Schools, Ghaziabad as a Consultant and Pedagogical Expert and moved to the Vega Schools, Gurugram, as Head of SPEED (Sports Physical Education and Enrichment Department) and later as Head of School.

Following a 4-year stint in India, he relocated to Hong Kong and joined OWN Academy as Head of Education and Training. He was last associated as an MYP Science educator with Grade 7 & 8 at Inspired Teaching Demonstration School, Washington, DC, USA.

Kyle has pursued his passion for rugby as a professional player with Old Glory Rugby Union. He was the head coach and player for Delhi Hurricanes RFC in India. Kyle is multi-lingual and can fluently converse in Hindi, German and Spanish besides his native language, English.