Raju Kendre

Raju Kendre
Born	October 1993 Pimpri Khandare, Buldhana district, Maharashtra, India
Alma mater	Tata Institute of Social Sciences, SOAS University of London
Occupation(s)	Social entrepreneur, social activist
Years active	Since 2012
Known for	Eklavya India Foundation, Global Scholars Program

Raju Kendre (born October, 1993) is an Indian educator, social entrepreneur, and social activist known for his work in promoting education and grassroots development in rural and tribal communities of Central India.^[1][2]

He is the founder and CEO of the Eklavya India Foundation, an organization dedicated to empowering first-generation university students from underprivileged backgrounds.^[3][4]

Raju is recognized as a TED speaker^[5] and has been honored with a place in the Forbes 30 Under 30 list.^[6] He is also Chevening scholar at FCDO, UK and Fellow at the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA).^[7]

Early life and education

Raju Kendre was born in a small village of Pimpri Khandare, situated near the Lonar crater in the Buldhana district of Maharashtra's Vidarbha region.^[8] He completed his schooling in a Zilla Parishad (government school) in the vernacular medium.^[9] Due to socio-economic constraints and a lack of awareness and mentorship, he had to drop out from Pune University and transitioned to a distance education program for his undergraduate studies.^[10][11]

Raju did his master's in social work from Tata Institute of Social Sciences.^[12][13] Since 2017 he has served as a visiting faculty at Savitri Jotirao College of Social Work in Yavatmal.

Raju was awarded Chevening scholarship by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) of the United Kingdom.^{[14][15][16][17]} This scholarship helped him pursue a master's in Development studies at SOAS University of London,^[18][19] where he authored his master's thesis on "Inequality in Indian Higher Education."^[20]

He is currently working on a project focused on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in higher education, examining the German, European, and Indian systems. This research is part of the German Chancellor Fellowship under the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation and is hosted by the University of Göttingen in Germany.^{[21][22][23][24]}

Eklavya India Foundation

Raju founded Eklavya India Foundation, a dynamic organization dedicated to promoting higher education and enabling grassroots leadership. Eklavya serves as a support system, providing mentorship, training, and guidance to first generation learners from historically underrepresented communities of Maharashtra. This empowers them to pursue education at premier Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) while fostering grassroots leadership in academia, policy, law, media, and development.^[25][26]

Global Scholars Program

Recognizing the underrepresentation of marginalized groups from India in world-class universities and global scholarships,^[27][28] Raju Kendre founded the Eklavya Global Scholars Program (GSP).^[29][30] The program's pilot batch included 60+ first-generation students, with 50 receiving offers from Ivy League and tier-2 universities in the UK, US, and Europe.^[31][32][33]

Awards and recognitions

• German Chancellor Fellowship – Alexander von Humboldt Foundation^[34][35]
• Echoing Green Fellowship^[36][37]
• Fellowship – Ashoka Global Innovators
• Chevening Scholarship – Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, UK^[38]
• Fellow at Royal Society of Arts (FRSA)^[39]
• Inlaks Social Engagement Fellowship^[40]
• International Alumni Award 2024 – Pioneers, London^[41]
• TEDx Speaker^[42]
• Forbes 30 Under 30 India^[43][44]
• LinkedIn Top Voices in Social Impact.^[45]
• India-UK 75 Achievers Award.^[46]
• Zee Yuva Sanman^[47]

Raju's social enterprise Eklavya is incubated at SOAS London, NSRCEL- IIMB  and Nudge Institute,^[48][49] Bangalore.

References

1. Ramani, Priya (2023-09-08). "Raju Kendre: fighting to write his own story". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
2. "Raju Kendre: Changing the idea of education, one community at a time". Global Indian.
3. "From the hinterland of Vidarbha, an edu movement places first-gen learners in top institutes". The Times of India. 2021-08-05. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
4. Sethu, Divya (2021-07-13). "Farmer's Son Helps 125 Marginalized Students Access Higher Education & Fellowships". The Better India. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
5. "TEDxIITHyderabad | TED". www.ted.com. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
6. "Raju Kendre: Empowering First Generation Learners". Forbes India. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
7. Shegokar, Rajesh (2023-04-21). "शेतकऱ्याच्या मुलाची झेप : राजू केंद्रे लंडनच्या रॉयल सोसायटी ऑफ आर्ट्सचा फेलाे". Lokmat (in Marathi). Retrieved 2023-09-26.
8. "Raju Kendre: Changing the idea of education, one community at a time". The Global Indian. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
9. "राजू केंद्रे यांची लंडनच्या रॉयल सोसायटी ऑफ आर्ट्समध्ये निवड". Loksatta (in Marathi). 2023-04-21. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
10. "Raju Kendre: Empowering First Generation Learners". Forbes India. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
11. "शेतकऱ्याच्या लेकाची उत्तुंग भरारी; बुलडाण्याचा राजू केंद्रे झळकला फोर्ब्सच्या यादीत". Maharashtra Times (in Marathi). Retrieved 2023-09-25.
12. "Maharashtra Farmer's Son From Buldhana Gets Chevening Scholarship". Sakshi Post. 2021-07-05. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
13. Sethu, Divya (2021-07-13). "Farmer's Son Helps 125 Marginalized Students Access Higher Education & Fellowships". The Better India. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
14. "Poor farmer's son wins Chevening scholarship". www.thehitavada.com. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
15. "Raju Kendre". www.cede.co.in. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
16. "From Buldhana to UK: 'Eklavya' Kendre wins Chevening scholarship". The Times of India. 2021-07-03. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
17. "Maharashtra Farmer's Son From Buldhana Gets Chevening Scholarship". Sakshi Post. 2021-07-05. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
18. "UK varsities do action-oriented research, don't simply print PhDs: How Raju Kendre bagged the prestigious Chevening Scholarship". Edex Live. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
19. "Farmer s Son on Forbes 2022 List". indiaherald.com. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
20. Ramani, Priya (2023-09-08). "Raju Kendre: fighting to write his own story". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2023-09-27.
21. English, The Mooknayak (2024-05-13). "Raju Kendre, Advocate for Marginalized Communities, Awarded German Chancellor Fellowship". The Mooknayak English - Voice Of The Voiceless. Retrieved 2024-10-12.
22. "Raju Kendre". www.humboldt-foundation.de. Retrieved 2024-10-12.
23. Öffentlichkeitsarbeit, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen-. "Raju Kendre - Georg-August-University Göttingen". Georg-August Universität Göttingen (in German). Retrieved 2024-10-12.
24. "राजू केंद्रे यांची जर्मन सरकारच्या प्रतिष्ठित जर्मन चॅन्सलर फेलोशिपसाठी निवड". Loksatta (in Marathi). 2024-05-11. Retrieved 2024-10-12.
25. "Eklavya's study abroad initiative will 'create leaders with empathy': Raju Kendre". news.careers360.com. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
26. Taneja, Nidhima (2022-09-04). "After JNU, IIT, tribal students at Yavatmal's Eklavya now dream global—Chevening to DAAD". ThePrint. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
27. "आता गरिबाची पोरंही शिकणार विदेशात, 'एकलव्य'च्या माध्यमातून एक हजार विद्यार्थी." News18 Lokmat (in Marathi). 2022-11-13. Retrieved 2023-10-15.
28. "Study Abroad: वंचित विद्यार्थ्यांसाठी परदेशी शिक्षणाची संधी". Maharashtra Times (in Marathi). Retrieved 2023-10-15.
29. "परदेशात शिक्षण घ्यायचंय? काळजी कसली करता, एकलव्य आहे ना...!". Maharashtra Times (in Marathi). Retrieved 2023-09-27.
30. "How an NGO is giving wings to the dreams of students from marginalised communities to pursue higher studies abroad". Indian Express. p. 1. Archived from the original on 2023-10-15. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
31. https://www.careers360.com. "Eklavya's study abroad initiative will 'create leaders with empathy': Raju Kendre". news.careers360.com. Retrieved 2023-09-27. {{cite web}}: External link in |last= (help)
32. Taneja, Nidhima (2022-09-04). "After JNU, IIT, tribal students at Yavatmal's Eklavya now dream global—Chevening to DAAD". ThePrint. Retrieved 2023-09-27.
33. "Host of institutes in Pune open up options for students who wish to migrate to US, Europe". The Indian Express. 2023-08-31. Retrieved 2023-09-27.
34. English, The Mooknayak (2024-05-13). "Raju Kendre, Advocate for Marginalized Communities, Awarded German Chancellor Fellowship". The Mooknayak English - Voice Of The Voiceless. Retrieved 2024-10-12.
35. "राजू केंद्रे यांची जर्मन सरकारच्या प्रतिष्ठित जर्मन चॅन्सलर फेलोशिपसाठी निवड". Loksatta (in Marathi). 2024-05-11. Retrieved 2024-10-12.
36. Olivencia, Y'aneris (2024-08-06). "Introducing the 2024 Echoing Green Fellows". Echoing Green. Retrieved 2024-10-12.
37. Staff Writer (2024-08-09). "Four Startup Founders from Nigeria, 40 Others Selected for Echoing Green 2024 Cohort of Fellows". Tech | Business | Economy. Retrieved 2024-10-12.
38. "Poor farmer's son wins Chevening scholarship". www.thehitavada.com. Retrieved 2024-10-12.
39. "Raju Kendre". Echoing Green Fellows Directory. Retrieved 2024-10-12.
40. "Inlaks Shivdasani Fellows for Social Engagement 2023: Dipesh Agarwala, Fakirappa. S. Harijan, Raju Kendre and Rucha Satoor". Inlaks Shivdasani Foundation Blog. 2023-10-26. Retrieved 2024-10-12.
41. News, The Pie. "The PIEoneer Awards 2024". pieoneerawards.com. Retrieved 2024-10-12. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
42. "TEDxIITHyderabad | TED". www.ted.com. Retrieved 2024-10-12.
43. "Raju Kendre: Empowering First Generation Learners". Forbes India. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
44. "Raju Kendre in Forbs 30 Under 30 : उच्च शिक्षणाच्या माध्यमातून तळागाळातील नेतृत्त्व उभं राहावं हा प्रयत्न – चेवनिंग स्कॉलर राजू केंद्रेंसोबत संवाद". ETV Bharat News (in Marathi). Retrieved 2023-09-26.
45. "LinkedIn Top Voices in Social Impact: 15 creators to follow in India". www.linkedin.com. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
46. Mohammad, Ibrar (2023-01-26). "From Manmohan Singh to Raghav Chadha: List of 75 Indian Achievers Honoured by UK". TheQuint. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
47. "तरूणाईच्या कार्याला होणार झी युवा सन्मान पुरस्काराने सलाम; गुढीपाडवाच्या दिवशी पहा झी युवा सन्मान!". Zee 24 taas (in Marathi). 2023-03-21. Retrieved 2024-10-12.
48. Ramesh, Anusha (2022-01-20). "The/Nudge Incubator Announces Cohort 8 : Meet The 15 Early Stage Non-Profits Solving For Poverty Alleviation In India At Scale [Part 1]". thelogicalindian.com. Retrieved 2023-10-15.
49. "https://csi.thenudge.org/portfolio/eklavya-foundation". csi.thenudge.org. Retrieved 2023-10-15. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)