The Board of Trustees’ governance bodies includes Mr. Som Paneru, who is the Board President, followed by 3 more members: Mr. Hem P. Shrestha, Ms. Sajani Amatya, and Mr. Biswo Poudel.
Mr. Som Paneru
Mr. Paneru has vast experience in charity management as well as in developing educational institution. He is the founding President (pro-bono) of Ullens Education Foundation in Kathmandu that established Ullens School in 2006. Established with the philanthropic investment from Baron Guy Ullens of Belgium, the Ullens School is well known for its unique financial model, an extraordinary social enterprise and philosophy of inclusiveness.
Additionally, Mr. Paneru served a term as a board member in Central Child Welfare Board of Nepal. He also served as an expert member in the High Level Task Force that was formed by the Ministry of Education in chairmanship of the Education Minister, to recommend education reform policies once the country entered into Federal System.
He is a graduate of University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK where he earned his M.A. in International Child Welfare in auspicious of British Chevening Scholarship. Born and raised in a humble farming family in rural Gorkha District of Nepal, Som is one of the nine siblings in the family. He always received education through the help of others which has left within him a huge sense of ‘giving back’ to his own society
Mr. Hem Prasad Shrestha
Mr. Hem Prasad Shrestha holds a master’s degree in Public Administration with a specialized focus on Development Administration, Rural Development, Project Planning and Evaluation, and Research Method and Statistics from Kathmandu University, Nepal. Since 2006, he has been actively involved as a crucial part of the Founder Board of Trustees within the Ullens Education Foundation (UEF).
Furthermore, he has previously been associated with reputed organizations such as Friend of Needy Children (NGO), as a President of the board, and Sunaula Chuwa School in Dhading as a chairman. His major milestones in his professional career include being a Rural and Agricultural Development Specialist and a Senior Research Officer at No-Frills Consultants (NFC), Nepal. He has been the Principal/Teacher of Jana Jeevan High School, Chainipur, Chitwan, for two years, and has worked as a District Coordinator in the Strengthening Democratization Process in Solukhumbu District.
Over the years Mr. Hem has participated in a number of training programs and seminars, such as those organized by Small Business Promotion Project/GIZ, Kathmandu, and those for Development WorkerTraining and Civil Education to make a model village training workshop within Strengthening Democratization process program.
Ms. Sajani Amatya
Ms. Sajani Amatya is one of the five founding Board of Trustees of the Ullens Education Foundation (UEF). She has been continuously serving in the UEF board since the inception of the foundation in 2006. Ms. Sajani also served as the founding and active board member of the Happy House Foundation, the non-profit child welfare organization of the Ullens.
Born and raised in Kathmandu, Ms. Sajani has well earned her status as a vibrant social worker in Nepal. She is a passionate advocate of children and women. Her high values in life, selflessness, straightforwardness and powerful enthusiasm to help the people in need has connected her with many different social organizations, in Nepal and abroad.
Ms. Sajani sits on the Board of several prestigious organizations in Nepal, all in voluntary capacity. She served for almost 30 years at Nepal Youth Foundation; a child welfare NGO involved in areas of child protection, nutrition and education to name a few; in the capacity of its board member. Today she continues to serve on the advisory board of Nepal Youth Foundation, and has executive leadership roles with Jayanti Memorial Trust, and Rural Women Unity and Development Center.
Dr. Biswo Nath Poudel
Ullens Education Foundation has recently appointed Dr. Biswo Nath Poudel as a Board of Trustee. Dr Poudel is an economist with specialization in natural resources economics, labor economics, and economic history. He holds a PhD in Agricultural and Resource Economics from the University of California at Berkeley. He is currently a visiting Associate Professor at Kathmandu University School of Management. He also serves as a member of the Board of Director of Middle Tamor Hydropower Company (73MW). In the past, he served as a member of the board of directors of Sanima Bank. His other past experiences included, among others, working as an economic advisor at the International Labour Organization(ILO), an economist with the Office of Millennium Challenge Nepal, and advising Vice Chairman of National Planning Commission(NPC).
He has published in noted journals in economics, and presented his paper in international as well as national conferences. Dr. Poudel is one of the noted young economists in Nepal and contributes to Nepali media on economic issues frequently.
Dr. Poudel also comes from Ullens’ Parents’ Community as his daughter studies at Ullens Kindergarten.
