Meet Sharad Vivek Sagar, Who Rose From Small Town Boy To Become Student Union President At Harvard

Talent is the only virtue that can¡¯t be discriminated against on the basis of caste, creed, religion, or financial status. Students from various backgrounds getting high-paying jobs truly make India proud. One such student is Sharad Vivek Sagar, who belongs to a simple family in Bihar and has been elected the student union president at Harvard University in 2021.

Sharad Vivek Sagar Harvard Univesity | Twitter

Sharad Sagar, an Indian graduate student at Harvard University, recently, shared a throwback picture from when he was elected to this prestigious post in 2021. He wrote in his Twitter post, "Head Boy at High School to President at Harvard. I hadn¡¯t imagined this journey. On this day, I became the first Indian to be elected President of Student Government at Harvard Graduate School of Education."

Head Boy at High School to President at Harvard. I hadn¡¯t imagined this journey.

On this day, I became the first Indian to be elected the President of Student Government at Harvard Graduate School of Education. pic.twitter.com/9BItLNywp5

¡ª Sharad Vivek Sagar (@SharadTalks) September 21, 2022

Sharad Vivek Sagar, the founder of Dexterity

Growing up in small towns and villages in Bihar, Sharad Vivek Sagar first went to school at the age of 12. At the age of 16, Sagar founded the national organisation, Dexterity Global.

Usually, 16-year-olds read comic books and munch on snacks. But when Sharad was 16, he founded Dexterity Global -an institute that impacts over 1.2 million children annually in India and other parts of South Asia through its ecosystem of educational platforms.

Sharad Vivek Sagar Harvard Univesity | Twitter/The Dexterity Global Group

Sagar has won over 200 local, national, and international quiz and debate competitions and represented India on intergovernmental and UN platforms. He received a scholarship worth four crore rupees to pursue his bachelor¡¯s degree at Tufts University in the US.

Within months of his graduation, Sagar became the youngest in 160 years of university history to receive the Alumni Achievement Award.

Invited to the White House by Obama

At the age of 24, Vivek Sagar was listed on the global Forbes 30 Under 30 list. Sharad was the first person from Bihar to be listed in the prestigious Forbes 30 under 30 list, along with the likes of Mark Zuckerberg and Malala Yousafzai.

Sharad Vivek Sagar Harvard Univesity | Twitter

He was also the only Indian to be invited by US President Barack Obama to the White House for a special gathering of young leaders in 2016 and was one of the invitees at the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in the same year. Sagar was also an expert on Amitabh Bachchan's popular television show Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC).

Hailed as 'Vivekananda of the 21st Century'

Vivek Sagar is an internationally recognised social entrepreneur and a widely followed youth icon from Bihar whose work in the fields of education and leadership has received global recognition. Following his speech at the Vivekananda Memorial in Baroda, he was also referred to as the ¡®Vivekananda of 21st Century'.

President of Harvard University Student Union

Sharad Vivek Sagar was elected to the highest position on the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) student council in 2021. Vivek Sagar was elected by over 1,200 students coming from more than 50 countries. He defeated eight other candidates at Harvard who were contested for the position of executive chair.

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