University of Rochester Establishes "The Rajesh Wadhawan Professorship" for Development Economics at Simon Business School

The Simon Business School at the University of Rochester on Tuesday announced the establishment of the Rajesh Wadhawan Professorship for Development Economics with an endowment of USD 1.5 million from WGC. The professorship commemorates the Group's Founder Rajesh Wadhawan and his vision of empowering deprived sections of society through fair and respectable access to credit.

The Professorship will focus on shaping research and studies in development economics that will be supported by exchange programmes and internships at WGC group companies in India. Joint forums to further propagate the field and allied areas are also on the anvil.

In his remarks, Dean of Simon Business School, Andrew Ainslie said, "This gift shows the commitment and generosity of the Wadhawan family to give back to society in a meaningful and knowledge-driven manner. The Rajesh Wadhawan Professorship will strengthen Simon Business School's academic and research focus on development economics. It is in line with our commitment to build a curriculum grounded in analytics and economics. We look forward to an engaging partnership with WGC to make this effort a success."

The Wadhawan family, represented by Mrs. Aruna Wadhawan, wife of Late Rajesh Wadhawan and son Kapil Wadhawan, his wife Vanita and daughter Tiana and son Kartik, were present at the Plaque Ceremony at the campus. Speaking on behalf of the family, WGC Chairman Kapil Wadhawan said, "The Rajesh Wadhawan Professorship is a tribute to our Group Founder's legacy of doing business with a purpose. The topic of development economics was very close to his heart. He envisioned empowering the deprived with credit to build their own homes."

The endowment will support a full-time member of the Simon Business School faculty for research and a curriculum that furthers the understanding of economic problems in developing countries.

WGC's collaboration with Simon Business School is aimed at creating a larger impact globally. With an asset base of USD 18.6 billion, 10 million customers and a presence across 770 touch points, the group has a deep understanding of aspirational consumers. When seen in the larger context of development economics, it has the ability to deliver transformative socio-economic change in a profitable manner.