WRITTEN BY: PARINITA GUPTA
(June 7, 2023) Rao Remala‘s journey to the US was a combination of hard work and a little bit of luck, leading him to an opportunity to work for Bill Gates. However, his true passion lay in supporting communities of colour and empowering them to address their own challenges with financial assistance. In 1998, Rao and his wife Satya took the initiative to establish a donor-advised fund at the Seattle Foundation, along with their family foundation, named the Satya and Rao Remala Foundation.
“This is a philanthropic story as we are immigrants and Seattle is amazing and liberal, but not very diverse, especially in philanthropy. We are changing the way people look at philanthropy looks like,” informed the daughters of the couple, Srilata and Srilakshmi, who have now actively taken up the responsibility for the family’s philanthropic endeavours.
Rao with his wife Satya Remala.
The foundation has actively partnered with the Technology Access Foundation to enhance access to educational and career prospects for children from diverse backgrounds. Srilakshmi, the couple’s daughter, is deeply involved in the education sector and is currently working on the development of an app called Attain for Students. This app specifically aims to support first-generation and older college students by promoting focus and ultimately improving college retention rates and degree attainment.
“Even before STEM became widely emphasized, TAF’s primary focus was on providing opportunities for children of colour in the South Seattle area. Since the collaboration with TAF began, the programs have experienced substantial growth,” Srilakshmi explains.
The Rao Remala Foundation
The Remala Foundation extends its support to universities with personal connections to the family by funding scholarship endowments. These universities include Seattle University, University of Washington, and Carnegie Mellon University. A recent initiative by Seattle University involves the establishment of the Remala Family Scholarship. Sponsored by the Satya and Rao Remala Family Foundation, this scholarship provides a full-tuition scholarship to one Indian student annually, specifically for the LLM program.
Rao and Satya hope to inspire many people, particularly those with similar immigrant experiences, to increase their philanthropic endeavours. The Global Indians firmly believe that by doing so, they can serve as role models for the entire South Asian community.