Dexters at The White House with Presidential Seal. / Courtesy Photo

For 35 young Indian scholars, it was a day they would never be able to forget. They could not have asked for more than meeting  the first couple of the United States, the President Joe Biden and his lady wife Jill Biden, at the White House, in a rare and historic moment.

Identified, trained and developed as young scholars and leaders from their early teenage years, the 35 Indian students come from Dexterity Global’s National Scholar Development Program. They are currently undergraduate and graduate students at the world’s top universities on scholarships. Founded in 2008, Dexterity Global is a national organization powering the next generation of leaders through educational opportunities and training.

Sharad Vivek Sagar, CEO and founder of Dexterity Global, shared details of the visit of the students to the White House. Sagar was 16-years-old when he founded Dexterity Global in Patna, Bihar, with a vision to empower young scholars and leaders from low and middle income backgrounds and enable them to use their educational journey to power India’s national journey.

According to Sharad Vivek Sagar,  graduates and fellows of Dexterity have received over 2.75 billion rupees in scholarships from the world’s top 500 universities, served as India’s ambassadors to the UN and leadership forums worldwide, won over 1,000 national and international awards, and started their own public service and leadership initiatives.

Nobel Prize-winning economist Professor Abhijit Banerjee called Dexterity "an unusual institution," while The Telegraph called Graduates and Fellows of Dexterity "the future of India.” For this work, Sagar and Dexterity found a place on the Rockefeller Foundation’s Centennial List of 100 Next Century Social Innovators in 2012, the Forbes Global Under 30 List in 2016 and Queen of England’s Young Leaders List in 2018.

Over the course of four remarkable hours at the White House, the 35 Graduates and Fellows of Dexterity had the opportunity to interact with senior White House leadership including the White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients. Following their interaction with the White House Chief of House, the group engaged in an hour-long, in-depth conversation at the U.S. Treasury, where they discussed global economic challenges and opportunities with key officials. The historic visit of Graduates and Fellows of Dexterity also included a special tour of the White House, its iconic halls, rooms and gardens.

The White House Chief of Staff is the highest ranking leader in the Executive Office of the President at the White House. During his personal interaction with the group, Zients remarked, “You guys are the best of the best.” The White House Chief of Staff shared his life journey, learnings from his stellar record in public and private sector, and leadership experiences with President Obama and President Biden, while also answering the group’s questions on leadership and governance.

Each year, Graduates and Fellows of Dexterity, who are studying at the world’s top universities on full scholarships, gather for a 3-day Overseas Meetup and Retraining Program (OMRP) in a global city. In the past, OMRPs have taken place in Boston, Chicago, London, and Cambridge, where Dexterity’s young scholars were hosted by prestigious institutions such as Harvard University and interacted with Olympians, Nobel Laureates, public servants, innovators, and industry leaders. This year, the OMRP took place in Washington, D.C. and Graduates and Fellows of Dexterity were hosted at the White House at the invitation of the President and the First Lady.

Among the 35 scholars invited were four student government presidents, over a dozen student senators, recipients of the highest undergraduate and graduate awards, past UN youth ambassadors, artists and authors published in The New York Times. They come from all parts of India, speak multiple languages and serve as Indian ambassadors at global institutions.

The young leaders were accompanied by Dexterity Global’s Founder and CEO Sharad Vivek Sagar. Earlier this year, Sagar made history by becoming the youngest from India and the first ever from Bihar to be chosen the “2024 Young Global Leader” of the World Economic Forum, known for the coveted Davos Summit.

In 2016, Sagar was in national and global news when he became the only Indian to be invited by US President Barack Obama to the White House for a special gathering of young leaders. Later that year, the Nobel Peace Centre invited Sagar to the Nobel Peace Prize Ceremony. Sagar remains one of the youngest and most-invited experts on India’s most watched TV show Kaun Banega Crorepati. At the age of 24, Sagar was listed on the global Forbes 30 Under 30 list as the first ever from Bihar. In 2021, Sagar became the first Indian in history to be elected President of the Student Government at Harvard Graduate School of Education.

On the historic White House visit, Sagar said, “Sixteen years ago, I set out to build young scholars and leaders who could connect their educational journey with India's national journey. That Graduates and Fellows of Dexterity were hosted at the White House for over four hours is both historic and unprecedented. This is an extraordinary moment of pride for India and an inspiration for young scholars and leaders around the world. We extend our deepest gratitude to the President of the United States, the First Lady, White House Chief of Staff and the U.S. Treasury for hosting us and for this incredible experience.

Most Dexters become part of the Dexterity system in their pre-teens and undergo rigorous, life-long training and retraining. They come from humble backgrounds, remotest towns and villages of India and go on to do incredible things in their academic, social and professional journeys. I am incredibly happy for our young scholars and leaders and hopeful that with their education and leadership, they will truly power an Indian Century in a few decades.”