Sunny Varkey (born in 1957 in Kerala, India) is a non-resident Indian, Dubai-based education entrepreneur and education philanthropist. He is the founder and chairman of the global advisory and educational management firm GEMS Education, which is the largest operator of private kindergarten-to-grade-12 schools in the world, with a network of over 130 schools in over a dozen countries. He is also the chairman of the umbrella business organisation the Varkey Group, and the founder and trustee of the philanthropic Varkey Foundation. As of 2012, Varkey is also a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador. And in June 2015, Varkey committed to The Giving Pledge, vowing to donate at least half of his money to philanthropic causes over his lifetime. He is the first education entrepreneur to join the pledge.
Early life and education
Varkey was born in Kerala, India in 1957. His father, KS, and mother, Miriamma, were Kerala Christians, and educators. The family moved to Dubai in 1959, when the emirate was still very undeveloped. His father worked for British Bank of the Middle East, and both of his parents taught English to local Arabs, including members of the royal family. At the age of four, Sunny was sent back to Kerala to attend Infant Jesus School, a Catholic boarding school in Kollam city. When he was 11 years old, he sold fruit on the side of the road to make a little extra money. He and his elder sister returned to Dubai in 1970, and Sunny completed his O-Levels at St. Mary’s Catholic High School. He pursued his A-Levels at Bembridge School in the UK for a year, and completed his A-Levels in Dubai at the British Council.
Summary
| Sunny Varkey | |
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Varkey in 2015
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| Born | 1957 Kerala, India |
| Residence | Dubai |
| Occupation | Entrepreneur, education philanthropist |
| Known for | GEMS Education Varkey Foundation |
| Children | Dino Varkey Jay Varkey |
Sunny Varkey Net Worth: Sunny Varkey is an Indian entrepreneur who has a net worth of $1.6 billion. Sunny Varkey entered the world’s richest list this year as the chairman of GEMS Education, an international K-12 education company that owns and operates high performing schools. Born to Indian expat teachers who migrated to Dubai in 1959, he has never gone beyond high-school. Before he got the chance to take over control of his parents’ Our Own English School in 1980, Varkey did literally everything from laying bricks for school buildings to driving the school bus. Nowadays, GEMS Education is the world’s largest operator of private kindergarten-to-grade-12 schools. It has built a network of 132 schools that house 142,000 students and 13,400 staff, mainly teachers, all over the Middle East, Africa, Europe, China, and India. As part of its constitution, GEMS has a consultancy that advises both governments and nonprofits, as well as a GEMS Foundation which thrives to improve the lives of 100 impoverished children for each child enrolled at a GEMS school. Bill Clinton serves as honorary chairman of Varkey’s GEMS Foundation.
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