Dr. Varsha Gathoo is a seasoned Independent Inclusive Educational Consultant and former Head of the Department of Education at Ali Yavar Jung National Institute of Speech and Hearing Disabilities (AYJNISHD), India. She is a distinguished expert in her field, possessing over 33 years of cross-functional experience in special and inclusive education, human resource development, teaching, project management, mentoring, academic research, and policy development.

Dr. Gathoo holds a Ph.D. in Disability Management and Special Education, an M.S. in Speech and Hearing, and the Education of Hearing Impaired. She is a distinguished recipient of several prestigious awards, including the Fulbright Senior Research Fellow, LEND Fellow, and Rotary International Fellow. She has contributed significantly to various projects, including developing a ‘Test for School Readiness’, developing modified school textbooks for children with hearing impairment, and standardising the Indian Adaptation of Grammatical Analysis of Elicited Language – Pre-sentence Level (GAEL-P) Test in Marathi.

Dr. Gathoo’s extensive experience and expertise in inclusive education make her an invaluable resource for professionals and institutions seeking to develop and implement effective strategies for promoting inclusive education.