Our Team
Tias Kundu- Founder & President
Tias Kundu is the lead mentor of Speak to Lead- Youth Leadership Program. She has a doctorate degree in electronics engineering with over 15+ years of industry experience in various industries, including fortune 500 companies. In her career, she has held various engineering and program/product management roles. Her passion for public speaking developed over the years as she realized the power and strength of one's ability to develop and project his/her own voice. She is also a member of Toastmasters International and has held various leadership designations as a club president and Area Director for District 29. She is equally passionate about working with kids and has served in various coaching/mentoring roles for Odyssey of mind, FLL, Science Olympiad, Math Olympiad, and many others. Her passion for public speaking and coaching kids led to the formation of Speak to Lead Youth Leadership Program in 2020 for kids to learn communication and leadership skills through project-based learning experiences.
Al Rivera- Vice President
Al Rivera has over 35+ years of experience with leadership, coaching, and mentoring. A decorated 27-year military veteran, he successfully led high functioning teams successfully achieve strategic, operational, and tactical mission, vision, and objectives in three separate military campaigns. He holds master’s and bachelor’s degrees in Organizational Management with a concentration in Program Management and holds several professional and industry-related digital badges and certifications. Al currently works for a Fortune 500 company as a senior manager in enterprise change and transformation. The breadth and depth of his experience and expertise assist clients with strategic business transformation and organizational leadership and culture development to continuously evolve and maintain a competitive advantage. Al has over 30+ years leading, contributing, and supporting volunteer organizations including Toastmasters International, Kiwanis, American Red Cross, American Corporate Partners, Inc., and the American Legion. A committed advocate in developing and nurturing leaders of tomorrow, Al strongly believes in developing our youth to achieve their unrealized potential through the Speak to Lead program.
Saisha Pal 2022-Current
Youth President
Saisha is a freshman at Dougherty Valley High School, CA, and a member of the Northern California Girls Scouts board. She got introduced to speaktolead Youth Leadership Program in 2020. She has successfully led multiple projects as Youth President, the 2020 Talent Show, the 2021 Carnival, the 2022 Winter Toy Drive, the 2023 bake sale, and College Admissions and Youth Mental Health Fundraisers. She served as Youth Finance Manager for the 2022 STEAM Career Fair. Saisha enjoys public speaking and debate. She loves to sing, give back to the community, and spend time with her friends in her spare time.
Vaibhav Somesula 2022-Current
Youth Vice President
Vaibhav Somesula is a freshman at Centerville High School, VA. This is his fifth year in speaktolead- Youth leadership program. He got introduced to speaktolead Youth Leadership Program in 2020. He has been part of the program for three years and has led the team in various leadership projects. He was the Youth Secretary in the 2020 and 2021 leadership projects. He led successfully as a Youth President for the 2022 STEAM Career Fair. Outside of school, Vaibhav enjoys public speaking, reading, playing violin, and helping others through clubs such as Model United Nations and tutoring.
Arjun Aggarwal- 2021-2022 High School Mentor
A recent graduate of Thomas Jefferson High School, Arjun is one of the mentors on the YLP team. For the second phase of the program, the team explored debating and public speaking. With 6 years of debating experience, Arjun gave the team an introduction to organized debate by explaining the rules, assigning topics, and evaluating rounds. Following the second phase, Arjun chose to stick around because he enjoyed being around the kids and wanted to help them with setting up the carnival.
Richa Misra- 2021-2022 High School Mentor
Richa Misra is a junior at Thomas Jefferson High School, who was first got introduced to the Youth leadership program early this year. She has thoroughly enjoyed working with all the kids by practicing public speaking skills, working on the final carnival event, and more. Outside of school, Richa herself enjoys public speaking and helping others through clubs such as Model United Nations and tutoring.