Middle school in Florida to be named after Indian American doctor

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NEW YORK: The Manatee County School Board members have unanimously voted to name a new middle school in Lakewood Ranch, Florida after an Indian American doctor, Mona Jain, who was also a former teacher, and who served as the Director of Family Health Services for Manatee County’s Head Start program, according to The Bradenton Times.

Jain came to the U.S. from India as a Fulbright Scholar in 1964 and received her M.D. from Spartan Health Sciences University School of Medicine and her ED.S. in Administration and Supervision from NOVA University.

In 1984, she earned a Ph.D. in Interdisciplinary Education and Educational Leadership from the University of South Florida.

She also holds an M.S. in Science Education from Florida State University, a B.Ed. in Biological and Health Sciences from Delhi University and a B.Sc. in Biology, Chemistry and History of Sciences from Delhi University, according to The Bradenton Times.

According to a University of South Florida press release, Jain also served on the Florida Governor’s Commission on Education, the executive board of the Florida Commission on the Status of Women and was the president of the American Association of University Women.

The Bradenton Times reported that Jain “worked tirelessly throughout her career to encourage and empower female students to overcome educational biases and better fulfill their academic potential.”

Jain and her husband, Kailash Jain, have been living in Manatee County for more than 50 years and their daughter Anila Jain is also a doctor.

The middle school is yet to be built and will open in August 2019 on 44th Avenue East in Lakewood Ranch, Florida, next to the B.D. Gullett Elementary School.