Varun Gulati - Founder, Educator, Engineer, Activist

Hi, I'm Varun.

Product Leader. Founder. Engineer. Educator. Organizer.

I believe in using technology to create a more equitable world.

Over the course of my career, I have created tools which enable PreK-12 educators to create positive and engaging learning environments.

I am a...

Founder: started & sold an edtech company (UClass)
Product Leader: currently the Director of Product at Mystery.org
Engineer: led a high-performing dev team as CTO
Educator: taught math at a public high school
Organizer: volunteer with education equity, racial justice, and grassroots groups

In my spare time, I enjoy meditating, being outdoors, dancing (I've performed at 4 Warriors halftime shows), making homemade chai, writing, reading, and dabbling in creative endeavors (guitar/ukulele/photography/ceramics).

I frequently help early-stage startups to find product-market fit, build great products, and develop a clear strategy.

I advise startups and founders through a few different organizations:

Want to talk about start-ups? Get in touch!

I also occasionally speak on panels or present at events.

Here's where I've recently spoken:

	Columbia Venture Community panel, "From Bootstrap Start-up to Acquisition"	Panelist
	University of San Francisco, School of Management Creativity, Innovation, and Applied Design	Guest Lecturer
	University of California, San Francisco Master of Global Entrepreneurial Management class	Guest Lecturer
	SF EdTalks, "Real Talk: The Changing State of Education"	Panelist
	Duke Fuqua MBA class, Net Impact Club	Speaker
	MIT Sloan MBA class	Speaker
	Kick Accelerator, Spring cohort	Speaker
	Columbia Radio Lab Podcast, "From Bootstrap Start-up to Acquisition"	Speaker
	Kick Accelerator, Fall cohort	Speaker

In my spare time, I stay involved with education equity, racial justice, and grassroots issue and electoral campaigns.

Shekar Krishnan for NY-25	Shekar Krishnan is a community activist and civil rights lawyer running for NY City Council in District 25. Campaign Digital Lead. (2020) Led digital since pre-launch. Set up and configured internal tools and constituent e-mail platform. Created lightweight CRM and donor management. Made updates to website.
NYC Councilmember Lander	Brad Lander is the founding chair of the Progressive Caucus on New York City Council. Policy & Tech fellow. (2018) Created and/or upgraded interactive web tools for digital advocacy. Researched and designed infographic for 12-point Desegregate NYC agenda

Carry Our Weight	Carry Our Weight is a rich-media anti-racism resource. We elevate the work of Black writers, creators, authors, and thinkers, and help guide allies in the important work of reflecting, learning, taking action, and dismantling our own racism. Creator. (2020) Compiled resources, designed information architecture, and coded full website.
Death Penalty Truths	Death Penalty Truths is a digital infographic about truths and myths surrounding the death penalty. Built to support the Yes on 62 campaign to end the death penalty in California. Creator. (2016) Commended by Bryan Stevenson, the director of the Equal Justice Initiative.

Alliance for Quality Education	AQE is New York's leader in education justice and fair funding advocacy. Organizer. (2018-2019) Active in lobbying, postcarding, political education, etc. Created a digital infographic of how much money NY State owes to each county.
Get Organized BK	GOBK is a community organization that resists injustice by organizing civic actions for Brooklynites. Steering Committee; Digital Team co-lead. (2017-2018) Co-developed website, facilitated digital communications tools and resource sharing for subgroups and 1000+ members.
Raise the Age NY	Raise the Age NY was a multi-year campaign to prevent 16- and 17-year-old kids from being prosecuted as adults in NY. The campaign succeeded in April 2017 and was signed into law by Governor Cuomo. Organizer. (2017) Organized phone banks, created shareable infographic.
Richard Glossip is Innocent	Richard Glossip is Innocent was a website created and released alongisde the Discovery Go TV series examining Richard Glossip's wrongful conviction and subsequent sentencing to death row. Digital Organizer. (2017) Created website, set up pipeline to funnel leads for Richard Glossip's defense.

The day my student was expelled	A reflection about a time when one of my students was expelled. This piece is largely a critism about the school-to-prison pipeline and punitive justice models. (2016) Featured as an Editor's Pick on the homepage of Medium.com, The Marshall Project, and The Southern Poverty Law Center. Published in The Synapse.
Will Democratic candidates talk about education justice?	(2019) A commentary on the political discourse of education justice, the realities of the school-to-prison pipeline, and the various stances of Democratic candidates.
Tamir Rice: your death was part of The Plan.	(2015) A letter written to Tamir Rice, a 12-year-old victim of police brutality. This piece offers a grim perspective on the planned nature of mass incarceraton.

Hi, I'm Varun.

Product Leader. Founder. Engineer. Educator. Organizer.

Nice to meet you

Advising

Speaking

Organizing

Electoral campaigns & offices

Solo Projects

Community Organizing

Writing

Get in touch