Advisory Board

Raised in the city of Dubai, Navin Valrani went on to graduate with honours from the Wharton School of Business and then backed it up with a distinction in his MBA at London Business School and a MSc. in Education at the University of Pennsylvania.

Navin today is the CEO of Arcadia Education, the Al Shirawi Group’s foray into K-12 education. He also heads up the group’s engineering services cluster, consisting of 11 companies, 7 Joint Ventures, and over 5000 employees. Navin sits on the board of the group, which also has interests in Printing, Oil and Gas, Logistics, Electronics, Heavy Equipment and Manufacturing Industries.

Navin served as the Chairman of the Young Presidents Organization (YPO) Emirates Chapter during the 2014-15 year, having served over five years on the chapter board. In his spare time, he enjoys giving back to his alma maters: presently on the Board of Overseers at the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education as well as the Wharton Executive Board for Europe, Middle East and Africa; serving as the Chairperson of the UAE Alumni Interviewing Committee for the University of Pennsylvania for the last 25 years; and a member of the International Alumni Council at London Business School from 2013 through to 2018.

In 2014, Navin furthered his commitment to his alma maters by instituting the Monica and Navin Valrani scholarship fund to support female students to attend both schools. Navin was also an integral part of the Campaign Committee at London Business School to successfully raise over £100 million in the school’s first-ever fund-raising campaign. Navin has been happily married for the last 23 years and has two sons. His wife, Monica, runs the Ladybird chain of nursery schools in Dubai and has a passion for early years education. Navin also teaches the renowned Junior MBA programme at The Arcadia School, a primary school business program that he founded and is extremely passionate about.

Kelly Chester is the founder of the Application Workshop, a boutique admissions firm based in New York, and a member of the Board of Advisors for Forward Thinking.

After receiving her graduate degree from Columbia University, Kelly started her career as a teacher and administrator at several prestigious Manhattan private schools. The New York Times described her teaching as being “on a level that most college professors might envy.” Kelly established the Application Workshop after noticing that many college consultants lacked the pedagogical background necessary to motivate and inspire students to craft essays and develop applications that would resonate with admissions officers.

Kelly works closely with families to identify ideal schools for applicants based on transcripts, standardized test scores, and interests. In addition, she specializes in the preparation of applications and the development of authentic and impactful personal statements and supplemental essays. In addition to serving clients domestically, Kelly has worked with international applicants from many regions.

Kelly’s expertise and proven success rate have provided her with a nuanced understanding of what competitive colleges look for in their applicants, which is why over 90% of her students have been admitted to one of their top three schools each year. More importantly, her dedication to each of her students and her commitment to helping them grow academically during the application process make her approach to admissions extraordinary.

Andy Ramirez joins the Forward Thinking Advisory Board after spending the last two decades in roles centered on higher education, specifically the college admissions landscape. Andy spent the first half of his career as an Assistant Dean of Admission at Princeton University and Associate Dean of Admission at Bowdoin College, reading and evaluating thousands of domestic and international applications, understanding student profiles and transcripts, and identifying how students distinguish themselves through personal narratives.

Andy has relied heavily on this experience throughout the second half of his career as Director of College Counseling at independent schools in the New York City Metro Area. On the high school side, in addition to managing the College Office and advising students, Andy has been involved in several key strategic initiatives as a member of the senior administration team, ranging from curricular development to targeted enrollment growth and retention. Andy’s robust network and understanding of what resonates with highly selective colleges will serve Forward Thinking well in our efforts to advise, prepare, and support students in the college admissions process.

Andy is a graduate of Williams College where he earned a BA in English and is currently in the School Leadership master's program at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education.

Rajaa Ghandour is a freshman at Brown University, where she is interested in pursuing a concentration in International and Public Affairs and French. Having completed A Levels in History, French, and Politics, Rajaa is well-versed in essay-based subjects, where she honed her skills in research, argumentation, and writing. As someone who has recently navigated the competitive college admissions process, Rajaa offers valuable insights into crafting compelling personal statements and supplemental essays.

Giles Pruett is an educator through and through. After completing his A-Level studies in the UK, he trained and competed as a professional tennis player for five years until moving back into full-time study to complete his Bachelor of Education at Bedford, reading Geography and Sport Science. He immediately returned to his home city of Bath and subsequently started his teaching career as Director of Rugby, Boarding Housemaster and Geography teacher in the independent community of Prior Park College. After completing a Master's Degree in Educational Leadership and Management at Bath University in 2012, gaining a distinction level, Giles transferred into the international education community, joining Jumeirah College in Dubai as Vice-Principal, where he remained for four years, before becoming Secondary Principal and Deputy Head of School at GEMS World Academy, helping them to become the highest rated full IB programme school in the city.

Giles is also a qualified corporate coach with a specific interest in building impactful professional learning communities by empowering others. He has developed pastoral structures to support learning and development in three previous leadership positions, ensuring that educational outcomes have been met and exceeded. Giles has experienced and driven inspection outcomes as a Senior Leader within several different frameworks, including Ofsted, HMI, CSCI, DSIB, CIS, BSO, COBIS, working as a Lead Reviewer within the GEMS organization and as Lead Evaluator for the Council of International Schools. His core inspection specialisms fall under the domains of teaching and learning, safeguarding, child protection and leadership and management.

Giles brings a wealth of experience in coaching, school operations, pastoral care and strategic school leadership and has been instrumental in developing an Apple Distinguished Teaching Programme, Entrepreneurship and Innovation curriculum alongside the design and construction of a new Senior School Learning Centre and Entrepreneurship Hub. He has a keen interest in this strand of education, recently completing a diploma from the Penn Graduate school of Education.

Above all else, Giles is a committed father to three wonderful girls and a husband to Joanna, who is also an educator and former British Olympic Modern Pentathlete. Together they share a passion for working with children, striving to bring learning to life and making a difference.