Honors an individual with less than five years in executive leadership who is an emerging luminary in the field.

2025 Award Winner

Mayuri Meera

Sahan Journal

Since joining the staff in 2022, Mayuri Meera has led efforts that help advance Sahan Journal’s values around equity, fairness, transparency and professional growth, Executive Director Vanan Murugesan said in the nomination letter.

Meera, Sahan’s director of operations and finance, began working at the outlet during a difficult period of transition. She led efforts to help navigate those challenges and address issues that threatened staff retention rates such as developing detailed and transparent salary tiers and expanding the organization’s benefits to better address family health care needs and new savings options to go toward paying off student debt. 

Meera was also instrumental in building Sahan’s internal financial and operational systems from the ground up — an effort “anchored in a deep understanding of each department’s reporting needs as well as the organization’s strategic values,” Murugesan said.

Meera also focused on boosting her “already formidable skillset” by “pursuing advanced training and certification in nonprofit finance as well as senior HR certification,” Murugesan said. “These efforts have helped the organization to scale up sustainably.”

Finalists

• The Xylom, Alex Ip
• Conecta Arizona, Maritza L. Félix