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Cincinnati, OH
Jagtar “Jay” Chaudhry and P. Jyoti Chaudhry, leading Indian Americans have established the Chaudhry Family Scholarship Fund with a $4 million gift to the University of Cincinnati, UC. The scholarship fund will support first-generation, Pell-eligible students in UC’s innovative Gen-1 1MPACT House, a residential community.
Jay and Jyoti are accomplished entrepreneurs who have an established trend of introducing visionary innovations to secure organizations against growing cyber threats while enabling their digital transformation. Jay is the CEO of Zscaler, a leader in cloud security (NASDAQ: ZS), that he and his wife Jyoti founded in 2007. Before starting Zscaler, together, they founded a series of successful companies, including AirDefense, CipherTrust, CoreHarbor and SecureIT.
He is a first-generation student and grew up in a small Indian village called Panoh in the Una district of Himachal Pradesh, in the foothills of the Himalayas. He says his parents prioritized their children’s education. Jay holds two Masters’ degrees from the UC College of Engineering and Applied Science and earned his MBA from the UC Carl H. Lindner College of Business. Jyoti also has an MBA from the Lindner College of Business.
This generous and visionary donation will fund the UC education of approximately 150 students beginning in the fall of 2025. The scholarship fund will fill the financial gaps of every Pell-eligible student living in the Gen-1 1MPACT House after Federal Pell and other grants are awarded.
“I’m truly grateful that Jay and Jyoti are dedicated partners in our ongoing commitment to first-generation students,” said UC President Neville G. Pinto. “Their generosity will forever change the lives of these students, their families and their communities.”
UC’s Gen-1 Program, established in 2008, is the nation’s first living-learning community to focus on first-generation college students. As the first in their families to attend college, Gen-1 students face unique challenges when transitioning to college. The Gen-1 Program and 1MPACT House provide them with a structured environment in which to live, learn and work towards their degrees. This includes academic, personal and social programming; mentoring and tutoring; in-house academic advising; workshops on financial aid and studying abroad; cooking classes; cultural activities and service projects.
Fall 2025 marks the program’s 18th year and UC’s Gen-1 students have succeeded in various careers, including the corporate world and the nonprofit sector.
